Reading the Tea Leaves

I have a smart and successful friend who has been a Christian all her life. Most people would say Gail is confident and capable, but she struggles with uncertainty. When her desire for control becomes too strong to resist, she has a secret:  She sees a psychic — and, together, they attempt to read the tea leaves to discern what the future holds.

It’s a struggle for me to hold my tongue. Not because she’s wasting her money or because she’s desperate for answers (who hasn’t been?), but because I’m convinced it’s a false security that she gains. And I believe it moves her further from, rather than closer to, the only one who truly knows what’s coming. The Lord says, “Trust me” and “Do not be afraid.” But, it’s too hard for her to resist peeking behind the curtain. Or trying to anyway.

I want to help you make a better choice.

First, let me say I totally understand the desire to know what’s coming. So does anyone who’s every wrestled with the many unknowns of infertility:  Is the doctor right about what’s wrong? Are we wasting time? Are we wasting money? Whose fault is it? If we knew, would that change anything? Is all this failure a sign? If we can’t know, should we keep trying — or should we give up?

And just as urgent are the even-bigger questions:  Will we always be the ones who never had a family? And if we are, will we walk away from God?

The answer is not in the tea leaves. Or in the cards. Or in today’s horoscope. Or wherever it is you turn hoping for a view of the future you are not meant to see. I say that with a high degree of certainty….

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.   – Isaiah 55:8

So, where does that leave you?

Maybe…. reassured. God’s thoughts are not your thoughts? That means He’s not worried, or desperate, or afraid. He’s not thinking about who to blame, or how to answer questions people have no right to ask. He’s not thinking about failure or biological clocks or limited budgets or imperfect doctors. His thoughts are not your thoughts.

Instead, His thoughts flow out of who He is and what He has promised. He is faithful. He is unchanging. He is Almighty. He is abundant sufficiency. And He loves you.

His ways are not your ways? So then, He’s not biting His nails, waiting for the test results, staying busy to avoid thinking about what’s not happening. Instead, He is drawing near to those who draw near to Him. He is seeking the hearts of those who are suffering and struggling, and He is offering help and hope — through his Son, and through the Holy Spirit.

He is not avoiding what’s hard and heartbreaking. He is in the midst of it — with you.

When your mind is full of urgent questions, it is easy to turn away from God and turn to anyone or anything you believe might give you the answers you crave. But I can tell you from experience:  Infertility is an extended invitation to get to know God better. Deeper. More intimately than you’ve ever imagined possible. Not because He needs it; because you do.

It will make you a better spouse, a better parent, a better friend, a better neighbor, and a better ambassador for His Kingdom.

And when your baby comes, you will realize that a time you thought was all about suffering was actually all about growing in faith — in anticipation of the blessing that was destined to come.

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For more inspiration and cause for hope, read Pregnant With Hope: Good News for Infertile Couples

Ten Years and Worth It: One Couple’s Story

Alesha and Josh were high school sweethearts.  They married at 20 and conceived their first baby after 18 months of trying.  They lost the baby ten weeks later.  Very disappointed but not defeated, they spent the next two years trying to conceive again.  But, nothing.

They consulted the experts.  Tests revealed Alesha had a pituitary gland tumor, so she had it removed.  Then a reproductive endocrinologist discovered endometriosis, so she had a laparoscopy.  They tried Clomid, then IUI’s, but still no baby.  Five years into their journey, they did their first IVF.  Alesha got pregnant… but lost the baby.  Then, they did a frozen cycle… without success.

“Both of us are teachers, so we had a limited budget,” Alesha explained.  They’d taken a second mortgage on their house, but even so, IVF consumed all the money they had to spend.  Their extended family began holding garage sales to help them.  Alesha’s father even sold his beloved Harley.  “But we still didn’t get pregnant,” Alesha said, “and I felt like we let them all down.”

Determined to keep trying, they decided to relocate to Arkansas, a state that offers infertility insurance.  They sold their home, moved their worldly goods, and found new jobs.  Then, they got a call from INCIID.  Months earlier, Alesha had applied for a grant — but she’d never heard back and had assumed that meant, “No.”

Amazingly, they’d been chosen.  “That was when God told me, ‘August.’  I kept trying to figure out what that meant….”

They were matched with the Sher Institute in Las Vegas.  Alesha got pregnant, but she lost the baby a couple months later.  The Sher Institute found a creative way to finance another try, enrolling them in a research study that covered the costs of all medical procedures and most meds.  On August 3^rd, they transferred four embryos.  Alesha conceived triplets.  They lost one… but miraculously, the other two survived.

Emily Lynn and Abigail Grace were born exactly ten years after Josh and Alesha began trying.

Why did they have to slog through a ten-year obstacle course to become a family?  What was the purpose of all that struggling and suffering?  All that moving, and job-hunting, and fund-raising?  Alesha believes it was, at least in part, about obedience.  And learning to trust God completely.

Rick Warren’s global bestseller, The Purpose-Driven Life, opens with this four-word perspective:  “It’s not about you.”  Warren explains, “The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness.  It’s far greater than your family….  You were made for God, not vice versa, and life is about letting God use you for His purposes….”

After all the tests, surgeries, injections, inseminations, harvests, transfers  and miscarriages, Alesha and Josh think they understand part of God’s purpose.  They sense Him calling them to help other couples make the journey.  That’s why they are starting an infertility Bible study using  the book Pregnant With Hope.

“God puts people in my path constantly who are going through infertility,” said Alesha.  “One day, in church, I knew:  it’s time – you need to do this.”  She started researching infertility support and found there was nothing for infertile couples in Oklahoma (now their home).

Later this month, Josh and Alesha will host their first gathering.  They’re understandably nervous, but also excited to see how God will use them and their story to help other couples.  “Letting go  and giving God complete control made all the difference for us.  That’s what we want to help other couples understand.  If you give it to God, there is always hope.”



What’s the Purpose of a Ten Year Journey?

Alesha and Josh were high school sweethearts.  They married at 20 and conceived their first baby after 18 months of trying.  They lost the baby ten weeks later.  Very disappointed but not defeated, they spent the next two years trying to conceive again.  But, nothing.

They consulted the experts.  Tests revealed Alesha had a pituitary gland tumor, so she had it removed.  Then a reproductive endocrinologist discovered endometriosis, so she had a laparoscopy.  They tried Clomid, then IUI’s, but still no baby.  Five years into their journey, they did their first IVF.  Alesha got pregnant… but lost the baby.  Then, they did a frozen cycle… without success.

“Both of us are teachers, so we had a limited budget,” Alesha explained.  They’d taken a second mortgage on their house, but even so, IVF consumed all the money they had to spend.  Their extended family began holding garage sales to help them.  Alesha’s father even sold his beloved Harley.  “But we still didn’t get pregnant,” Alesha said, “and I felt like we let them all down.”

Determined to keep trying, they decided to relocate to Arkansas, a state that offers infertility insurance.  They sold their home, moved their worldly goods, and found new jobs.  Then, they got a call from INCIID.  Months earlier, Alesha had applied for a grant — but she’d never heard back and had assumed that meant, “No.”

Amazingly, they’d been chosen.  “That was when God told me, ‘August.’  I kept trying to figure out what that meant….”

They were matched with the Sher Institute in Las Vegas.  Alesha got pregnant, but she lost the baby a couple months later.  The Sher Institute found a creative way to finance another try, enrolling them in a research study that covered the costs of all medical procedures and most meds.  On August 3^rd, they transferred four embryos.  Alesha conceived triplets.  They lost one… but miraculously, the other two survived.

Emily Lynn and Abigail Grace were born exactly ten years after Josh and Alesha began trying.

Why did they have to slog through a ten-year obstacle course to become a family?  What was the purpose of all that struggling and suffering?  All that moving, and job-hunting, and fund-raising?  Alesha believes it was, at least in part, about obedience.  And learning to trust God completely.

Rick Warren’s global bestseller, The Purpose-Driven Life, opens with this four-word perspective:  “It’s not about you.”  Warren explains, “The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness.  It’s far greater than your family….  You were made for God, not vice versa, and life is about letting God use you for His purposes….”

After all the tests, surgeries, injections, inseminations, harvests, transfers  and miscarriages, Alesha and Josh think they understand part of God’s purpose.  They sense Him calling them to help other couples make the journey.  That’s why they are starting an infertility Bible study using  the book Pregnant With Hope.

“God puts people in my path constantly who are going through infertility,” said Alesha.  “One day, in church, I knew:  it’s time – you need to do this.”  She started researching infertility support and found there was nothing for infertile couples in Oklahoma (now their home).

Later this month, Josh and Alesha will host their first gathering.  They’re understandably nervous, but also excited to see how God will use them and their story to help other couples.  “Letting go  and giving God complete control made all the difference for us.  That’s what we want to help other couples understand.  If you give it to God, there is always hope.”