Testimonies - Page 6 of 39 - Moms in the Making

In May 2023, I had a biochemical pregnancy and I thought I had mourned, but there was still a sadness that didn’t go away.

This year, I wasn’t planning on going to conference but then God told me I needed to go. Traveling from the Netherlands to Texas would be a big challenge, but God provided a way and within one week I had everything arranged.

At conference, I had my breakthrough sessions lined up in a way whereby I had mourned during “Shout of Morning,” received hope during “Shout of Hope” and received God’s Word during “Shout of Revelation.” The devil might have tried to steal my joy and light away, but I wouldn’t let him. I felt my joy restored at conference.

And then…. another attendee, Sorani, found me. What are the odds that 2 girls both from Curaçao would meet each other at a conference in Texas? We started talking in Papiamentu – it was a confirmation that I needed to use this gift from God to empower and encourage other women on the island of Curaçao as well.

I can’t wait to help others receive the same joy and light that was restored to me during the conference. Thank you Moms in the Making!
I am shouting, “I am free of fear!”

This year at conference, I was so grateful that I walked in as a Mom Made, but I also walked in with an enormous amount of fear of my child’s health, specifically her sleep.

During the exercise of leaving our burdens at the cross, I wrote down that I was ready to release the fear I had for my child’s health at the feet of Jesus and in return, He told me I was getting confidence and peace. I prayed and left my paper at the cross. On the short walk back to my table, I could feel the enemy attacking hard. I was bombarded with, “Where is your child right now? Are you sure she’s being watched carefully? Is she sleeping safe?” I was met with all of the “what ifs…”.

Because Moms in the Making taught me I have the authority to stomp out the enemy in the name of Jesus, I was able to shut out those voices as quickly as they came up. I reminded the enemy that I broke agreement with his attempts at fear and that my child is a child of God and He is her protector. I instantly felt a release of tension in my body. At that moment, my phone lit up with a sweet picture of my daughter sleeping peacefully.

I will no longer live in fear of her health. I am declaring that in Jesus’s name we will have restful and safe sleep moving forward. I wanted to leave the weekend sure that the fear was gone, so when it came time to pin our “shout” to the wall, it was easy to make that my declaration as well! “I am free from fear!”
This year has been a hard year financially for my husband and I as I’ve transitioned into being a full-time SAHM. I’m so thankful for our miracle baby, but the financial side was a big sacrifice.

I had purchased my 2023 conference ticket last year (in 2022) with the hopes I’d be able make it in 2023. As the date got closer, I soon realized it was not going to be possible, so I decided to donate my ticket to anyone else who would be blessed by it.

But, I secretly still wanted to go and my heart hurt at the idea of missing conference this year, especially with the theme being about JOY! My miracle baby girl’s middle name is joy and joy was my prophetic word throughout my wait. So after praying about it and putting my pride aside, I reached out asking about how I can make it happen.

I started a fundraiser in faith and hope it would help even just a little bit with travel expenses. Within ONE HOUR, I was 100% set to go! Flight, hotel, conference ticket all done IN ONE HOUR!! I knew at that moment that God wanted me at conference this year and boy did He have a message for me. I’m so thankful that I got to experience conference. He made it happen once again and all glory goes to Him!
They say hindsight is 20/20, and it wasn’t until the end of the story that I saw how my pain was a physical manifestation of my hurting heart. My husband and I had passed the two year mark of the start of our adoption journey. We had experienced so many rejections. Under his leadership, I signed up for 2023 Moms in the Making conference.

During Saturday prayer, a call went out for anyone specifically experiencing physical pain in their right foot. Very specific, but I had been fighting debilitating pain in my right hip and I thought it had been tied to my plantar fasciitis in, you guessed it, my right foot. I knelt at the altar and women came and laid hands on my right side. These women didn’t know my story, but they knew to be faithful.

As they prayed and sang and danced over me, the pain in my side literally melted away. I felt like you’d expect an ice cube feels under a heat lamp. I came home free from pain. It took several days to realize that my plantar fasciitis was and remains gone.

The Lord also healed my broken heart. He gave sweet confirmation that I had been on the right path, and that while I had been hurt, He was directing all the things I could not see to give me a hope and a future. With that renewed hope and freedom from all kinds of pain, I’ve been free to shout for joy the goodness of our God.
Moms in the Making Conference 2023 was a life-changing encounter with Jesus.

My heart is beyond full. The word for my birthday this year was joy and the conference theme was “Shout For Joy.” And that’s exactly what my heart feels after this weekend: joy restored. And so much more.

It was a beautiful, red carpet experience for me. I felt so loved and seen, was ministered to in special personable ways (including my prophetic cards), received breakthrough, prophetic ministry, healing and renewed vision for what God has for me, our marriage and family.

I never knew how much my heart needed this. And the sweet friendships made. Thank you, Jesus!!! He is so good. And kind. And loving. And the Giver of Hope and Joy.

My husband kept commenting on how much I was glowing when we first reunited and there’s been some sweet breakthrough in our marriage ever since conference. So expectant for all that God has for me and my family.
When I left for the Moms in the Making conference this year, I had so much guilt and so much shame for having my miracle, Ila, at home while others who would be in attendence are still in the waiting. I felt guilty for even speaking about Ila at the beginning of conference. I was experiencing so much shame that it led me to withhold from asking God for another child.

However, this prior weekend at the 2023 conference, God showed me through words spoken by Caroline that it is okay to ask God for the big things! Not only is it okay, but it’s encouraged to expand your territory as outlined in Isaiah 54. I’m so thankful I received encouragement to talk to God about the big things and dream with God about my future children.
My husband and I started dating in 2010 and got married 3 years later. We were very young and dragging along into our marriage was our painful pasts.

The first year, my husband became very depressed. Quickly, our life together became very negative and “dark”. After about a year, he slowly started to feel better (thank you, Jesus). But because he was so depressed, I felt like I needed to be very careful of what I said and did – never actually expressing how I was feeling because I, too, had a lot of unresolved pain from my past.

When he was healed from his depression, I was starting to feel more sad and more negative. I suffered from sexual abuse and assault in my past and I never dealt with this pain and hurt. Because I never dealt with my past, it took a huge toll on our marriage. It got to the point that we barely spoke to each other on a daily basis. We avoided each other and I fell into a depression.

I knew that I knew I needed our Father, so I started to look for Him every day. I just read my Bible and started talking to the Father about it. Not knowing He was changing and healing my heart, soul and mind, opening my eyes to Him and showing me how He sees my husband. I started to pray this prayer: “Lord, please just help me see my husband through Jesus’ eyes”.

Slowly but surely, I started noticing how sweet and thoughtful my husband was. We started to talk more again.

My husband was going to a therapist for a long time now and he was working really hard. I was searching the Lord on a daily basis and worked hard in pursuing healing for myself. What we didn’t know was without even realizing it, we were praying the same prayer.

After about seven years of marriage, God healed us and our marriage. We could finally say, “I’m so happy in my marriage”! We both worked really hard, but because we did it with God, He healed us and our marriage!
After my miracle IVF baby was born in 2019, I knew I wanted a second. My husband was comfortable with one child. I prayed over God to change my husband’s mind if it was meant to be.

In 2021, my husband suggested that we pursue IVF again with our remaining embryos. It was going to be a huge strain because we had moved out of the country and I would have to fly back for at least a month.

I began to lose focus on God and get anxious about the process. No doubt it would be tough. In June 2021, I woke up in pain. I had gotten pregnant naturally on birth control to prepare for IVF, but unfortunately, it was an ectopic pregnancy that resulted in emergency surgery. We were devastated and my husband was fearful that it was God’s big “no” to us having another child.

I prayed again. He again delivered and softened my husband’s heart again. I did a final round of IVF in October of that year. My beautiful boy was born in June 2022! God gave us a son to carry on the family name and the three of us could not be more enamored with him. God completed my dream family.
Having children was brought up on date number two with my husband. He has 3 from a previous marriage and at the time a vasectomy, so I wanted to be sure we had the same desires.

After 6 months of negative pregnancy tests, we began seeking treatment. In addition to endometriosis, I was diagnosed with low AMH, and because after the vasectomy, my husband’s sperm built up antibodies making it more difficult to conceive naturally.

We decided to try an IUI to see how my body responded, and on our first wedding anniversary we got a negative pregnancy test, and a period. A few months later, around September of 2020, we decided to move forward with IVF.

By this time, the enemy had taken root and isolated me. Though family was always loving and supportive, I didn’t know a single person who had struggled to conceive. The pain of a long fertility journey mixed with the unknown of a global pandemic, I just felt isolated.

However, I just KNEW I couldn’t be alone in this pain. A quick Facebook search for a support group led me to Moms in the Making, and in God’s perfect timing, there was a conference the following weekend. In person. In the middle of a global pandemic. Easily drivable distance. I KNEW I had to be there.

I had never experienced the Holy Spirit like I did that weekend. I had never felt so loved, so seen, or so understood. I knew I had found my community and quickly got as plugged in as I could.

We moved forward with IVF that winter, but all 3 of our embryos rested.

September of 2021 we received a positive pregnancy test. Sadly, at just 6 short weeks, we miscarried. God knew exactly where I needed to be, as it was the weekend of the 2021 Moms in the Making conference.

As our hearts healed we continued to lean on the Lord and trust in His plan even though we didn’t understand it. We continued to be patient as we grew our relationship with Him. We found a church home, joined Bible studies, and I began leading a MITM group.

And then… in the winter of 2022 we got our second positive pregnancy test and in August of 2023 we welcomed our little girl, Addalynn Mae, to the world.
My husband Brandon and I met in May 2011 and were married in November 2013 in Houston, Texas. At the time, I was 29 and he was 31, so we felt we had plenty of time to start a family.

In 2014, we started to try… and nothing. After trying for a couple of years, I decided to ask my OBGYN what he thought and I was put on medication and we kept trying.

In August of 2020, my husband suggested we look for a fertility specialist and we began all of the testing that next month. We were then diagnosed with the two most confusing words – unexplained infertility. No reason. Nothing wrong. Just unexplained. No answers.

After 2 failed IUIs and two hysteroscopy procedures, we knew this was not going to be the quick fix we thought it would be. During that time, my husband found out we were being transferred to Oklahoma City, and despite the stress of the transition, I would finally be living near my family again.

In April 2021, we began IUI again with another 6 that all failed. We felt IVF was impossible for us, but it was not for God. I ended up finding a job that had IVF coverage that had recently been added to their company. I remember falling to my knees crying out to God in thankfulness knowing we could move forward.

In January 2022, we had our first IVF cycle and transferred two beautiful embryos. On February 16th, I miscarried my Johanna Hope and Jesse Nathaniel and we were diagnosed with male factor infertility. This loss drew me so much closer to God than I had ever been before. I clung to Him and His continued promises of a family.

In August 2022, we did our second IVF cycle. The week before my transfer was the Moms in the Making conference, and what I have come to call “Joyce winks from God”, gave me so much peace in the decisions we were making. Conference truly answered my exact prayer.

On October 17th, 2022, we transferred our little girl, and on June 28th, 2023, our miracle, Madelyn Joyce Rose, was born. God truly planned our steps and Moms in the Making has been my lifeline through it all. I could not be more thankful to have those that understand walk alongside me to my miracle.