Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!
“For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease.” Psalm 91:3 [NLT]
Here’s an article from UPTOWN Magazine, Overcoming Infertility, that I hope you’ll find informative and encouraging.
By Bryna Jean-Marie
Photography by Sumner Dilworth
If 40 is the new 30, then 30 should be the new 20. However, most women’s biological clocks are still ticking to the same beat they did in the 1950s. And fellas, before you flip this page, fertility isn’t a slam dunk for you either. No matter who has the physical challenge, both share the emotional one. Thankfully, reproductive medicine has come a long way.
Many of us are claiming an extra decade to focus on ourselves before we consider marriage and starting a family. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing—often this time is used to knock out grad school, fast track it up the corporate ladder, or become financially solvent. For the first time, more babies are being born to women over the age of 35 than to teenagers, according to the Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C. However, says Dr. Thomas Vaughn, founder and director of the Texas Fertility Center in Austin, “Patients read about women becoming pregnant at an older age and assume that they, too, will have no problems conceiving. Couples do not realize that fertility begins to decline when a woman is in her early thirties.” Thankfully, couples do have options when their biological clock is thumping.
A couple is considered to have fertility problems when they have been sexually active for one year without using any contraception and has been trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant. (It is recommended that couples seek help after six months of trying if the woman is over 35.) According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the total percentage of affected women, including those who are unable to carry a baby to term, is virtually the same between black and white women. But when it comes to using alternative
methods of conception, the roads begin to part.
Health scientists are still piecing together the reasons why more fertility challenged African-Americans are not undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) or considering surrogacy or egg donation. Contrary to popular belief, preliminary studies indicate that money may not always be the top deterrent. Religious
beliefs and other factors often play a significant role.
For those trying to make it happen by any means necessary, there are options—and an exhaustive amount of material and research to sift through. The Watleys believed in miracles—and IVF proved to be theirs.
Easter has passed but resurrection is still on my mind. Watching The Bible TV miniseries gave me some new insights about the love and ministry of Jesus. One of them is about hope.
After Jesus willingly gave His life on the cross for everyone in the world (even the unborn), He did not just leave an empty tomb as proof that He had risen. He chose to once again demonstrate His love for us by presenting “Himself to them [believers] and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3 NIV). Jesus did not want to leave His followers wondering what happened once they saw that His tomb was empty. He wanted to convince them that He indeed had risen for the justification [freedom from guilt and the penalty of sin] of all who choose to believe in Him! Two thousand years later, we can live in that freedom because of Jesus’ resurrection.
What does that have to do with hope? Well, I think Jesus stayed on earth so long after His death because He wanted to make sure that those who believed in Him had not lost hope. Some may have lost hope because Jesus did not become the reigning King of Israel as they had envisioned Him. Others may have believed the Pharisees account of grave robbers having come to steal the body and lost hope that Jesus was really their Messiah. Jesus wanted to assure the believers that He indeed had risen so He patiently took time to show Himself to many so that we, two thousand years later could believe and have hope in Him.
If you’ve lost hope for something in your life, maybe for having a baby, or advancing on your job, or overcoming a debilitating illness, RESURRECT your hope! Bring your hope back to life by finding a promise of God that relates to your situation. Believe that the promise is true for you. If you find it hard to believe, ask God to help you believe it (Mark 9:24). Then speak that promise and expect it to manifest in your life. You’ll have to be persistent in speaking that promise…your enemy, the devil, will do all he can to distract you from believing and speaking it with confidence. Despite that, continue to thank God that His promise for you is sure and worthy of your trust. Rest assured, your hope will be renewed and your confidence increased as you take a stand on the promises of God.
FREE PDF of fertility bible verses:
Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!
“This I declare about the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him.”
Psalm 91:2 [NLT]
I enjoy watching basketball games. It was especially fun to watch when my 2 sons played at the YMCA and later for their high school teams. Whenever the college basketball tournament, known as March Madness, rolls around, I get excited. At the very beginning of the 3-week tournament, I print out the bracket sheet that shows all the team match-ups. I like to use it to predict (more like guess!) who’ll be the winner of each game and the overall champion at the end. It’s fun, especially when my husband and children develop their own bracket sheet to predict winners because we can compare who made the best guesses as the tournament progresses. Of course, whatever we predict at the beginning does not have to necessarily come to pass by the end of the tournament.
This is slightly similar to how God does things. He declares the end of things from the very beginning, except of course, what He says ALWAYS comes to pass, it is not a guess. Isaiah 46:9, 10 states, “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me; declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure.'”
I’m grateful we can count on God’s ability to always perform what He has promised. His words are power-filled and He has spoken so that we can experience his best. His faithfulness is truly a blessing for which to be thankful because He has made a way, through Jesus, for every believer to be a champion in life by maintaining confidence in His promises and predictions.
What promises of God do you declare and count on Him to perform on your behalf?
Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!
“Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1
Get more information at Resolve.org.
Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.”
Psalm 46: 1, 2 [NIV]
Empty.
It’s hard to get through the day feeling empty. Especially when every day seems to be filled with emptiness.
Empty womb.
Empty arms.
Empty heart.
Emptiness is HEAVY. How can emptiness have weight–isn’t that an oxymoron? I’m not sure how it happens but I know the emotions of emptiness are so heavy and burdensome and yet we readily tote them around as if we have no alternative. What do you do when those feelings of emptiness tempt you to carry them with you throughout your day? What if there was someone who wanted to carry that weight for you? Would you give it up? What if someone offered something else in exchange? Would you take them up on their offer?
Well, that someone is Jesus. He wants you to see Him as your burden lifter; the One who stands at the ready to pick up and carry all the weight of barrenness so that you can be yoked with Him, filled with His Spirit, and experience the fullness of His rest, peace and joy.
Will you let Him?
“Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” ~Matthew 11:28
“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence…” ~Psalm 16:11 [NIV]
When: Saturday, March 23rd
Where: Eldorado Park in Scottsdale, AZ.
Registration will begin at 8:00 AM and the Walk begins at 9:00AM. All Walk activities will be completed by 11:00AM.
The Walk of Hope will raise funds that will support local programming, public awareness initiatives, and advocacy efforts to ensure that all family building options are available to all.
No one should face infertility alone.
