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The Power Knowledge and Love of God
I have loved you, saith the Lord.
A Story That Must Be Told
Compiler's Note: We conclude with a remarkable story that demonstrates the power, foreknowledge, and love of God. Because the incidents so clearly reveal God's guidance and intervention, the details of this lengthy account are left intact. Married couples face few challenges as difficult as infertility. This is the story of two miracle children who came to a faithful couple as pure gifts from God.
As newlyweds, infertility was the last thing we expected to face. Both my wife and I had come from large, "double-digit" families. To us, having a home filled with children was synonymous with marriage. Although we were poor college students at the time, we wanted to begin our family, and we set out fully confident that a large posterity was our future.
Then nothing. No baby.
We tried unsuccessfully for a year and a half to achieve a pregnancy while we watched family members and friends bringing beautiful children into the world. As we experienced one negative pregnancy test after another, our patience wore thin. We fasted, sought inspiration in the temple, and counseled with our parents and church leaders. Having a baby became the primary focus of our prayers. But our pleadings seemed to bounce off the ceiling. We wondered why God would ignore us when all we wanted to do was keep our temple covenants.
In January, a most discouraging time, I asked my father to give both my wife and me a priesthood blessing. A specific promise was given that was to become our anchor: You will have natural children, and a pregnancy will occur within a year's time. With hope renewed, we spent the next twelve months pleading with the Lord that the promise be fulfilled.
Time crept like a tortoise. Each month we prepared for a positive pregnancy test, but every time the results came back negative. Nevertheless, we tried to maintain a positive outlook and keep our faith in God.
During that trying year, we received an unexpected letter from the Social Security Administration directing me to reapply for some benefits. I had dealt with health challenges most of my life and had previously received some disability and schooling aid. When my employment status had changed, I had assumed that I would not qualify for the benefits, so I had not corresponded with Social Security for months. The day that I read their letter, I quickly discarded it and threw it onto a stack of junk mail on a corner of my desk. After several weeks, my efficient wife asked me about the letter. It was a waste of time, I said. It wouldn't hurt to try, she replied. I reluctantly jotted down the required information, stuffed it in an envelope, and stuck a stamp on it. Then we took off on a much-needed five-day vacation.
After we returned home and sorted through our mail, we found to our surprise a check from Social Security for $3,000! The check was for back payments that Social Security owed me. Our minds began to race. We were poor students. We imagined all the things we could buy. But we both had the strong impression not to spend the funds. Instead, we deposited the full amount in a savings account.