Great thought for a suffering parent

I recently read an article in "Faith and Family Magazine" addressing miscarriage. This thought completely changed my mourning time, and gave me a smile, and a hope. A thought that was so profound, I think it's important to share with others. A thought that may even be appropriate to share with a hurting parent. I wouldn't tell it to them in their first week of suffering maybe, but once they've had some time to grieve.

The thought is this. We are called, as parents, to raise children for God. To make saints for Him, to bring our children to God. And while this child of ours, Jacob, did not live on earth, he is indeed in Heaven, being a saint for God. 

We, in conceiving our child, brought glory to God, and allowed our hearts to be open to bring Him glory, through our son, and through our suffering. While it's been hard, and we are by no means perfect and are greatly hurting, the way we responded, sought after God, used our suffering to join our hearts to Christ, has brought others encouragement in their struggles as well.

I recently told my husband that I'm struggling with knowing that whenever we conceive again, I'll be in fear of a miscarriage the whole time. This makes me not want to get pregnant. But at the same time, I know that I have to trust God. I told him I'm greatly struggling with this back and forth of fear and trust, asking him to help me and pray for me. I am realizing that this instance, where I have high fear, is exactly where trusting God becomes most evident, where I must say "Not my fear, but Your will, O Lord."

We went to daily mass today, and what was the Gospel reading about? Pete stepping out on the water. :) What a perfect example for me, for us. I had goosebumps as the Gospel was read, and tears in my eyes. We may be nervous, and heck, our eyes may fall off of God at times, but God is there, protecting our family, our marriage, and our children, both those here, those in Heaven, and those to come. Our God is good, even when we're struggling.