Infertility is one of the toughest seasons a woman can endure. If you are longing to be a mother and facing infertility, you dream of the day you will hold your own child in your arms, and yet they are empty. And it seems at every turn there is another reminder of what you do not have.
In the book of 1 Samuel, we meet Hannah, a woman faithful to God but brokenhearted from being childless. Year after year, Hannah, with her husband Elkanah and family, would travel to the temple to worship and make sacrifices to the Lord. Her husband adored her, and yet Hannah’s heart’s desire was to have a son. We see in 1 Samuel 1:11 (NIV) where Hannah poured her hear out to God:
And she made a vow, saying, “Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.”
We read a few verses later where God blesses Hannah, and she gave birth to a son and named him Samuel. I can imagine the joy she felt as she held him in her arms, counted his fingers and toes, and noticed how God had uniquely crafted him. There is no greater joy than holding that long-awaited child your heart yearns to nurture and care for. Regardless if your child comes to you as a newborn, a six-year-old, or a teenager, the blessing is the same.
As Mother’s Day approaches, I know there are moms in all stages of life. Some of you may be drowning in a sea of diapers and Cheerios, some of you may be struggling to finish a year of virtual school and work-from-home jobs, or some of you may be worrying about your teen’s anxiety and depression. It is at times such as these when the heart-filling blessing of motherhood we so longed for can be lost. But I want to encourage you today. Through the hills and valleys of motherhood, you are not alone. God is walking with you, longing to fill the desires of your heart. So just as Hannah poured her heart out to God for a son, I encourage you to pour out to God the desires of your heart. Even if that desire is just ten minutes to shower alone. I find hope in David’s words in Psalm 37:3–4 (NLT):
Trust in the Lord and do good.
Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
Take delight in the Lord,
and He will give you your heart’s desires.
