Messy Ministry: Pregnancy, Prison and Parenting – Part 1

As I sit down to write my first ever blog post, my mind wanders as to how I should introduce myself. Who am I? Who does the world think I am? Who do my husband and children perceive me to be? None of those questions truly matter, and they pale in comparison to whom The Lord says I am. To say I am a Christian doesn’t even scratch the surface. I am a daughter of the most high king and have been chosen to be His hands and feet… to be an example of His love in this world we live in.

If you asked me who I was eight years ago, my answer would have been completely different. I would have never thought that I would be married to the man of my dreams, that we would have four amazing little boys together and that we would be living our lives with one true mission at the center of our family….to serve Jesus. 

Over the years I have struggled with what it truly means to be the hands and feet of Christ. What does that look like for a family with four little ones? How do I show them who their heavenly Father is, while also protecting them from the things of this world; things that sought to destroy their mother and father? Where do we even begin?

The answer to that question is you begin at the beginning! It made me think. What has the Lord done in my life and in my husband’s life? Who were we before we knew Him?

We were broken people, unworthy and undeserving of the grace that was so freely given to us. 

I grew up in a strict and broken home. I struggled with my self-worth and made decisions that led me down a path of rebellion, filled with secrets and shame. This destructive lifestyle followed me to college at Auburn University, and during my Junior year I found out I was pregnant. I was terrified. I had hit rock bottom and didn’t know what to do. An immense pressure to have an abortion was placed on me. I couldn’t fathom raising a baby as a single mom and somehow finishing my education too. I thought my life was over… and it was. For you see, The Lord had a brand new life waiting for me. The Bible tells us “ that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new has begun.” Jesus snatched me out of the depths of darkness and gave me hope and a promise. He assured me that I could parent my baby and that He would provide for the two of us… and boy did He keep His promise. 

Let’s switch gears for a second and take a glimpse into my husband’s life. He was raised in Detroit, Michigan by a single mom and by the age of 15 he had dropped out of school, and was out on the streets selling drugs. He was in and out of jail until one day, all his crime caught up with him and he was hit with a 15-45 year maximum sentence to prison. This angry, 19 year old man had finally hit rock bottom. The things he had done would be deemed unforgivable to most, yet the reckless love of God pursued him. As Will sat on the cold, concrete floor in his prison cell, wallowing in anger, his eyes caught a glimpse of something unusual… a Bible that was shoved behind his toilet. Outraged, he snatched the book from its hiding place and yelled at the King of the Heavens. “God… if you really are this all mighty and powerful being you claim to be, lets make a deal” he seethed. “I am going to read this stupid book and in return I want out of here. I’m going to read this entire thing and if you don’t show up, I am going to tell the world how much of a fake and a phony you really are,” he promised. Will had never committed himself to anything in his life before, but this time was different. Before He knew it, The Lord was transforming him from the inside out. Days of dreading reading His word, turned into days of dreading having to stop reading it when he had to go to chow. Long story short, my husband encountered the same exact loving Father I had. 

It was at our lowest points in life where The Lord scraped us off the floor and graciously put us back on our feet and showed us His everlasting love. 

Since then, my husband and I have been on fire for The Lord and we always strive to keep Jesus at the center of our family. We now have four children, ages six and under. We desperately want to shield them from the hardships we have experienced, but at the same time, we do not want to shelter them. The fact of the matter is, ministry is messy and we believe it is important to invite our children to get their hands dirty with us. The Lord calls us to serve all that are in need. 

With four little ones, life can be a bit of a whirlwind. My husband works more than full time, and I stay at home with the younger three. Will is out the door at 3:30 a.m. and I’m up at 6:00 a.m. when those tiny human feet first hit the ground in the morning. From mountains of laundry, piles of dishes and endless dirty diapers, our days can often be described as organized chaos. So, what do you do when you get a phone call that threatens to impact/disrupt all of that routine and all six of those people?  What do you say when your husband’s old prison bunkie reaches out, explaining how has been living on the streets of Detroit and desperately wants help getting his life together? 

Stay tuned to find out how our family of six will navigate our way through ministering to this man in need. 

 

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