I have been a divorced, single mom for about seven years now.  It is strange to find myself in this place.  I never desired or imagined this would be my life.  I was a stay at home wife and mother for most of my ten year marriage and was content in fulfilling my place in our family.  My husband however was not content.  He decided he was no longer in love with me.  I knew we were in a difficult place at the time but I had no idea we had reached that point.  During our ten year marriage my husband and I experienced our ups and downs but I never doubted our commitment to our marriage or our family.   Despite what I thought we had built, my marriage was quickly unraveling!   I found myself headed for a divorce. 

Fear, grief and desperation consumed me.  As I began attempting to navigate through this crisis I realized surviving this meant grabbing ahold of God like I had never done before!   It was at this point my life began to change!  It did not rid me of the trial but it did change my perspective.  For many years I believed I had sinned so much in my life that God couldn’t possibly love me.  As I began to seek God above all else, I came to know His unconditional love!  Jeremiah 1:5 states “Before I formed thee in the womb, I knew thee…”.  The first time I read this I instantly began sobbing.  GOD KNEW ME!  He knew my talents, my fears, my strengths and my weaknesses.  He knew the choices I would make, my successes and my failures.  He knew all of this before He formed me…and yet He did form me.  I am His creation!  I have marred His creation through my own sin and yet He loves me unconditionally!   

It has been a long journey and make no mistake it has been hard, but God has been merciful and faithful!  He hasn't just restored me; He is making me a better woman than I was!  He has given me a passion for the unsaved!  God has taken such an ugly and painful event in my life and is using it for His glory.  God desires single moms to know how valuable they are to Him.  Nothing with God is impossible! 

My ability to move forward comes from God.  I know JOY again!  This past year I graduated from Liberty University with my Bachelor degree in Religion.  I am currently half way through my Master degree in Human Services.  I have a wonderful and strong relationship with my son, who is growing up faster than I desire.  I still face the daily challenges of being a single mom.  Money never stretches far enough.  I face child care issues, car problems, house repairs, exhaustion, exspouse issues, and yet in the midst of all of it… I find rest in God!  It is in Him that I have security, peace, hope, joy, unconditional love, value, and the desire to DREAM AGAIN!