Wednesday, August 1, 2012

THIS is a Row Boat


I'm sure most of you have heard this allegory in one form or another, but I feel it's particularly applicable to the good news I'm about to share.
 
There was a man whose farm was located on the banks of a flood-swollen river.  As the water rose, a neighbor drove up in a Jeep, urging him to leave before the farm was flooded.
 
"Oh, no," said the man confidently, "God will save me."
 
The water rose higher, and the man was forced to move into the second story of the farmhouse.  A police boat soon came, and the officers called for the man to hurry and get into their boat.
  
"Oh, no, that won't be necessary," the man insisted. "God will save me."
  
Finally the house was completely engulfed in water, and a Coast Guard helicopter swooped into rescue the man, now perched on the roof.  Again he refused.  Just then, a huge wave of water swept over the house and the man drowned.
  
When in Heaven, the man stood before God and asked, "I put all my faith in You.  Why didn't You come and save me?"
  
And God said, "Son, I sent you a car.  I sent you a row boat.  I sent you a helicopter.  What more were you looking for?"

When you can't have children it's easy to feel like maybe God doesn't want you to have children.  We know that He is all-powerful, so why doesn't He just step in and "make it happen"?  Every month we have felt the loss and discouragement of still not achieving our greatest desire to become parents.  Then, this past weekend I heard this allegory again and it struck a cord deep in my heart.  God CAN perform miracles, and He IS all-powerful, but most of the time He works through His own natural laws and through other people.  It's not likely that Matt and I will ever achieve pregnancy on our own, but He has provided many options for us to become parents!

We have prayed time and time again that we would be able to achieve pregnancy the "natural" way, but if not, that he would bless us financially to be able to do whatever necessary to become parents. 

So, I'm ecstatic to announce (to those of you who haven't heard ;)) that Pound the Pavement for Parenthood (website, facebook, twitter) has chosen to sponsor Matt and I.  This means they will be sponsoring a 5k race in our name to help us raise funds to start our family.  If you live in Indiana, come walk/run/jog/eat a sandwich while you happen to be walking a 5k with us!  It's for a great cause and when you see our adorable little one you can think, "Hey!  I helped them get there!" :)  We'll definitely try to have ways for everyone to get involved--even if you can't come walk/run for us!  I've already had several people send messages wanting to know how they can help even though they live far away.  We feel so overwhelmed and humbled by the support we've received already.  It is an expensive journey no matter which route you choose and we feel so incredibly grateful for this amazing opportunity.

When we received the email on Sunday that we had been selected as one of the three sponsor couples and read through the contract, I turned to Matt with tears in my eyes and said, "THIS is a row boat."  The Lord works in mysterious ways my friends.

13 comments:

My boy and I said...

I am so happy for you both. I am so touched by your incredible faith that everything will work out. You've inspired me and I'm sure many others as well. I'm so glad you were chosen, you deserve it!

Our Family said...

So excited for your newest journey! Please let us know how we can show our support all the way out here in Utah!

Bryan and Sarah said...

I'm registering for the 5K!

Brandon & Rachael said...

I LOVE this post!! So true that this is our row boat! Do you ever get out to Utah? I'd love to meet you!

Katie said...

Yay! So excited!

Sophia Crane said...

Stephanie, We are so excited for your news. We can't be there walking with you, but please let us know when things are set up so that we can help you build your row boat. We wish you the best on your journey to parenthood. You & Matt will be such great parents.

Unknown said...

Let us know what we can do over here! Liane xxx

Rachael said...

I couldn't be more happy for you! You deserve it!

P.S. Your photography is amazing! What kind of lens do you use?

Landon and Julie said...

WONDERFUL news! We are so excited for you guys and want to help in whatever way we can! HOORAY!

Teandra said...

That is exciting! I'm very happy for you guys.

Sam Mitchell said...

Congratulations, Steph! That is so, so exciting. I am excited to hear how things work out for you guys :)

karla said...

That's great news! I wish I could be there to support you in person. As always, thank you for sharing and for your amazing example!

Kimba said...

I'm so happy for you! I LOVE your analogy! It was just what I needed to hear! Thank you for sharing! :)