i came across a blog last weekend – a friend of a friend. it was about a young family whose baby was born 12 weeks early in june 2008. kayleigh only weighed a pound. i was captivated by the story of strength and trust that the parents had – they believed that their little girl was their “one pound miracle” from God. as i read their posts from the beginning of their journey until now i was so overwhlemed with emotion. they were $2 million in debt because of the medical bills for their 10 month old baby who had yet to come home. she had undergone 7 surgeries and over 200 procedures. they were losing their house because they couldn’t afford the medical bills. i was overwhelmed thinking “why do things like this happen to good people?” ”they did everything right – they had insurance – they have a perfect family – how do people endure this?”
i noticed that they were going to be featured on the show called the dr’s this past week and so i dvr’d it and watched as they told their story and i cried as 2 people donated $20,000 each (and realized that despite the generous gifts… they were still $2,000,000 in debt!!). it was heart wrenching and they asked for people to pray for their daughter and remember to hold their own children a little closer.
i just found out that their little girl passed away on monday (the day before the show aired) and her memorial service is today. 11 months of being in the hospital. she never came home to her crib and the nursery that was painted pink with her name on the wall. this is reality for this family. their posts reflect on their daughter’s life with joy and smiles and they are rejoicing in their pain that their little girl is dancing with Jesus in heaven. her little body has been completely healed in His presence and they talked about how they can’t wait to see her again someday.
it’s stories like this that cause me to realize how blessed i am. i often get wrapped up into thinking how i wish i had this or i wish my life was like that and it’s just not fair. and then i see a family that despite how devastating their story is, finds every opportunity to rejoice in what God has done in their life and i am inspired. inspired to be a person who rejoices no matter what the circumstances. inspired to be a person of joy. inspired to remember God’s daily and continual blessings in my life!
2 Comments
May 18, 2009 at 5:40 am
Wow! What a joy that they are believers in God’s miracles and joy. I can only imaging how different the story would be otherwise.
May 18, 2009 at 5:40 am
imagine, not imaging