The Unique Crosses of Infertility, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Motherhood, by Jeannie Ewing

I was in the thick of planning three baby showers for close friends of mine when I broke down. I fell to my knees in an empty sanctuary following a marriage workshop, and sobbed. It occurred to me that I’d never given consideration to the potential hardship of a couple’s fertility journey. I never thought we might struggle to conceive.

Today, nearly twelve years later, I can say that every aspect of a couple’s fertility is a cross – infertility, miscarriage, pregnancy and childbirth, and parenthood. Each carries its unique spiritual fingerprint of grief. Each, too, shares a commonality – that couples who are willing to open themselves in welcoming a child or children must also realize they are opening themselves up to God’s direction for their family. …