Sent by Wong Pui Ee • Oct 15, 2023
Derek and I happily tied the knot in 2013. We enjoyed two years of pure marital bliss before embarking on the journey of parenthood. Little did we know that this journey would become one of our greatest challenges, but it was the way God chose to refine and fortify our faith.
I must admit, I wasn’t the most patient person when years passed by without the pitter-patter of little feet. With each passing year, the relentless ticking of my female biological clock seemed to echo more loudly. I even battled with the nagging thought that maybe I was a “failure” if I couldn’t conceive. We explored various fertility methods but drew the line at IVF as hormonal treatments didn’t agree with me. We attended every altar call for couples desiring children, and even Pastor Daniel offered his prayers. We clung on to God’s promises, sometimes in genuine faith and at other times almost trying to “bargain” with Him. Tears welled up in my eyes each month when my menstrual cycle came.
Just when we were on the verge of giving up hope, God granted us our first baby miracle after five years of marriage. My pregnancy was marred by excessive vomiting that left me unable to eat much, but our little miracle, whom we named Elizabeth Grace, grew steadily in my womb. Her name was a testament to God’s abundance and promise of grace.
However, soon after God gave us this precious gift and, being human, I found myself yearning for another child. We continued trying, and this time, it seemed easier to get pregnant but it also seemed just as easy to lose the pregnancies. In 2020, we experienced our first miscarriage, followed by another the next year. These losses caught us completely off guard, despite our attempts to remind ourselves that “God gives and God takes away.” I questioned if there was anything I could have done differently to prevent these losses. We were also acutely aware of our age, with the biological clock ticking even louder. Our doctors cautioned us that we might only have one more chance of having a child, and the risk of abnormalities was significantly higher.
Then, in May 2022, just five months after the last miscarriage, I became acutely aware of a delayed menstrual cycle. Reluctantly, I took the pregnancy test weeks later than I should have, and it came back positive! However, our previous miscarriages cast a shadow on our celebration; caution and apprehension prevailed.
Everything changed on July 9, 2023, during an altar call by Pastor Chris Kam. We were at home, tuning into the online church service because I was suffering from excessive pregnancy nausea and vomiting. Although I could barely focus on the sermon, I distinctly heard God’s call and promise through Pr Chris: “There are pregnant mothers here who are worried if their babies are growing well in their wombs. God knows your worries, and He says they are growing well”. He prayed for us mothers and our babies, asking for protection, continued growth, and that they would be used mightily in God’s kingdom.
From that moment, I felt liberated. I reminded myself of God’s promise that our baby belonged to Him, and He would take care. This pregnancy unfolded even more miraculously than the first. Despite being in close contact with Derek and Elizabeth when they contracted COVID, I remained unaffected. I didn’t develop gestational diabetes, a condition I had during my first pregnancy. Our baby remained healthy in the womb until 39 weeks, even though my gynecologist had suggested an earlier delivery due to my advanced age.
In early 2023, Esther Joy, also known as the “joyful star,” arrived as God’s second baby miracle for us. It had been a ten-year journey by then. All we can say is that God remained faithful, even when our faith wavered, and His timing was perfect, although it was different from ours. In the end, He is God, and His sovereignty reigns supreme. All glory and honour belong to Him alone!