Finding purpose and joy in the midst of pain and suffering can be difficult. Here is Kerry’s inspiring personal testimony from back in 2013!

Hi friends!  We are back with Make A Difference Mondays today and I have a guest to introduce you to today – in fact, she is back for the second time, as she shared her personal testimony about finding purpose back in 2013 here  🙂

My name is Kerry and I’m a wife, mom, adoption advocate, writer and small business owner. I’ve struggled for the past 12 years with infertility. Over the past two years, God has really reframed my thoughts about him and about how he relates to me and my infertility. He’s given me a new understanding of suffering and pain. We all have pain in our lives. We all have things we struggle with. Infertility may not be your struggle. Yours may be divorce or bankruptcy or struggling with your weight. Whatever it is, the lessons are the same. There is a great big God who loves you with a great big love and He has a plan for your life. He has a plan for your pain and for your hurt.

Sybil has graciously allowed me to share a little bit of my heart with you today and to share a little excerpt from a book I recently wrote called Glory in the Valley: Finding Purpose in the Midst of Your Pain. I’m also giving away a copy of my book to one lucky reader.

I’m broken.  We all are.  We all have things in our lives that haven’t turned out the way we wanted.  We didn’t get the job we wanted, the man we wanted, the house we wanted, the body we wanted, the children we wanted.  The list could go on and on.  There are big things and there are little things.  But in the end, we didn’t get what we wanted.  Life did not go according to our plan.
 
It’s important to ask Jesus to sustain us during these times.  We are not guaranteed that He will pick us up and plop us down on the other side of our suffering but we are guaranteed that He will sustain us.

The Lord sustains the humble…. Psalm 147:6

In those times, there is a tendency to lose hope.  I’ve been there.  Have you been there?  Sure you have.

Those days when you just don’t think you can take it anymore.  Those days when the pain just seems too much to bear.  The disappointment just seems too much to bear.

Those days when you just throw your hands up or just lay your head down.

Friend, I believe those days are holy days.  Those are the days when you have a decision to make.

You can give up. It’s totally your right.  Or you could choose to hope.

You could choose to hope that your situation will get better.  You can choose to hope that you will be healthy.  You can choose to hope that you will get that job.

Or you could just choose to hope that He is good.   Have hope that He is faithful and that He is working.

That’s having holy hope.  I think.

Hope in someone bigger than your circumstance.  Hope in someone instead of something.  Hope that matters and speaks volumes about Him. Hope that makes Him famous instead of making your situation famous.

Scripture tells us we are supposed to hope.  I think I used to get it twisted, though.  I used to say I had hope but my hope was always tied to something.  It was always tied to my financial situation, to my job, to my relationship, to my health.
My Hope should be rooted in Him.  He is my hope- my only hope.  This hope is the hope that anchors our souls.  The hope that brings us back to truth when the world seems all wrong.  When our suffering seems too great.  This hope is the hope that matters.  And I believe it’s holy.

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
Hebrews 6:19

I want my hope to be firm and secure- not tossed about by my circumstances or by my daily feelings. This world needs a hope that is firm and secure.  And there is only One.  His name is Jesus, and He does not change.  Even when the whole world does.  Even when we change from minute to minute, He stays the same.  And that is something I can put my hope in.

Make A Difference Mondays is a weekly linkup designed to encourage and inspire us to live each day on purpose by making a meaningful difference in someone’s life in even the smallest of ways. Read on to learn more about our vision, mission, and how to link up!

Mission
Our mission is to provide a consistent gathering place for like-minded women to build online connections, share inspiration, and provide mutual encouragement and accountability as we seek to live intentionally and make a difference in the lives of those around us.

Vision
Every Monday we will invite bloggers to link up any blog post that encourages women to live life on purpose. This could include testimonies or goals from your own life, small acts of kindness or service, creative tips or ideas for showing consideration to others — the possibilities are endless. Our objective is to use our God-given time and resources to His glory!

Also, just a heads-up:  we have created two fun new ways to keep us all connected! Now we have our own Facebook community group to stay in touch beyond the blog posts AND we also have a new #MADMlinkup group Pinterest board and we will be pinning our favorite posts from the linkup that inspire and encourage us to make a difference. We are so grateful for you and would love for all of you to join us for fellowship in the above linked community group and you can follow the Pinterest board right here to watch for your posts: