I am the child of a single mother. I asked my mom to write about her experiences as a single mom and being pregnant with me. Here is her story:
Having a baby as a single mother was one of the scariest times of my life but it turned out to be one of the biggest blessings I have ever received. God is so amazing the way He loves us. He sent His Son to die on the cross and rise from the grave three days later so that He could have a relationship with us even while we were yet sinners. His love extends all boundaries and all you are required to do is accept His love. What a God! He loves us not on the basis of what we have done but on the basis of what Jesus Christ did for us. He is just waiting until we turn to Him and accept Him into our hearts so that He can release more blessings into our lives.
I had accepted Jesus into my heart when I was seven years old but through the yearslife became difficult because of family problems and I slipped away from the Lord. I always knew that He loved me but I did not always love Him back. My life had spun out of control and I was not living for Him but very much for myself and the world. Before long the consequences came in the form of pregnancy. I was devastated and did not know where to turn but I knew one person I could always turn to and that was Jesus. I knew that even if I had messed up He still loved me and He sure did love this little baby I was carrying.
I cried constantly because I did not know how I was going to face my family. But I began to pray and ask Jesus to help me to know what to do next and to please not let this little baby suffer because of what I had done. I knew my mom would not be against me; my mother was a godly woman who was always there for me.I did however think that she would be just overwhelmingly disappointed and hurt. But my dad was hard and sometimes cruel and I believed he would want me to abort the baby. After a few days of crying and praying, still not knowing what to do, my mother came to me and said, “I know there is something wrong, and if you are pregnant we can handle it together. I will do whatever it takes.” I began to sob even harder as she held me in her arms. I knew that Jesus had been instrumental in my mother’s loving response. I felt His love as my mother embraced me and I knew that He was with me all the way even though I felt I had sinned against Him. I learned He does not turn away from us, we turn away from Him. My mother’s encouraging words had lifted a ton of misery off of me but I knew that this was just the beginning. I had no idea how I was going to handle the rest of my life with a baby but I felt that with the help of God I would be able to persevere.
The next few months would amaze me even further when other people in my family were told about the pregnancy. My dad, who I thought would be so ugly, actually told me for the first time in my life that he was proud of me. Proud of me? I had tried for so long to get him to notice anything in my life and now he was proud of me? He was proud that I kept the baby and did not have an abortion. Wow, that is about all I can say. And my grandmother and aunt and one of my brothers and tons of cousins were totally supportive as well. All but one person, my oldest brother, he took on the role of my father. He told me how a baby would ruin my body and my life and I should not have it. It hurt me deeply but I believe he was thinking he was looking out for my good and he was acting out of deep disappointment. It was hard for me think that my brother was against me but with everyone else’s support, especially Jesus, I knew I would make it.
The morning sickness took its toll and the changes in my body were really hard to accept at times but at other times the wonder of carrying this innocent, helpless baby who depended on me took over. I found myself singing to her and praying over her as she kicked and moved around in my womb. We actually had a wonderful relationship while she was still inside me. She got still when I prayed or read to her, she kicked when I sang (maybe it was the bad singing), and when I was crying I would tell her that it was okay, I am not crying about you, you are wonderful. I knew when she was tired and about to go to sleep or when she was waking up because she would stretch her legs and arms out stiff as a board where I could see her head and her feet coming out each side of my stomach! She made me laugh. She did the exact same thing after she was born and it always made me smile. And the hiccups were so cute!
I had not been around babies or little children much in my life because the three of us kids were so close in age growing up in our family. My cousins were all about the same age and so we were not big enough to take care of any of the really small babies. I had no idea what to do with a baby but I knew that mom did and so did grandma and that they would be there for me. What I did not know in advance was that Jesus had it all planned out for me as well. He had a baby prepared especially for me. He was giving me the biggest, most amazing blessing of my life.
When my little girl was born my mother and grandma were in the room with me and I had family all out in the waiting room. That little girl could not wait to come out, she only took three hours of labor and she was there. And she was and still is the most beautiful little girl I know, not only physically but emotionally, spiritually, and in every other way as well. I had never seen anything that beautiful up to that point in my life. God has the most amazing ability to take not such great circumstances and change them into the most beautiful experiences of your life.
As I look back at my life I realize that the consequences of my behavior could have been severe. The Lord knew my behavior needed to change and I needed to turn back to Him so He had to get my attention. But He got my attention in the very sweetest way possible, through this little baby. She has blessed and is blessing my life in ways I could never imagine possible. She actually changed my way of thinking about the whole world and how I responded to it. She also came out so mature that she practically raised me instead of the other way around. She is so wise and loving and kind and her gentle rebukes to me when I get a little crazy are so special and helpful for my heart and soul.
Even though it seemed like the worse thing that had ever happened to me at that time in my life it was actually the most amazing blessing and the reason my life turned completely around. My relationship with family became much better, and the way I lived my own life changed for the better. But most important of all my relationship with my precious heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ was restored to where it first began and I know that what He said in His word is absolute truth.
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV)
And another passage of scriptures that I love says this:
“28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:28-31 (KJV)
All I can say is that if you do not know Jesus as your personal Savior then please pray and ask Him into your heart today. He is the best friend you will ever have, and He loves you unconditionally and forever. He can and will help you through any trial you are facing and he is so sweet and full of compassion and will make the path smooth that looks so very rough that you have to face. He wants to bless you and He knew all that would happen in your life before it happened. He knew you before you were born and He knows what you need. He loves you and knows you and is waiting for you. You have no idea what blessings are in store for your life when Jesus is in charge! He wants the best for you always.
Author Bio:
Rachel is an ex-babysitting pro as well as a professional writer and blogger. She is a graduate from Iowa State University and currently writes for www.babysitting.net. She welcomes questions/comments which can be sent to rachelthomas.author @ gmail.com.