Friday, February 11, 2011

Cause of our joy

God of mercy,
we celebrate the feast of Mary, the sinless mother of God.
May her prayers help us to rise above our human weakness. Amen.

I don't know how to begin. I have a secret I've been keeping, holding dearly in my heart, sharing only with my sweetheart and some sweet prayer warriors. Last time I held something so small and yet so huge this close, I was terrified. But then terrifyingly wonderful turned to achingly miserable in a very short period of time.

We were heartbroken. The children were heartbroken. The world looked and felt a little gray for a while.

Then came this past Advent when I prayed for a mystical rose from St. Therese, placed myself in the hands of Our Blessed Mother most amiable and blossoms in pink and white exploded outside my door all through the great feast of Our Lord's birth and beyond. Next came the rich colors of gold and earthy brown along with the sensuous spices of Epiphany; from the Greek... epiphaneia. Manifestation... to make known. This epiphany brought with it a drop of pure sunshine in the bitter cold as the news of a new soul was made known to us.

We were, of course, anxious. We've been disappointed before. But with this manifestation, something else was made known, a gift in the form of a whisper... it's gonna be alright. God is good always. Whatever happened, in sorrow or in joy, we truly believed... it was going to be alright.

It began as a whisper in my head that became the beating of my heart. I heard it in my most anxious moments when tears burned and lungs gasped. I heard it from my sweetheart when he knew I needed it most. I heard it from the mouths of my prayer guardians as they lifted me up when I felt low. I needed them to pray for me. I found my prayers were not really prayers at all, but demands. A honey-do list of my willfulness. I stopped praying. I started listening. And after a few more fretful weeks, those words were spoken out loud to us, sitting in that office, the same office where there were once tears of sorrow... now tears of gladness. This baby is dancing, just wiggling for joy, with a heart full of hope beating just for us! It's gonna be alright!
Lilypie Pregnancy tickers


(I'm not going to force it on you but if you've never heard this song, 
please take a listen. I have been listening to it quite a bit 
and hope you find it as inspiring.)


P.S. Our appointment was supposed to be last Thursday, but the ice and snow kept us at home and, perhaps, affected my temperament just a bit. :)

72 comments:

  1. O, Congratulations! What wonderful, wonderful news. I will keep you and your new baby in my prayers! So excited for you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You worded it beautifully, Charlotte. Now for that coffee and donut, huh?

    ReplyDelete
  3. God's many, many blessings, Charlotte! And prayers for continued health for you and the baby ...

    God is so GOOD!

    Hugs ...

    ReplyDelete
  4. My heart is so happy for you and your family. I will be praying for you and your new baby. Joyful news indeed!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What wonderful news! I am so happy for you, Charlotte. I will keep you and your sweet baby in my prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am so happy with tears for you and your family, what a beautiful post. I will certainly keep you and baby in our prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh I am so over the moon happy for you. I am keeping you and your precious little one in my prayers. Many hugs and kisses to you. Soak up your JOY and thank you for sharing it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I'm so happy for you all! You'll remain in our prayers!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Congratulations!

    I'm 9 weeks and 3 days pregnant, so we're due only a day apart, I assume.

    Prayers going up for health and strength for you and baby.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh, I have tears of happiness for you too!!!

    You and baby will be in my continued prayers. What a beautiful post!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Congratulations, Charlotte! Praying you get to meet this little babe this side of heaven!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Been praying for you. I'm so glad you shared this...very beautiful. You will continue to be in my prayers, sweet Charlotte. Blessings to you all.:)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Congratulations Charlotte! Such exciting news! We are holding you, baby and the rest of the family in our prayers!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Praise God! Congratulations! I will pray that things continue to go well.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Congratulations, Charlotte! What a beautiful post. What a beautiful life.

    Blessings to you and your new little one.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Congratulations, Charlotte! Wonderfully written post that kept me hanging there! I will keep you and your new baby in prayer. God is wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Deo gratias!
    You and your new blessing will be in my prayers.
    Cause of our JOY, pray for us.

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a beautifully written post, and with such a WONDERFUL message. Congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Congratulations! your post made me tear up. We will keep you in our prayers. I am so filled with joy for you!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wonderful news! Joyful news! Prayers for a healthy baby and mom!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Congratulations!!! My eyes are wet with happiness. Blessed be God!

    We will be remembering you and the baby in our daily family prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Congratulations!
    Hearing that little heartbeat for the first time is the most amazing thing. I'm 14 weeks pregnant. I will be praying for you.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Tears of joy and happiness here. Praise God!!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Dancing for joy for you, Charlotte! What WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL, JOY-FILLED news! Much love and prayers are coming your way.

    ReplyDelete
  25. How wonderful, Charlotte! Praying for you and your tiny baby!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Praise God! We rejoice in God's mercy and love for you and your family and will lift you up in our prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Praise be to God! Charlotte, I'm so happy for you! You and your sweet baby are in my prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  28. How wonderful our God is! We lost a baby last year around the same time as you. And here we are due just two weeks apart with a new little bundle of joy.

    http://theadventuresofacatholicmom.blogspot.com/2011/02/persons-person-no-matter-how-small.html

    ReplyDelete
  29. Wonderful news! Congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  30. What happy news! Many congratulations, and many prayers of course.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Congratulations! I'm so happy to add you to my "Pregnant Ladies" prayer list! :) And the kids must be over the moon too!

    ReplyDelete
  32. How wonderful!!!!!!! And a beautifully worded post too :) God is awesome and our prayers are with you and your newest blessing.

    ReplyDelete
  33. God is good...All the Time!
    Congratations, Charlotte!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Oh, oh Oh! I am soo happy for you!!! I will pray for you, Charlotte and will keep it up for your whole pregnancy! {{{{HUGS}}}}

    ReplyDelete
  35. Congratulations!!!! I am so happy for you. I have a rose from St. Therese too...her name is Celine!!!! I'll be praying for you!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Congratulations! you and your little one are in our prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I am so very happy for you and your family!! ♥ I can hardly wait to "meet" the new little one! :) You and baby will be in our prayers!

    ReplyDelete
  38. Congratulations, Charlotte! I'm so very happy for you! Deo Gratias!!!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Congrats! What wonderful news:)

    ReplyDelete
  40. Oh Ia m tickled for you guys!! Yippee! Snoopy dancing here!!!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Congratulations! Prayers being said for you and the baby.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Oh so happy for you all. Congratulations!!!

    ReplyDelete
  43. Congratulations! That's such exciting news!

    ReplyDelete
  44. Congratulations!!! What wonderful news.I will be keeping you and your little one in my prayers

    ReplyDelete
  45. Congratulations!! What wonderful news to read tonight!!
    You and your little one will remain in my prayers until your blessing in cuddled in your arms.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Oh, happy day! We will add you and the wee one to our prayer list. Blessings, Karen +AMDG+

    ReplyDelete
  47. O how wonderful! Congratulations and I pray that everything continues to go well.

    ReplyDelete
  48. How exciting and wonderful - congrats to you and your family!! And... you are due at exactly the same time as I am!

    ReplyDelete
  49. What a nice way to end my day. Congratulations on wonderful news! God bless you and the growing family!

    Praise be to God!!

    ReplyDelete
  50. Dear Charlotte, and family,
    congratulations on this sweet and joyous news. Prayers for yous and baby's health.
    God Bless
    Gae

    ReplyDelete
  51. I have been praying for you especially these last weeks because I knew we were near the time of your miscarriage, but what joy that those prayers are bringing you healing in this way! Love and continued prayers,
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  52. Congratulations, what a blessing!

    ReplyDelete
  53. Wonderful news! Congratulations! :)

    ReplyDelete
  54. Yes, yes!! So joyful! Wonderful news, Charlotte. Will be praying for you. Congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  55. Oh, congratulations from all of us here in New England. We are also expecting a baby, our fifth, and are pleased to be in such great company!

    ReplyDelete
  56. Congratulations, Charlotte!! I am so happy for you and your family! Be assured of my prayers for all of you! Lots of love and hugs being sent your way! :D

    ReplyDelete
  57. Congratulations! I'm so glad to hear the wonderful news.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Congratulations Charlotte! I read this post right away and kept you in my heart and mass/rosaries all weekend. Hugs to you!

    ReplyDelete
  59. What joyous news! I was with friends at the Shrine in Hanceville, AL this weekend, and you were on my heart...now I know why! What a sweet gift...thank you for sharing your news!

    Aimee

    ReplyDelete
  60. Sooooo happy for you & will be praying everyday!!
    Karen

    ReplyDelete
  61. So delighted for you and praying hard! :)

    ReplyDelete
  62. Oh, So happy, so, so, so happy for you, Charlotte!! We will pray this sweet baby safely to your arms. Just you watch! He is good. And you are well loved. More maybe than you know. You make such joy in the world.

    ReplyDelete
  63. Charlotte, I am so sorry for your loss. I am also overjoyed at this blessed news and I will keep you in my prayers daily to St Anne for a healthy, peace-filled pregnancy!

    ReplyDelete
  64. I'm so slow to the party, but many, many congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  65. Oh, congratulations, and so many blessings!

    And the song is so lovely and hopeful....

    ReplyDelete
  66. Charlotte!
    What joyful, glorious news! I haven't been online much lately and just saw your happy news! You can count on us praying each day for you as we have put you on our St. Gerard list for pregnant mommas! Hugs to you.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and yourself!