God made it clear that I was to have as many children as He would give. At the time, I didn’t want any; but I made up my mind to obey Him anyway. Two weeks after I got married, I conceived. Shortly after, I received word that my baby was at risk for Down syndrome. The doctor suggested an abortion but I told her that was not an option. Though I feigned strength, that dreaded call rattled me. The thought of a Down syndrome baby haunted me, though I tried to convince myself that my baby would be fine. But three weeks later I was still obsessing, so I desperately cried to God for relief. In an instant, He graciously freed my mind.
Three months later trouble resurfaced. While visiting my parents, who lived in Tampa, I started contracting. The pain become so severe that my sister and brother-in-law rushed me to the hospital where the doctor administered morphine in order to reduce the pain and slow the contraction. The doctor discovered fibroid tumors in my uterus, which caused me to go into pre-term labor. For my last trimester, I was confined to bed, heavily medicated, and monitored around the clock. Though I was warned that I would deliver prematurely, I made it to full term. The nurses were surprise because this typically never happens.
I went into labor on a Saturday. Labor was uneventful until the very end when the baby went into distress. I was having difficulty pushing the baby out as it was my first, but after hearing the doctor's panic voice; I instinctively pushed my baby out. But on that final push, my heart stopped! This incident struck fear in my heart. For twenty years, I hid the incident from my mom because she would have insisted that I have NO MORE children. However, I was not going to be influenced in this matter, not even by the most influential people in my life. But how was I to handle more pregnancies in light of the nearly nine month ordeal: Could I really fulfill what the Lord had instructed me to do? Maybe the next baby might not escape Down syndrome. Would the fibroid tumors cause me to deliver a sickly, premature baby? Even worse, would I die from heart failure during delivery?
Contrary to the doctor’s report and my medical condition, God blessed me with a completely healthy, full-term baby! I was grateful. Taking the risk of having more babies seemed foolish and potentially deadly, but I did not count my life dear; I wanted to obey God more. So I cast my cares on the Lord and determined not to worry. As a result, God blessed me with eight more precious babies! Ironically, the fibroid tumors disappeared after the birth of my first baby. All were full-term and healthy, and my heart never failed through the subsequent eight natural deliveries, including twins.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s lives were also at stake but they trusted God to get them through their trial and proved to the citizens of Babylon that there is only one true and living God. My nine children are living testaments to the world that God is greater than our fears and negative circumstances, which often cause us to doubt His promises and precepts.