A Beautiful Thing -- Hillcrest Baptist Church

Day 1 Devotional (Week 2)
Monday, April 18, 2011

"And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weakness, that the power of Christ may dwell in me." -- 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NAS)

This happened to Kathy and me back in 1977. After being married 3 years, we hoped to start a family. When nothing "happened" after a year of trying, a visit to Kathy's doctor revealed she might never be able to have children. We were devastated. That began our 9-year journey in an attempt to start a family. I often lay in bed wondering what we had done to make us "unworthy" of having children.

It took me a while to realize it wasn't what we had done, but what we hadn't done. We hadn't asked God to step in and take control. We hadn't understood that whatever the outcome, His grace would sustain us.

After 8 years of doing it our way, and failing, we turned it over to God. He opened the door to a new fertility program in Austin. The morning Kathy was wheeled into surgery I remember getting on my knees with the door closed, asking God to please make the procedure a success. We had already decided that we would only try this once, and if this attempt failed, we would just accept our life as it was with no children and rely on God to get us through the disappointment.

When the doctor returned, he told me the procedure had gone perfectly, and it was now in God's hands.

For those of you that know us, you know that God has a sense of humor: He blessed us with triplets on this first and only attempt! And for the past 24 years, we have relied more and more on God's grace to get us through.

People continually ask, "How did you do it?" And the answer is always, "With the help from God." This journey has made us so much stronger in our faith, because we know we could not have gotten through it all without His grace, which He continues to shower down on us.

Lord in Heaven, give me the understanding that your grace is sufficient, and through your strength I can endure the day-to-day problems that come my way. Let others see your strength in me so that you may be glorified. Give me the motivation to change the things that I can change, the strength of Christ to persevere through the things I can't, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Prepared by Mike & Kathy Wiederkehr

To prepare spiritually during our “A Beautiful Thing” campaign, you will receive a devotional written by our own members every Monday through Saturday for five weeks. To opt out of these daily devotionals, click here. To read the announcements from the “ABT Weekly Update,” click here.

A Beautiful Thing - from Hillcrest Baptist Church, Austin, Texas	Contact Tom Goodman, Pastor
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Day 1 Devotional (Week 2) Monday, April 18, 2011 "And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weakness, that the power of Christ may dwell in me." -- 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NAS) This happened to Kathy and me back in 1977. After being married 3 years, we hoped to start a family. When nothing "happened" after a year of trying, a visit to Kathy's doctor revealed she might never be able to have children. We were devastated. That began our 9-year journey in an attempt to start a family. I often lay in bed wondering what we had done to make us "unworthy" of having children. It took me a while to realize it wasn't what we had done, but what we hadn't done. We hadn't asked God to step in and take control. We hadn't understood that whatever the outcome, His grace would sustain us. After 8 years of doing it our way, and failing, we turned it over to God. He opened the door to a new fertility program in Austin. The morning Kathy was wheeled into surgery I remember getting on my knees with the door closed, asking God to please make the procedure a success. We had already decided that we would only try this once, and if this attempt failed, we would just accept our life as it was with no children and rely on God to get us through the disappointment. When the doctor returned, he told me the procedure had gone perfectly, and it was now in God's hands. For those of you that know us, you know that God has a sense of humor: He blessed us with triplets on this first and only attempt! And for the past 24 years, we have relied more and more on God's grace to get us through. People continually ask, "How did you do it?" And the answer is always, "With the help from God." This journey has made us so much stronger in our faith, because we know we could not have gotten through it all without His grace, which He continues to shower down on us. Lord in Heaven, give me the understanding that your grace is sufficient, and through your strength I can endure the day-to-day problems that come my way. Let others see your strength in me so that you may be glorified. Give me the motivation to change the things that I can change, the strength of Christ to persevere through the things I can't, and the wisdom to know the difference. Prepared by Mike & Kathy Wiederkehr To prepare spiritually during our “A Beautiful Thing” campaign, you will receive a devotional written by our own members every Monday through Saturday for five weeks. To opt out of these daily devotionals, click here. To read the announcements from the “ABT Weekly Update,” click here.