Monday’s Marinade – Distractions

Posted on by Evangeline

Your marinade for this week builds upon last week’s challenge. Distractions serve to hinder us from making decisions and taking action. As you begin this week by “soaking yourself” in the hope-filled Word of God, decide to not be distracted from the important things. Hebrews 12:2 encourages us to stay focused on Jesus, the One who wants nothing but the best for us and who empowers us to live our best life. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!

Distractions

 

Spiritual Tools :: YouVersion Infertility Bible Reading Plan

Posted on by Evangeline

I have a YouVersion tool that you might find helpful.

It’s a Bible Reading Plan specifically for women struggling with infertility. You can easily access it on your phone, tablet, computer, and maybe even your watch! 🙂
YouVersion_logoREV
My infertility Bible reading plan is free on the YouVersion site. It includes applicable scriptures for the season of infertility as well as  brief biographies of women who struggled with infertility and overcame it. You’ll also find some great affirmations to use as you encourage yourself by speaking life to your life. It’s always good to be able to have a go-to resource when you need some encouragement.

Check it out:https://www.bible.com/search/plans?q=infertility.

Bonus tool:

The Appendix of my book, A Seed of Hope: God’s Promises of Fertility, is full of multiple scriptures that will give you a good start in addressing the spiritual aspect of infertility. I hope you’ll keep it handy and use it daily to encourage yourself by using God’s Word.

Mother’s Day and Infertility

Posted on by Evangeline

mother's day infertilityMother’s Day and infertility–they just don’t seem to go together. If you’re in the throes of infertility, is this a difficult time for you?

I remember some years ago when I dreaded Mother’s Day because I was struggling with infertility and it was difficult to get through that Day without feeling inadequate. Despite all the “trying” my husband and I had been doing, nothing was working and I felt like so out-of-place on that Day.

I wanted to experience pregnancy and it seemed that I couldn’t.

I wanted to watch my tummy grow and it seemed like that could very possibly be impossible.

I wanted to feel the baby kicking and moving inside of me and it seemed that I wouldn’t.

“We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope.”

~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

With infertility, the finite disappointment rolls around on a monthly basis, but don’t allow it to make you lose hope in Jesus’ for love you. Don’t let the doctor’s diagnosis make you lose hope for having a child. There’s a spiritual enemy, the devil, that would love for you to give up on Jesus–don’t let him win. Hope is what gets us through the tough times. I overcame infertility because I did not lose hope…I did not give up on God promises.

Reinforce your hope this week by digging more deeply into God’s promises of fertility. Let them give you courage to rest in His unfailing integrity, His covenantal willingness, and His omnipotent strength. Placing our hope in Jesus is the only sure thing. He desires to be our anchor, especially in times of raging storms.

“We have this HOPE as an anchor for the soul.” ~ Hebrews 6:19

Stay in the Word this week…allow Jesus’ love to speak to you through it. Need some suggestions for some applicable verses to read? Check out the appendix in my fertility devotional, A Seed of Hope: God’s Promises of Fertility for lots of encouraging passages.

How will you cope with Mother’s Day 2015? Please share with us your ways of maintaining hope!

 

Image courtesy of 89studio | FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Monday’s Marinade – Decision Time

Posted on by Evangeline

Your marinade for this week presents a challenge— make a decision! There’s power to be gleaned from doing so! As you begin this week by “soaking yourself” in the hope-filled Word of God, make a decision to believe that God’s Word is true for you. Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening! Let me know in the comments below what decision you choose to make about trusting what God has said in His Word about your situation.

Here’s your spiritual marinade about making a decision:

Monday's Marinade - Decision Time

5 Secrets for Maintaining Hope When You Feel Like Giving Up

Posted on by Evangeline

Evangeline Colbert - Hope in Hard Places

Here are some thoughts about hope that I shared over a year ago at In Due Time. If you’re about to give up because you’re feeling stuck in a difficult situation, I think this will help:

I know what the pressure of infertility feels like. It’s as if it completely surrounds you, pressuring you to give up, to not see any advantage in continuing to hope. In the midst of infertility, life can feel like you’re always stuck between a rock and a hard place. It seems like not much is working out in your favor. Every day seems as if infertility colors how you view life. It looms over every aspect of your life, clouding your vision so it’s hard to see anything good that’s on the horizon.

But I’m glad to share with you that in that place of feeling stuck, hope can shake things up, freeing you to enjoy life!

Here are 5 secrets that I’ve found to be powerful in nurturing and maintaining hope as you look to come out of this struggle with infertility.

  1. Believe God loves you. His love is a “no matter what” kind of love. No matter what you’ve done/thought/said, He loves you with an unfailing and unending love.
  2. Decide to not give up. Don’t underestimate the power of a decision!
  3. Remember the previous times, big or small, when God has come through for you. Encourage yourself.Think about those successes and the joy you experienced.
  4. On a daily basis, affirm the promise of God that relates to your situation by speaking the Word out loud. Instead of focusing on medical facts, allow God’s Word to be your point of focus and become your truth.
  5. Greet each morning with gratitude for the gift of a new day. This helps set a positive tone for the day ahead of you. Thankfulness has a way of shifting our attitude, choices, and behavior.

Hope established upon Jesus’ love never disappoints.

Hope is one of the three things that 1 Corinthians 13:13 tells us will always remain as a resource that allows us to tap into God’s grace. We are to always have hope—the joyful and confident expectation of God coming through for us!

Allow hope to shake things up in your life so that you experience the freedom to confidently expect good things from a very good Father.

An Affirmation for You: God loves me and desires for me to experience only His goodness. I rest in His love for me. I choose to allow His desires for my life to be my desires. I maintain my hope in God!

When you’re feeling stuck in a situation at work, how do you bring yourself out of that? How can you apply that same strategy to infertility or some other personal struggle?

 

The Good Thing I’ve Enjoyed For 33 Years

Posted on by Evangeline

I’ve enjoyed a good thing for 33 years…being married to the guy that God gifted to me through “holy matrimony” in 1982.

good thing - wedding

 

These 33 years of married life have had their ups and downs but we’ve been blessed to experience a very high rate of ups!

Here are a few of the downs:

good thing - downs

  • The death of my father 6 months after we got married. My biggest regret about his death is that my children never got to know him as “Granddaddy.” He would have made a  wise and fun one!
  • My layoff from my job.
  • INFERTILITY
  • My mother’s bout with cancer.

 

Here are the few of the ups:

good thing - ups

      • My mother lived to see, hold, and pray for each of my children.
      • JOB SECURITY!!! Freeman has never been laid off from his job.
      • Discovering Family Life’s “Weekend to Remember” getaway. It’s a booster shot for our marriage. We’ve attended this event more than a dozen times!
      • We OVERCAME infertility using God’s Word
        • Gave birth to 3 wonderful children
        • I became a stay-at-home mom 🙂
      • Cancer has no authority in our family anymore.
      • My in-laws love me!
      • Freeman’s in-laws love him! 🙂
      • I became an author (NEVER planned for that to happen!)

 

I’m so glad today is my wedding anniversary. But more importantly, I’m so thankful to be sharing life with a man who loves God and loves me unconditionally and allows me to return the favor!

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In honor of Freeman and our 33 years of being married, I’d like to share with you something a wise woman passed on to our church in 2013. It struck me as one more way that I can be selfless and focus on the good qualities my husband possesses (and that I desire him to possess).

Daily Confessions For My Husband

(Original version shared by Glorya Huff at SonRise in 2013)

He has the Meekness of Moses

The Patience of Job

The Ear of Samuel

The Courage of Joshua

The Strength of Sampson

The Discipline of Daniel

The Integrity of Joseph

The Heart of Boaz

The Focus of David

The Peace of Paul

The Steadfastness of Peter

The Love of John

And most of all, he has the Mind of Christ.

Freeman is my Mighty Man of GOD!

 

Here’s a link to a PDF of this confession. Why not personalize it and use it to speak goodness over your husband AND to help you focus on the goodness that’s already in him?

Daily Confessions For My Husband TEMPLATE

 

[Guest Post by Nerida Walker] God’s Will for Your Life is FRUITFULNESS!

Posted on by Evangeline

Today, it my honor to share a guest post from Nerida Walker. I’m thankful that she too shares a message of hope for those struggling with infertility. If you’re not familiar with her story of overcoming infertility, read it HERE. 

 

Nerida WalkerHave you ever felt like God has forgotten you, abandoned you or is answering everyone else’s prayers but yours? We have all at some point in our journey felt this way and while these times feel very real, the reality could not be further than the truth.  It is very easy when struggling with infertility to lose sight of the goodness of God. Especially when another menstrual cycle begins. Therefore, I want to help you to overcome the times of doubt and despair by reminding you of what you already through Jesus and His finished work of the Cross.

I have listed below some Biblical truths to remind you that God’s has not abandoned you and that Fruitfulness is His plan and purpose for your life. So next time you feel forgotten or are struggling in your journey, encourage yourself with the following…

1) God created mankind to be FRUITFUL!

When God created Adam and Eve, He Blessed them and commanded them to be fruitful (Genesis 1:26-28). This was NOT just for Adam and Eve but for all of mankind. Even after the fall when fruitfulness was thwarted, God made provision for His children to be fruitful. We see this all throughout the Covenant God made with Israel. The Bible tells us that God does not change His mind and that He does not show favoritism so the simple truth is that God’s will for those who are in Covenant with Him is to be fruitful!

2) Infertility and miscarriage are NOT creations of God.

God only created everything good! James 1:17 tells us ONLY good & perfect gifts come from God. In the beginning infertility and miscarriage did not exist because God did not create them! Romans 5:12 tells us that death came through sin. This means ALL forms of sickness and disease, including those that cause infertility and miscarriage, resulted from the Fall. But don’t despair, because while we live in a fallen world where sickness and disease reign, always look to Jesus and His finished work on the Cross, because through Him God made provision for you to be made whole!

3) God’s will & plan for your life is what Jesus has ALREADY done for you!

Many struggle to know God’s will for healing of infertility BUT God’s will is very easy to determine!God’s will for your life is NOT what your circumstances, diagnosis, symptoms or your past experience says BUT is what Jesus did for you on the Cross! Jesus is the will of God for ALL of mankind, so what Jesus purchased & provided is God’s plan and purpose for your life!

4) Jesus has ALREADY won the battle of infertility for you!

If you understand what Jesus completed and perfected for you on the Cross then you will know that you don’t have to fight infertility any more! Jesus was the last Adam who came and redeemed mankind from everything that the first Adam bought upon us. We know that Jesus took the sin of the world to the Cross, but at the same time & in the same manner He also bore sickness and disease.  This includes any sickness and disease that can cause infertility and miscarriage! So don’t labor or strive against infertility in your own ability, instead REST in what Jesus has already freely provided for you!

5) God does NOT show Favoritism!

Some believe God chooses who receives Salvation and who doesn’t, who gets healed and who doesn’t and even who get babies and who doesn’t BUT the reality is that the victory Jesus purchased on the Cross is freely available to all who believe in Him!

2 Corinthians 1:20 NLT tells us that ALL of the promises of God have been FULFILLED in Christ and are always YES and AMEN (so be it) in Him! So it is time to unlearn all the traditions and doctrines of men and stick to Jesus & His finished work instead!

And lastly always remember…

6) The consistency of God’s nature!

Many falsely believe that God can do anything He likes BUT this is inconsistent with what Scripture says about Him. God’s Word is so clear on His nature and character! It tells us that God has bound Himself to His Covenant and to His Word and that means that God CANNOT:-

Change His mind or will

Change His nature

Lie or prove false

Break or go back on His Word

Alter His Covenant

Therefore, if you understand the New Covenant and what Jesus has purchased for you through His finished work on the Cross then you will KNOW that God cannot block, stop, withdraw or delay what Jesus has ALREADY provided for you!

These are foundational truths on the goodness of God and His plan of fruitfulness for your life! So next time you feel forgotten or abandoned remind yourself on what God has already provided for you through His Son. The more you look to Jesus, the less you are looking to yourself or to your natural circumstances. This will also help you to rest in His ability rather than in your own ability. Then you will see His power released in your life.

It was an honor to write this for you! I pray this post will continue to bless and encourage you and it is my prayer that infertility and whatever is causing it will be annihilated once and for all so that you will continue to go forth, be fruitful and MULTIPLY!

(C) Nerida Walker 2015

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Nerida Walker's book - pregnancy and fruitfulness

Monday’s Marinade – I Will Not Fear

Posted on by Evangeline

 

Monday’s Marinade is provided to you as a means of “soaking yourself” in the hope-filled Word of God at the beginning of your week. 

Start your week by meditating about how God has not forgotten you so there is no reason to fear. 

Repeatedly think about this and quietly say it to yourself.  

Marinate and season your week with hope and a confident expectation of good things happening!

 

Here’s your spiritual marinade:

Monday's Marinade - I will not fear

Women’s Role in the First Easter – Sharing the Message of the Resurrection

Posted on by Evangeline

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

How will you spend this day celebrating the resurrection of Jesus? Jesus is the Son of God, and the Savior who loved EVERYONE in this world so much that He gave His life so that each person who believes in His resurrection can freely enjoy relationship with God, receive His love, and call Him, “Father”.

Resurrection and Life

The first people to be sent to tell the exciting news of Jesus being no longer dead but risen and alive were women! Like women typically do, they rose early, before dawn, to care someone else. This time, it was for the purpose of taking care of the dead body of One they loved– Jesus. They walked from their homes to the tomb where Jesus had been laid so that they could apply spices to His entombed body. Have you ever wondered how they expected to get beyond the soldiers who had been posted there and how they planned to move the stone that sealed the tomb?  I suppose it didn’t matter to them, they just knew what had to be done according to their Jewish custom and they went, prepared to get it done.

Jesus had women involved in His ministry while He was on earth, and now that He was risen, He commissioned them to spread the Word that He was alive. It was to be an important mission of love to share an important message of love. He wanted them to be the heralds to spread the message of a new relationship that was now available to everyone, not just the 12 disciples and followers within the borders of Israel.

Here’s how those first evangelists spent their day:

“The day after the Sabbath day was the first day of the week. At dawn on the first day, Mary Magdalene and another woman named Mary went to look at the tomb.

 At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, and rolled the stone away from the entrance. Then he sat on the stone. He was shining as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The soldiers guarding the tomb shook with fear because of the angel, and they became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, “Don’t be afraid. I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. He is not here. He has risen from the dead as he said he would. Come and see the place where his body was.  And go quickly and tell his followers, ‘Jesus has risen from the dead. He is going into Galilee ahead of you, and you will see him there.’” Then the angel said, “Now I have told you.”

The women left the tomb quickly. They were afraid, but they were also very happy. They ran to tell Jesus’ followers what had happened. Suddenly, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings.”The women came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Go and tell…”  

~Matthew 28:1-10 (NCV) 

Isn’t it just like Jesus to recognize how women are typically more relationship-oriented and therefore would use them to be the first to give the message to others that a new relationship was now available with God? He gave  a word of comfort to them to share so that others would believe in Him through their words. He entrusted women with birthing His church by giving them the message of His resurrection to share. For thousands of years, that message those women shared about Jesus being alive has brought victory to all who believed it.

How will you spend this day celebrating the resurrection of Jesus? Will you share the good news of His resurrection with someone who may not know it?

celebrate resurrection of Jesus

Focus Friday – Prayer

Posted on by Evangeline

Today I’d like to share a note from a friend who is leading a small-group prayer challenge I’ve join. Our focus, for forty days, has been to learn more about how to pray and how Word-based prayer effectively changes things. I hope this note encourages you to tap into the power of prayer as a way to break free from hard circumstances.

Be encouraged!

Prayer - We're set Free - Angela Williams