IAW Post 3: 7 Reasons to take heart

I missed my post for national infertility awareness week yesterday - Wednesdays are long days for us because we go straight from work to leading youth group in the evenings. I was pooped when we got home yesterday so I’m combining day 3 and 4 into one post today. Instead of just doubling up with two things that have brought me encouragement and hope in my journey through a barren season, I’m going to share SEVEN. Yep, that’s right. I’ve got seven testimonies that have been a huge source of encouragement to me in the last two years. If you aren’t familiar with them, I hope they encourage you to keep pressing in for your breakthrough.

Last Summer the Lord told me to study the barren women in scripture and to take heart from their journeys. He always invites us into immeasurably more than we could expect but I had no idea what I was about to find. As I dove into scripture I began to find woman after woman who had lived in barrenness and received not only breakthrough, but breakthroughs that made history. There are seven women named in scripture who were barren and who cried out to the Lord. He heard every one of their cries and He answered them. Their names are Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah, Elizabeth and two more who were unnamed. Do you recognize them? Maybe you’ll recognize them with their miracle baby’s names:

1. Sarah was the wife of Abraham, they birthed Isaac (Genesis 11:30)
2. Rebekah was the wife of Isaac, they birthed Jacob (Genesis 25:21, Judges 13:3)
3. Rachel was the wife of Jacob, they birthed Joseph (Gen 30:22)
4. Hannah was the wife of Elkanah, they birthed Samuel the prophet (1 Samuel 1 and 2)
5. Elizabeth was the wife of Zechariah, they birthed John the Baptist (Luke 1:17)
6. Sampson’s mother birthed him out of barrenness (Judges 13:2)
7. The Shunamite woman who Elisha prayed over birthed a miracle son (2 Kings 4:16-17)

Just pause and look at that list again. The forefathers of our faith were birthed from barren mamas who didn’t give up in their pursuit of a miracle and they received breakthrough! Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, then Samuel, Sampson, and John the Baptist were all sons of women who have walked the journey of barrenness that many of us are walking now. Each of these women were grieved by their barrenness and they cried out to God for His touch and didn’t give up. I don’t know why some breakthroughs come faster than others, but we can’t loose heart in the waiting. You have a child with a destiny that is coming to you- whether by natural conception or adoption. Don’t let your heart give up. Be encouraged by these women and the mighty men they birthed. World changers come from barren seasons – scripture shows it.

The Lord is no respecter of persons. What He will do for one, He will do for you. The word testimony literally means “do it again”. When we read the stories of these women in scripture and receive them as testimonies for our hearts to grab hold of and be encouraged by, we are literally saying “DO IT AGAIN” to the Lord…and He will. He is drawn to that faith! Declare truth over your heart and know He hears you.

“He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord!” – Psalm 113:9

Praise Him in the waiting. Prepare the way for your breakthrough by keeping your heart rooted in the truth: He has not forgotten you, He loves you tremendously, and He is El Hanne’eman – The Faithful God. I’m praying for all of our hearts as we wait for our miracle babies. An army of world changers is coming from our wombs. Believe that, take heart, and let His presence sustain you in your waiting.