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You are here: Home / Archives for pregnant

Miraculous Conception

December 5, 2018 By admin

The idea of a woman getting pregnant without the help of a male partner is not particularly amazing today. In vitro fertilization is commonly practiced. Test tube babies are a product of human ingenuity and modern science. Yet as remarkable as this is, male and female donors are still needed to create human life.

An incredible exception to this is recorded in Scripture, first as a prophetic prediction, then as a historic fulfillment.

Isaiah said to king Ahaz, “Watch for this: A girl who is presently a virgin will get pregnant. She’ll bear a son and name him Immanuel (which means God is with us)” (Isaiah 7:14, NLT).

We must admit, this sounds pretty bizarre. We could have easily forgiven Joseph (Mary’s fiancé) for not believing her story.

Hundreds of years after king Ahaz made his prediction, a peasant craftsman named Joseph found himself in the exact situation that Ahaz had described. The young virgin he was engaged to marry became pregnant, which could only mean one of two things. Either she had been raped, or she had willingly consented to a sexual encounter with another man. Either way it was not good.

Being a man of integrity, Joseph didn’t want to shame Mary, but what could he do?

“While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God’s angel spoke in the dream: ‘Joseph, son of David, don’t hesitate to get married. Mary’s pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God’s Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus—‘God saves’—because he will save his people from their sins.’ This would bring the prophet’s embryonic sermon to full term: Watch for this—a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son; They will name him Immanuel, Hebrew for ‘God is with us’” (Matthew 1:20, NLT).

The idea that God is with us seems far fetched at times. In a world besieged by crime, sexual abuse, moral corruption and greed; where evil people continue to have the upper hand! Where politicians game the system for their own good and lie to cover their tracks—Scripture has the audacity to claim that God is with us? Where? Where was God when little four-year-old Josiah was molested by his step dad? Where was God when hundreds of Syrian children were killed by ISIS guerrillas in Aleppo? Where was God when thousands of struggling families were tricked out of their homes by greedy bankers during America’s 2008 housing crisis?

“Rise up, O God, and judge the earth, for all the nations belong to you” (Psalm 82:8, NLT).

We have a problem with God’s patience and mercy, except when it applies to us.

God’s answer to all of the world’s evil is not annihilation, revenge or brut force, but a humble virgin, miraculously impregnated with God’s seed. It is both bizarre and genius to think that such a quiet introduction of divinity could eventually result in human redemption! Yet God takes the long road to righting the world’s wrongs because he knows that “haste makes waste.”

“You must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent” (2 Peter 3:8-9, NLT).

The idea that God could conceal himself in human flesh and show up as one of us reminds us of the strategy that was used by the Greeks in a popular mythological tale.

“The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the subterfuge that the Greeks used to enter the city of Troy and win the war. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside. The Greeks pretended to sail away, and the Trojans pulled the horse into their city as a victory trophy. That night the Greek force crept out of the horse and opened the gates for the rest of the Greek army, which had sailed back under cover of night. The Greeks entered and destroyed the city of Troy, decisively ending the war” (Wikipedia).

God became flesh, not to use subterfuge or force, but to openly display the character of his Kingdom.

“The King of glory stooped low to take humanity. Rude and forbidding were His earthly surroundings. His glory was veiled, that the majesty of His outward form might not become an object of attraction. He shunned all outward display. Riches, worldly honor, and human greatness can never save a soul from death; Jesus purposed that no attraction of an earthly nature should call men to His side. Only the beauty of heavenly truth must draw those who would follow Him” (Desire of Ages, p. 43).

When we allow the seed of God’s character to impregnate our hearts with grace we can expect a harvest that bears heaven’s signature.

The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” (Galatians 5:22-23, NLT).

Rich DuBose writes from Northern California.

The post Miraculous Conception appeared first on Answers for Me.

Read more at the source: Miraculous Conception

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

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Filed Under: News and Feeds, Vegetarian recipes Tagged With: anchor points, answers for me, bethlehem story, earth, easily-forgiven, homes, jesus, joseph, miracle birth, pregnant, the christmas story

Forgiving Myself

July 4, 2018 By admin

I’ve changed my name because I want to keep my privacy. And I didn’t post a picture of myself because I don’t want anyone to recognize me. You see, many years ago I made a choice that I’ll always regret. It has taken years, but God has forgiven that mistake and made my life into something beautiful. Beautiful like a rose that grows in my garden….

The Wrong Choice

The choice was made in August of 1977. Well, maybe I should say June of 1977. It was the end of my freshman year of college. I had been flirting a lot with an older graduate student who I thought was very cute. We never really officially dated. We did make one date though—we planned on spending one full day–and night–together before I went home for the summer. I signed out of the dorm saying that I was spending the night with my grandparents who lived in town. Then I told my grandparents that I was spending the night with a girlfriend who had come to town for the weekend. I hated lying to them, but I did.

My plans for waiting until I was married to have sex crumbled that night. We didn’t use any protection. Driving back to the dorm the next morning, I had no idea that my life was about to change. Forever.

At the beginning of summer I went alone on vacation to Colorado to visit my cousin. When I got sick while watching a movie with her, she asked if I’d missed my period. Later she took me to a clinic where they told me that I was pregnant. Shortly after I found out, my parents came through Colorado and picked me up on their way to Nebraska to visit my grandparents. Mom and I went shopping downtown by bus one day, and on the way back I got sick again. I realized I needed to tell her I was pregnant. I asked her to go on a walk with me. We walked for a while and then sat down on a bench to talk, and I broke the news. She didn’t say much, except that she thought I was just carsick.

I don’t remember exactly when I told the father of the baby that I was pregnant. He did call me, though, when I was in Nebraska. He informed me that he had spoken with a pro-choice clinic and that they told him there was no way that I could take care of a baby by myself. They told him an abortion was the only way. He made it very clear that he definitely did not want to get married. In fact, he informed me that he was headed oversees for a year to teach school–but he would pay for an abortion.

I did not want an abortion. I seriously thought about just taking the money he sent and heading to Texas to get lost in Dallas or San Antonio. I had vowed I would never have an abortion. I believed it was taking a life.

One day, about half way through our stay in Nebraska, my mom came to me and said that the next day she, my cousin, my aunts and I were going to Omaha to shop. Well it turned out that everyone else was going shopping. Mom was taking me to get an abortion. I wasn’t given the choice. Sure, I was 20 years old then, but I was raised to never question my parents. If they told me to do something, I did it.

And so my baby died. 

Mom was terrified of what my dad might do if he found out I’d been pregnant. In order to keep the secret from him while I recuperated, she told Dad that I was still not feeling well from a strep throat infection I had earlier that summer.

Grieving the Choice

Afterward I cried a lot. I was angry with my mom, and my cousin. I was angry for a long, long time. I often woke in the night crying. I would cry when I saw Pro-Life and Anti-Abortion billboards and ads. I hated myself for not having the strength to stand up to Mom and to do what I knew was right and not take my baby’s life. The guilt and shame was so overwhelming that I had thoughts of suicide. Since I’d already given up on the commitment to wait until marriage to have sex, I had sexual relationships with several boyfriends after that. I just didn’t care anymore.

I started drinking and smoking pot—anything to try to numb the pain I was feeling. I began enjoying the alcohol and pot way too much. Then one night I drank too much and smoked too much. I would wake up and there were people in my apartment…then pass out and wake up and no one was there…then they were there again. The next morning I needed a drink. It was then that I realized I would be an addict if I continued drinking and smoking, so I stopped. But I traded that addiction for a food addiction.

I finally married, making sure my future husband knew what had happened. But the guilt was still there. I didn’t feel worthy of being loved. “How can someone love me, when I took my baby’s life?” I thought to myself. I felt that God hated me. I hated me. I didn’t want anyone to know my secret or judge me for what had happened.

Another Choice: Forgiveness

About 10 years later, when I was married with two wonderful children I had given birth to, I went to a Christian Woman’s Retreat sponsored by our church. I had gone to college with the speaker and she gave wonderful talks that touched my heart. On Saturday night, I asked to speak with her privately, and told her my story. I had forgiven my mom and cousin, but the speaker helped me realize that I had not forgiven myself. This was a totally new concept to me. I didn’t know I needed to, or even could, forgive myself. And I finally did believe that God could forgive me because He knows my heart.

The speaker told me something else that has helped me so much. She believes that when I get to Heaven, my angel or Jesus will bring that baby and place him or her in my arms. And I will be given a second chance to raise my baby in a perfect world where there is no sin! I hang on to that. It has given me so much peace.

I thank God for His love and forgiveness. My heart still twinges every March on my baby’s due date. I think about how old he or she would be. And all these years later, there are still days when the devil brings back the feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy. On those days I struggle with ‘How can God love me?”  I know He has forgiven me, but I just have trouble accepting it some days. But when I do remember that God does love me and has forgiven me, I ask myself, “What makes me better than God, to not forgive myself?”

The phrase, “God is in control” has become my mantra. And when I can’t sleep, I sing the song “Amazing Grace” in my head. I especially like the new chorus that was added to Chris Tomlin’s version of the song:

“My chains are gone
I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, Amazing grace”
I have experienced His grace. And yes, it is amazing!

The author’s name has been changed, and the author’s photo is a stock photo from Unsplash.

The post Forgiving Myself appeared first on Answers for Me.

Read more at the source: Forgiving Myself

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

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Filed Under: News and Feeds, Vegetarian recipes Tagged With: abortion, author, choice, forgiveness, guilt, news, pre-marital sex, pregnant, savior, sexual, speaker, story-harvest

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