This series was written by Kara Holmes. A professional counselor turned stay-at-home mom, Kara is wife to Trey and mom to Kate, Justin, and Alisa. Some of Kara’s favorite activities include going on walks with her family, writing, getting lost in a great book, and laughing. Passionate about the deeper issues of the heart, Kara enjoys […]

It was about a year ago, now, when we first learned that there was possibly something wrong in my pregnancy. On that sunny Friday morning in April, I traveled to Dallas alone for my 12-week pregnancy checkup. Trey stayed home with Kate, and I was looking forward to eating at Chuy’s by myself after the appointment. It was to be a routine checkup, but it became very un-routine when when my obstetrician couldn’t find the baby’s heartbeat. We walked two rooms down to have a sonogram performed. Once the sono tech placed the wand on my gel-covered abdomen, I was quickly relieved to see the screen light up with life. My relief did not last long, though, for in a matter of moments, both my doctor and the sono tech were discussing with me nuchal translucency, genetic testing, and a possible chromosome abnormality.

Desert seasons are a part of life and are to be expected. As the Christian travels in this world, following Jesus with a cross on their back, mountains, valleys, springs, rivers, and deserts will be encountered. In each season that we walk through, God gives us exactly what we need not only to survive, but also to thrive. He never sends us where He won’t equip us and provide for us. In facing the desert storms that come, we can take a lesson from God’s very creation on how to survive: the cactus.

If you were to flip through my journal and glance at the past few months, you would see entry after entry of heartache, desperation, and longing. The past 100 days have been filled with trial, suffering, and trudging through a dark valley. Yet, through it all, Jesus has been so faithful. Here’s a bit of my story. – Gretchen

By this point you’ve probably already heard of the unfortunate mistake at the Miss Universe Pageant. Videos are plastered all over the internet of the heart-wrenching moment the crown was taken off of Miss Colombia and placed on the rightful winner, Miss Philippines. It is hard to watch without a deep feeling of sympathy and disappointment for Miss Colombia, the runner-up. As I watched the video replay, my heart pounded out of my chest and tears stung my eyes, because the feeling of rejection is all too familiar to the human heart. As a matter of fact, I would venture to say that rejection may be one of our deepest fears as women. 

We want to be chosen. We want to be loved. We want to know we are worthy. But we fear we are just not enough, we don’t make the cut, or we won’t receive “the crown” that proves our worth.