With every year, comes its highs and lows, disappointments and joys.
Life is not perfect, I often struggle with disappointments and at times, grudgingly ask God why.
Yet, with a heart of thanksgiving, I believe we can always rejoice as we give Him thanks for what we’ve been blessed with. We may not understand everything, but as we count our blessings and thank Him for them, I believe He draws us into deeper trust, and greater faith.
This year, I am most grateful to God for, in no order of priority:
1. Baby Tam
I remember the time we found out we were expecting, after a heartbreaking disappointment a few months before.
We never expected pregnancy to be such an enjoyable, exhilarating experience. We didn’t expect it would bring our marriage closer together, and draw us deeper into understanding God’s ways, His goodness and His love for us as a Father.
Carrying, nourishing and growing Tiny Tam has been an amazing privilege.
2. A Miraculous Pregnancy
Pregnancy has a notorious reputation of causing heartburn, back pain, emotional turmoil and a host of other discomforts and inconveniences.
Yet, by God’s grace and under the covering of a prayerful husband, I’ve had the privilege of experiencing a supernatural journey. Pregnancy not only healed me of my scoliosis pain and premenstrual symptoms (which ought to worsen), but taught me many precious lessons about learning to rejoice in all circumstances, and caring for myself and a new life.
Now in my third trimester and nearing full term, I’ll have to say being in my third trimester (the one everyone hates) has been my most enjoyable.
As crazy as it sounds, I will certainly miss pregnancy when its over!
Back at 6 months
3. A Loving Husband
Through a year of ups and downs, where we faced many hard decisions about moving, staying on, applying for numerous scholarship /study /residential / immigration forms, what made the biggest difference in my life was God’s blessing of a loving husband whose steadfast faith and leadership anchored me deeply.
Back at 32 weeks or so
4. A Cherished Opportunity
Being accepted into Johns Hopkins, receiving the Fulbright scholarship and finally, and having the opportunity to actually pursue it next year in the States with my husband and baby was a great blessing I still find surreal to take in.
Without God and Cliff, none of this would have been possible.
5. A New Season
As we enter a new season, we are so grateful for all the blessings God has showered upon us as we undertake all things new.
It seems apt for us to be experiencing winter at the moment, as we take this season to rest, reflect and ponder over what God will do in the coming year.
Trusting that as we continue to surrender our lives to Him,
that He will reveal and draw us closer to the greater, eternal purposes He has for our lives.
May He do the same for you,
as you surrender all to Him in 2017.