I absolutely treasure today’s What’s It Like story-teller today because she’s become one of my dearest friends, a true prayer-warrior, and an infertility soul sister. Caroline Harries is as real, authentic, and genuine as it gets and I am inspired by her faith and obedience to many difficult callings she’s had, one of them being to trust God to try for children naturally despite the odds. I am grateful we have had the chance to meet in person, pray together, and chat routinely as she’s an incredibly blessing to me and many others. Caroline, thank you for taking the time to share your story with us and encouraging us in it!
Here’s what it’s like to take a natural route with infertility.
Have you ever been to the doctor and received devastating news? That is what happened for my husband and I back in 2012. We were one year into our marriage and we were ready to expand our family. Due to prior medical history for both of us, we both got tested right away. And what we found out was devastating. My husband was diagnosed as medically sterile and the majority of my hormone levels came back abnormal. Through an MRI, a tumor was also found on my pituitary gland.
These tests revealed to us that it would be impossible to have children naturally. After being referred to a specialist, who confirmed that to be true, we never went back to the doctor. Instead, we pursued what we felt the Lord calling us to do, which was trust him and wait for him to perform a miracle.
Not only were we facing the impossible, but soon after receiving the devastating news, my husband moved to Georgia for work while I stayed back in Dallas, where we met, got married and still live to this day. I have always been into health and fitness, but while he was gone I spent a lot of time researching how to make our bodies healthier. When he moved back to Dallas 6 months later we pursued an even healthier lifestyle. We dove straight into acupuncture, specific eating plans, essential oils, etc. You name it, we tried it.
Fast forward to August of 2013, 1.5 years into our journey, when I had a dream I was pregnant. Immediately after waking up, I took a pregnancy test which came back negative and soon thereafter started by period. And that was my low point. I was broken and devastated and that is when God spoke to me and told me I had to surrender our journey over to him. Up to this point I was grasping at anything I could in front of me to try to heal us and make us pregnant. Vitamins. Food. Acupuncture. Google.
In that moment, I chose to give it over to God. We stopped tracking, charting, timing and begging. We stopped it all and that day changed the trajectory of our journey. No longer was I hurting. No longer was I living month to month. No longer was I trying to make myself pregnant. Because of this decision to allow him to write our story, our journey has been so full of peace, joy, hope and expectancy. In fact, I have felt pregnant with hope. And it’s a feeling that I know will outweigh any pregnancy in the natural.
So you might be wondering what our journey looks like now? What is it like for a couple who takes a natural route? Well, it’s been 6+ years since that day in 2012 when doctors told us a natural pregnancy would never happen and 5 years since that moment that we decided to surrender our journey over to the Lord. Nothing has changed in the natural realm and our situation recently became much more complicated 2 months ago when my husband received a cancer diagnosis. Although we are facing great impossibilities and have faced much pushback from family members, friends and strangers for the route we are taking, we are still choosing to daily surrender it over to God and follow his prompting to forego trying to make our baby happen.
Despite that the odds are stacked against us, each day that passes, our expectancy grows as we believe for our miracles. Daily we saturate our hearts and minds with the truth of God’s Word, which says that by his stripes we were healed (Isaiah 53:5). Jesus paid for our healing at the cross and it’s his desire for us to be fruitful and multiply. We know and believe that nothing is impossible for him and when we become pregnant, God will get all the glory. It’s been so freeing to rest in his finished work and not have to strive to earn a baby.
We are very aware that our journey looks different than many couples who go through infertility. We don’t know why he gives some couples the green light on adoption or medical assistance and some couples like us, he sends down a more natural route. Each route looks so different and I believe that each route faces challenges of its own. We aren’t so concerned about what path we fall on or what our story looks like, because we know it will be beautiful as we allow him to write it, instead of us trying to write it ourselves. We always want to be obedient to the path the Lord has and we don’t know what tomorrow will hold, but we know with him in control it will be beautiful and more amazing than we ever could have asked or imagined.
No matter what your journey is, what impossible circumstance you are facing or what trial you currently find yourself in, I hope you choose to surrender your journey over to him. I have no doubt that when you do, his grace will be sufficient. His love will be reckless. His joy will be overwhelming. Pursuing him, more than what you desire, will leave you expectant! It will leave you full! It will leave you knowing that whatever route you are in, when God is writing your story, it will bring him the glory and at the end of the day, that is what matters most!
Caroline Harries has a heart for those who are waiting on breakthrough from the Lord. Her unwavering faith is evident as she believes for her own miracle of children. She delights in encouraging women through her internationally followed blog and book, In Due Time, as well as her ministry to those desiring to become mothers, Moms in the Making. Caroline loves traveling the world with her husband and stays active by competing in triathlons. She holds a degree in finance and marketing from Baylor University in Texas, where she and her husband live. {Let’s Connect} Facebook •Instagram • Bloglovin • Pinterest • Google + • Twitter
PS – Don’t miss a thing with this series! Follow along on Facebook and Instagram to catch each of the upcoming stories! I absolutely LOVE connecting with each of you!
PPS – If you’re ever looking for a devotional on living life while in a waiting season, check out the devotional I co-authored called ‘In the Wait’!
PPPS – Check out the other contributions from this series, including What It’s Like: to experience multiple IVF cycles, raise a child with special needs, use an egg donor, be a DIY-er and home style blogger , be a NICU nurse, Live fully in singleness while still hoping for marriage, suffer with endometriosis. experience depression, start a company, have a micro preemie, lose a parent, be childless not by choice, have a spouse with a chronic illness, fund raise for fertility treatments,and have a traumatic birthing experience. Stay tuned for many other amazing topics to come every Tuesday and Friday here!
Trials Bring Joy 