Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: The Family Home (05/29/08)
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TITLE: Lots of Blessings | Previous Challenge Entry
By Ann Marie Lindenmeyer
05/30/08 -
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Getting pregnant was never on my agenda at the partying age of 21, but it happened and that ‘oops’ moment passed. I remember my mom asking, “How did that happen?” and thought sarcastically, “Gee, I wonder.”
My high school sweetheart whom I’d dated on and off for six years was not exactly what I would deem as a healthy relationship and his abusive behavior woke me up to face my honored responsibility of motherhood. I walked away from him forever when my twin daughters were 11-months old.
As a single-mom for almost five years, I struggled; I struggled financially, I struggled in relationships, I struggled through counseling, I struggled in accepting who I was and liking myself. Through those struggles, I felt complete joy, motherhood was something I treasured.
Our Family Home: Filled with lots of motherly love, lots of learning, lots of reading books, and lots of giggles. The home was never extravagant; everything was used or bought at yard sales, or free from caring people that helped out. I carefully chose a church and brought my daughters on and off during these years because I felt it was the correct motherly thing to do, though I knew nothing about Jesus.
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Oops, AGAIN! Now I was asking myself, “How did I let THAT happen?” I faced fear, total fear of being alone with two-five year old daughters and pregnant with a new child on the way. I married, moved 900 miles away from my support system to have the support of the father.
This relationship was better, or at least it seemed, but also unhealthy in many ways. Five years passed and it was almost destroyed, but something amazing happened in the process of marital destruction: I found Jesus! Because of my new faith, I pursued reconciliation of our marriage, but two-years later we divorced.
Married to someone controlling caused me struggles; I struggled with my self-esteem and self-worth, I struggled to keep peace in our family, I struggled to appear perfect to the outside world as chaos reigned inside the closed doors of my home. Through these struggles I found Jesus, faith, and felt joy in motherhood raising my three children.
Our Family Home: Filled with lots of motherly love, lots of learning, lots of reading books, lots of giggles, and lots of family and school activities. We had a nice home in a nice neighborhood and many of the kids’ friends enjoyed a lot of playtime and fun times in our home. We regularly attended church and the kids learned at a young age all about Jesus.
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The third time, fear took over, fear of doing it wrong AGAIN. When my current husband and I got engaged, God spoke to me and I feared getting pregnant before our wedding date, God wished me to wait. God blessed us with my third pregnancy during the weekend of our wedding.
I hadn’t realized how hard this marriage would start out, a step-family with two daughters heading into the pre-teen years, a son who had to share his life between our house and his dads’ home, and a pregnancy. But now almost three years into this marriage, with the grace of God, we’ve gotten through some hard times and rose above it all to a stronger, more loving marriage.
My struggles were different this time, I had true faith in my marriage, God had brought me to my husband and I knew things would be okay. I struggled mostly with the adjustment and the need for my husband to have the same faith I had in our marriage. I feel such peace and immense joy with my family life.
Our Family Home: Filled with lots of motherly love, lots of learning, lots of reading books, lots of giggles, lots of family and school activities, and lots of wonderful memories that will never be forgotten. We recently moved to a nice house in a beautiful neighborhood, it is peaceful. God graced us with a perfect church that we attend regularly and the children know so much about Jesus and so do we, well except our little guy, but he’ll learn soon enough.
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Mistakes, maybe? But overall, God has given me the greatest joy I could ever have in life, my children, a blessing I am thankful for every single day.
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Some small errors in punctuation, particularly comma usage, were mildly distracting.
You've had a hard but blessed life, and I'm so glad to read this affirming testimony.