“You May Rescue, You May Save”

After the shock and pain medication wore off it started to hit me that my dream of finally being pregnant and having a baby had literally been cut out and taken away from me. The day I had emergency surgery to remove my ectopic (tubal) pregnancy a part of me died inside. It felt like part of me was missing. A void and sadness began to fill my heart. It felt like I had been hit by a tidal wave and the weight of my grief was causing me to slowly sink into the depths of despair. Little did I know that a stranger with her own story of heartbreak and healing would come to my rescue and throw my sinking heart a spiritual life preserver.

I was in a church meeting a few weeks after my surgery, which took place shortly after my husband and I moved to Savannah. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) the first Sunday of each month is centered around fasting and sharing our personal testimonies with one another, mainly during the sacrament service portion of our three hour block of meetings. During the third hour, the women gather together for a lesson, which is sometimes followed by an invitation for anyone present to share their testimonies. On this particular “Fast” Sunday, a woman I hadn't gotten to know yet stood to share her testimony.

She started by saying that she usually wouldn't share something so personal but that she felt prompted to share her experience and that maybe someone there needed to hear it. She talked about having a miscarriage in Dec 2011 and about being promised by the Lord that she would be blessed with a baby. She then shared that in Dec 2012, exactly one year later, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy.

Her testimony that the Lord keeps His promises hit me like a ton of bricks. I thought about my patriarchal blessing and how it says I will be a mother. (For info about what patriarchal blessings are click here: https://www.lds.org/liahona/2015/02/patriarchal-blessings-inspired-guidance-for-your-life?lang=eng) The thought that the Lord will keep and honor this promise from my blessing filled me with an overwhelming feeling of peace and comfort. I knew everything would be ok.

This woman probably didn't know at this time how much her testimony would help another aching, grieving woman. She probably didn't know that this woman would cling to her testimony and words in the following months when the pain of losing a baby felt too hard to bear. This woman probably didn't know that her testimony would be act as a lighthouse when things looked dark and dismal. This woman probably didn't know that by following that prompting she would forever change another woman's life for good. Little did I know that two years later this wonderful woman, once a stranger, would become one of my closest and dearest friends.

I love the quotes:

I also love the saying: 

You never know what trials or sorrow a person is going through. Although we may not know what a person is experiencing the Lord does. I know that He knows us and is aware of what we are going through. I know that the Lord answers our prayers. I also know that it is often through other people that those prayers are answered. You never know just how much your kind word, your smile, or just lending a listening ear can change someone's life. So if the Lord has prompted you to do something whether it be to share your testimony, call a friend you haven't spoken to in a while, or to simply do a kind deed for someone... have courage and follow that prompting. You never know who you may rescue, you never know who you may save.

(Highly recommend the following video of the song, "Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy")