I never was the girl who dreamed about getting married and having a family since she was 8. This is not to say I didn't want either of those things. I always hoped and prayed to find love, get married and have kids, but it was not a very strong desire - not one that was all consuming as it is for others.
I also was never the girl who wanted to climb the corporate ladder, become uber successful and make all kinds of money and be "important" in the eyes of the world.
I had always wanted to help people. That was always an important thing for me. That was what I felt God calling me to do with my life. I knew this by the time I was a Freshman in high school. Being as I was exposed to all kinds of things in the medical field, I thought about speech language pathology and physical therapy. Speech won out.
I headed off to college, then grad school and God led me in the direction of working with kids...also something I never planned to do. When I started out I wanted to work with adults with brain injuries in a hospital. I got put in a school placement and fell in love with kids. I also (years later - after I moved back to my hometown, began working for the school district I grew up in and God really got ahold of my heart) got led to go on a mission trip to Canada to help share the love of Jesus with native kids. As many of you know, it was on that same mission trip I met my husband. We have now been married just a little over a year.
I would be lying if I said that Ruth was a planned baby. She wasn't. She was, however, in God's wonderful plan for us, and was a very welcome addition to our lives. (How could I be upset about a baby?!) But what really caught me by surprise? How much I LOVE being a mom.
I have had some incredibly hard days since she was born, but I have also had some incredibly wonderful days. There honestly has been no greater gift God gave me - other than the gift of my husband - than this little girl. I have learned so much since she came into our lives. God has used her to purify me more for His glory, and for that I am so grateful. And - something else I thought I would never say - I hope and pray He will bless us with at least 2 more kids.
So yes, I was caught by surprise. But what a wonderful surprise it was.
In Christ and with love,
Meg
