Everyone makes mistakes. God comforts women who keep silent about their abortions. Will you embrace the hurting too?

Lynn sobbed. “I don’t think even God could forgive me.” (Names have been changed.)

After high school, Lynn and I lost contact. I hope she found healing. She had an abortion our senior year, and she never knew I knew about it. Our mutual friend Suzanne told me before the abortion. So I gave Suzanne my two cents. “Be sure to check with the Better Business Bureau and make sure the clinic is a good one. We don’t want Lynn to get hurt.”

Or die.

I didn’t know then what I know now: Women who have abortions are in desperate need of healing. If I had known, I would have yelled, laid down in front of her car, anything to truly help Lynn.

Lynn, Suzanne and I were best friends, so why didn’t we talk about it? Before or after? Were we. . .

Too embarrassed?

Too proud?

Too stupid?

All of the above?

Lynn thought she was doing the right thing. She had plans to go to college and start a career then a family. Her boyfriend didn’t want to get married. Neither did she. The women at Planned Parenthood told her that her unborn baby was a blob of tissue.

In churches today, women rarely share the stories of their abortions. Women are far more likely to admit problems with depression or anxiety, a rebellious kid, a messed-up marriage, infertility, or a miscarriage.

Why?

I suspect a big reason is fear of condemnation from fellow Christians. The cold shoulder. Questions regarding qualifications to serve. Gossip. Yet the Bible says, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

Do you want to help make your church a safe place to share painful secrets of abortion?

1. Start with prayer. Ask God to bring a hurting woman into your life.

2. If you’re a woman who had an abortion, give your Christian sisters the benefit of the doubt.

3. Ask God to send you a compassionate woman whom you can trust.

4. Listen well and with empathy.

You Are Blessed!

When a loved one dies, it hurts — a lot — but we Christians have hope because Jesus conquered death.

A Facebook friend asked me to share a video on my blog.  This is for you, Susan, and for everyone else who has grieved the loss of a loved one, who have shed tears of hope.

The good news:

When your loved one is a believer is Jesus Christ, the loss is temporary for you will see the person again. Read these reassuring words that the apostle Paul shared with the church in Thessalonica.

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about  those who fall asleep, or grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 1 Thess. 4:13,14

Yes, the God of hope purposes that we hope too. What is our assurance? One thing and one thing only: Jesus resurrection, an amazing part of the glory story: the gospel. Because Jesus rose from the dead, we know that we who are in Christ will rise too.

In the next verses, Paul speaks of the rapture, when at the trumpet call of God, the dead in Christ will rise first. then we who are still alive  will be caught up together with all the believers in the clouds and we will meet the Lord in the air.

“And so we will be with the Lord forever.” 4:17

Yes, it’s tough when someone dear to us dies. Grief is normal, even good. . .as we hold on to blessed hope. You may need Kleenex for this video. God’s grace be with you.

A Story | Tears of Hope from Adam Kring on Vimeo.

You Are Loved!

“Keep your eye on the prize, for the only crown that truly glitters is the one you get to keep forever.” –Carrie Prejean

Time for another photo caption contest.

The winner will receive former Miss California Carrie Prejean’s Still Standing, The Untold Story of my Fight Against Gossip, Hate, and Political Attacks. Carrie went from being a likely winner to a sure loser because she dared to honestly answer a question on marriage. She says marriage is a sacred bond between one man and one woman. How politically uncorrect and God honoring!

Here are the rules, simple and sweet.

1. Write a caption for the photo in Comments.

2. Subscribe to this blog by email if you haven’t already. I promise I won’t spam you!

3. Do one and two by April 9. That gives you a week. . .you might as well write the caption now.  

How I decide the winner: the highly unscientific giggle test. In case of two or more “giggle” captions, I put the names on slips of paper, ball them up, toss them into the air and whichever I open first, wins. As I said, highly unscientific. On your mark, get set. . .your book is waiting.

Blessings and blessings!

Only a few short years ago Christie Love thought her ministry life had flushed down the toilet. God knew better.

When Christie’s marriage fell apart, divorce crashed her family like a tsunami. Almost overnight she went from married lady who served as a leader at her church to a single mom of three little kids – a five year old, a three year old and a baby — who felt like she had. . .

a monster X on her chest.

She felt marked, alone, rejected.

Fast forward three years: Christie is launching a national ministry for women called LeadHer. A few hundred Christian women are on her team. LeadHer officially kicks off on May 1.

You’re invited to hear Christie’s amazing story of brokenness and blessing on Tuesday at 2 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Pacific) on my online radio show. You can listen LIVE through your computer or your smart phone. Click her to listen to the live show.

Busy at this time? Then listen to the archive.

In her blog Love’s Notes, Christie shares that her divorce was ”the darkest time of her life.” She was physically exhausted and emotionally drained. When her marriage crumbled so did her support system.

She felt rejected by people who were uncomfortable with her circumstances. Yet in her dark moments, God comforted her.

Have you ever felt lonely in church? Or unworthy of God? Listen to my online radio show and be encouraged. God loves you. . .

deeper than deep.

Question: Have you wondered whether God could fix your mistake and bring wholeness out of heartache? Please take a moment and leave a coment.

You Are Blessed!

Forgiveness frees you to know God deeply. . .even when hurt by Christians.

Life’s battles maim, immobolize, and mock. What’s worse? Battles in the church. Yes, we Christians can slice and dice by our sisters and brothers in Christ, as Debbie Taylor Williams learned the hard way.

The author of The Plan A Woman in a Plan B World, What to Do When Life Doesn’t Go According to Plan, Debbie served on a divided pastor search team that was a huge challenge to her, both emotionally and spiritually.

The other day she told me, ”I had never experienced such intense conflict within the church and was shocked and saddened. I was also hurt. I wanted to stay home instead of continuing to go to church. It was hard to continue to serve the body. God showed me, however, that I had to let go of my anger if I was going to continue to serve Him.”

Debbie felt bitter, but she didn’t let bitterness get the best of her. I invite you to hear the rest of Debbie’s story and how God showed her the path to forgiveness.

She is my guest on my online radio show, “Sisterhood of Beautiful Warrior,” on Tuesday at 2 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Pacific). To listen to the show LIVE, simply click this link and you’ll hear it though your computer. Are you busy at this time, then listen to the archived show. Here’s the link. 

Have you walked where Debbie has? In the land of bitterness? Has a Christian sister or brother hurt you so bad that you fel like giving up and stop worshipping God at church? Debbie understands. I do too.

Yet Scripture says, ”Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13). 

Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Forgiving isn’t easy. But it hurts. It hurts to hold on to unforgivenss. Thank God that He has a better plan for us.

Question: Do you think it’s possible to forgive. . .always? Leave a comment and enter the book giveaway.

You Are Beautiful!

The best way to make a family in my humble (and biased) opinion: adoption. Why? Infertility hurts.

Let me share something personal, something dear to my heart: Adoption. 

Painful parts, scary stuff, hilarious moments mix together in strangely wonderful shades of Play-Do. Yes, squished, mushed, rolled-out and multi-colored Play-Do is a fitting word picture for the adoption process. My husband and I have been through it.

Three times.

We were married right out of college and decided to wait five years before having kids. After two years, we bought a cozy Cape Cod in a Chicago suburb. It had three bedrooms. Perfect.

I wanted a baby. Bad.

My dear hubby was happy to oblige, so we gave it a go. Nothing.

I began taking my temperature the second I awoke to chart it and pinpoint ovulation. (This was before you could buy the nifty measuring devices. . .or whatever they’re called.) When I was ovulating, hubby and I had a “date” that night. Still, nothing.

Looking carefully at my charts, I saw something weird. Month after month, the number of days between ovulation and the start of my period were too few to get pregnant. Had there been conception, the fertilized egg would go with my flow.

When I went to the doctor to begin infertility testing and treatment, I figured she would give me a prescription of Clomid and I’d get pregnant. She followed protocol and wrote orders for my husband to have a sperm test first. We thought, “Whatever. No problem.”

Fast forward three months.

Another doctor sat us down and gave us the news.

No baby. Ever.

I felt numb, sad, even relieved because the findings were fast and crystal clear. I did not want to walk the infertility treadmill. Awful, just awful. In you’re on this treadmill, my heart aches for you, sister.

Back to our Play-Do word picture. Remember ripping off the lids and grasping the glop between your fingers, balling it it all in a magical mess of colors?

This is how the adoption process looks to me – from when a couple discovers they are infertile, to the decision to adopt and begin the labor of paper work, a labor that last not hours but months and sometimes years, to that oh-so-glorious moment you spy your little girl, cuddled in a pick sleeper, and she opens her beautiful eyes and you’re in love.

Hope abounds. And even dirties a diaper. Three times over.

P.S. If you’ve experienced infertility, I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment or contact me and we’ll arrange a private phone call.

You Are LOVED!

Fear. It’s THE four-letter word. It began long, long before 9/11. You know that. I know that.

We women shrink amongst “boogey men.” The worst? The fear of rejection. It hollows the core of how God made us: relational. You know, Girls Night Out. . .babies. . .chick flicks.

The seeds of the fear of rejection usually begin in childhood. For me, I felt rejected by a person dear to me. He didn’t do anything horrible to me. He just didn’t notice me, really. And he never smiled. I wanted to make him happy. I longed for his acceptance.

A hug. Anything.

What about you? When did your fear of rejection begin?

My well-meant but messed-up solution: to try to control him by being the perfect little girl who never got in trouble and brought home excellent report cards and who did everything right.

I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

I felt sad.

Only much later did I learn he suffered clinical depression. Still, my fear of rejection lingered.

My most difficult years: junior high. I was the new kid in sixth grade, seventh grade, and eighth grade. By eighth grade I stopped trying to make friends. In the school yearbook the “prediction” the kids gave me was “astronaut.” Sounds good, right? Like they thought I was going places, that I was smart.

Ha!

They knew and I knew it was code for “Lucy is spacey.” That’s what the mean girls had called me.

Now this crazy economy is messy up our sense of security. More reason to fear? God wants you to experience success, according to his definitition: becoming more like Christ.

He never rejects you. Not ever. Even when the economy stinks. So what do you have to fear?

Nothing and nobody. God is big. Bigger than your fear. Bigger than boogey man, godzilla and the monsters on TV. And he loves you lavishly.

Question: What would you like to change today? Please, if you have a moment, leave a comment.

You Are Amazing!

Hi Beautiful Warrior,

You probably have never seen me up close and personal. Here’s your chance. This is a YouTube video I made awhile back when I was contemplated TV, not watching but doing. I took a pass.

Hear the story of a Cape Cod, carpenter ants, a racoon, and envy. Tell me what you think. I’m a little nervous.

 You Are Loved,

Burdens do a body. . .good? Really? I thought the popular mantra went something like:

“Don’t worry, be happy,

and make a million bucks so you can buy every comfort.”

Michele Howe, an author of numerous magazine articles and books including Burdens Do a Body Good: Meeting Life’s Challenges with Strength (and Soul), believes budens are good, not the burdens themselves but what they challenge us to do: Depend on God. Michele talks openly about her bout with depression as well as other life stresses on my online radio show, “Sisterhood of Beautiful Warriors” on Tuesday at 2 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Pacific). Click HERE to listen to the show live or to the replay (available just minutes after the show).

Book giveaway!

Michele is graciously giving away a copy of her hightly acclaimed book to one of you. Entering the book giveaway is EASY. If you are listen live or to the archive, send me an email – Lucy@LucyAnnMoll.com – and write ”I want Michele’s book.” Entries are accepted through Thursday.

Okay, back to the question: Do burdens do a body good? Well, are they?

Michele Howe and her co-author Dr. Chistopher A. Foetisch say “Yes.” Do you agree or disagree?

Their book covers two types of life challenges: personal and situational. The first category includes disappointment, depression, regret, doubt, failure. The second category includes financial setbacks, parenting, divorce, care giving and aging.

When I chatted with Michele the other day, trying to figure out the focus for today’s show, I asked her how the book came about and she said it developed while she faced depression following surgery and other stresses including the loss of an elderly family member for whom she was a caregiver and leaving her church of 22 years.

How did Michele get through her depression? God’s Word, she says. It gave her help, hope and courage as she healed and regained physical and emotional strength.

Michele’s story of recovery from depression is a story of hope.

Hope is what the Sisterhood of Beautiful Warriors online radio show is all about. Each week I bring on a Christian woman who has faced life’s battles and won. Her victory is in the Lord.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4

Question: Will you enter the book giveaway? Please do. Leave a comment and you’ll be entered.

You Are Beautiful!