A mom who chose her miracle (VIDEO)

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{source}<iframe style=”float: left; border: 1px solid #000000; background-color: #C0C0C0; padding: 2px; margin: 10px; -moz-border-radius: 3px; -khtml-border-radius: 3px; -webkit-border-radius: 3px; border-radius: 3px;” width=”400″ height=”225″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/WZHQw-t_he0?rel=0″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>{/source}Elizabeth Joice was told she would not be able to get pregnant.  Her husband proposed to her the day she was diagnosed with cancer, presenting her with a homemade aluminum foil ring and the promise to help her through her treatments.  After surgery and chemo, she was declared cancer-free for almost three years.  Months passed and the couple was shocked and joyful when they found out Elizabeth was pregnant.  Their joy was short-lived however.  One month into the pregnancy she discovered a tumor on her back and she and her husband were faced with an impossible decision.

The surgeon would be able to remove the tumor but there was no way to know if the cancer had spread without doing a full-body MRI scan.  The doctors told her that the dyes used in the scan would harm the baby so it would be necessary to terminate the pregnancy before the procedure.

Elizabeth chose to continue her pregnancy.  Two more tumors were removed in the months to come and in her third trimester, she began to have trouble breathing.  The doctors took the baby girl, Lily, on January 23rd by C-section.  It was a day of joy and grief.  When they did the C-section they found tumors throughout Elizabeth’s body.  She died six weeks later.

Her doctor said the first time the new mom held her baby, “The joy on her face was just incredible.”  Elizabeth said, “This is worth it . . . I would do it all again to have this child.”  Baby Lily is the miracle her mom chose.  Someday she will understand how much she was loved.

This Sunday is Mother’s Day.  $671 million will be spent on cards.  $1.9 billion will be spent on flowers.  96% of the population will contribute to celebrating the day.  4.3 babies are born each second to 2 billion moms around the world.  Sunday is an important day to express love for the woman you call “Mom.”

For some, Mother’s Day is not a celebration.  Not everyone is blessed to have a great relationship with family members, moms included.  But for most of us, Mother’s Day is a great time to remember the unique love that exists between a mom and her children.  

I’ve often said that the closest understanding I have of God’s love for me occurred when I had my children.  I understand why Elizabeth chose to bring Lily into the world, rather than terminate her pregnancy.  It’s quite possible she knew her own life would be shortened by cancer, and therefore she chose to make Lily’s life more important.  

The Bible often speaks of God’s love for us comparing it to a parent’s love for their child.  Of course God’s love is greater than any human love ever could be.  God’s word simply uses concepts we can comprehend while still on this side of eternity.  I love these descriptions of God’s love:

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. 
Deuteronomy 33:27

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.
Psalm 68:5

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him. 
Psalm 103:13

Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you! 
Isaiah 49:15

As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you. 
Isaiah 66:13

Mother’s Day is a good time to remember how much we are loved.  It is a good time to remember how much we need to share love with others as well.  Very few of us have been called to make a choice like Elizabeth Joice needed to make.   But almost every mom makes sacrifices for her children because that is the kind of love God creates in us.

That love, created by God, is the best way to understand the love God has for you.  Let’s take time to thank God for his love and thank our moms for their love.  The cards, flowers and not having to cook are great gifts – but nothing could be as sweet as that genuine hug of appreciation and love.

Abraham Lincoln said, “No man is poor who has had a godly mother.”  I hope your family will be rich with God’s great love.

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Posted by Janet Denison

Janet Denison teaches others to live an authentic faith through her writing, speaking, and teaching ministry. She blogs weekly at JanetDenison.org and often at ChristianParenting.org. She is also the author of The Songs Tell the Story and Content to Be Good, Called to Be Godly, among other books. Janet and her husband, Dr. Jim Denison, live in Dallas, Texas. When they’re not writing or ministering to others, they enjoy spending time with their grown children and their four still-growing grandchildren.