by Marilynn Chadwick
During our years of infertility, hopes to have a baby grew increasingly dim. David and I continued to “feed” on the promises of God’s Word about healing—too many to count—day after day, month after month, year after year. Promises such as, “He settles the childless woman in her home as a happy mother of children” (Psalm 113:9 NIV).
During those desperate days, I learned to hear God’s whispers of encouragement, see little signs of his work, and trust his character. In short, I learned the secret of what the apostle John calls “abiding in Christ” (John 15:7).
Near the end of our fourth year of waiting, we enlisted the help of a highly-recommended specialist with a reputation for remarkable success with hard cases like ours. During our first consultation, the doctor delivered the crushing news that my fallopian tubes were scarred completely shut. Our chances of getting pregnant, even with surgery, looked next to impossible. David and I sat there stunned, letting the news sink in. We left the office, hopes dashed. One thing was certain. We needed a miracle.
David and I drew strength from each other. We sensed God whispering to press on and not give up hope. Looking to the example of Abraham and Sarah I purposed in my heart to keep believing. Even if I am old, like Sarah, I whispered to God, I will still keep believing your promise. And despite what the facts tell us, I still believe you have placed this dream for a baby in our hearts. It’s now in your hands. I trust you, no matter what.
The doctor scheduled major surgery—a last ditch effort. The night before surgery, something happened that even our doctor couldn’t explain. As for me, I felt like a bit of heaven touched earth.
Trying to keep my mind off the surgery, I was flipping through channels with the remote. We called it “channel-surfing” back then. I happened upon a Christian television show. The program host was praying for people to be healed. Curious, I listened as the camera zoomed in for a close up.
As I watched, he had his head bowed and was praying for people to be healed of various conditions. Then he paused and looked right into the camera. “There is someone watching this program who has scar tissue. It could be in their lungs…no, it’s in her abdomen. I sense I’m to tell you that God is healing you right now.”
Scar tissue in their abdomen—who could possibly care about scar tissue in their abdomen except me? That’s got to be for me! I pulled out my journal and hastily scribbled the time, date, and words, writing down all the “evidence” in case this startling scenario proved true.
To be continued…