Sunday, April 20, 2008

The Tenderness of the Lord

Sometimes we don't really understand why things happen in our lives but having the Gospel gives us an understanding that things happen for a reason, the Lord has a plan for us, and even though it may be hard to understand it, it helps us to become better people and gain a stronger testimony. On April 4th I had a midwife appointment. For no obvious reason I was a little nervous the whole morning. When we got there, the midwife couldn't find the baby's heartbeat so she sent us immediately to the hospital to get a sonogram. When we got there they were already waiting for us and they admitted me into the hospital as a patient. When they finally did the sonogram they found that the baby had passed away so the doctor decided to induce me so I could have a normal delivery. Brody was still-born on Saturday April 5th around 7:45 a.m. He was 14 inches long and weighed 13 oz. It had been several days since he had passed away. His umbilical cord had twisted so much that it caused a kink in it blocking the flow of blood and nutrients. We were heartbroken and extremely sad but we were comforted by the Spirit knowing that he was such a special spirit that didn't need to come to this earth to be tested. We felt the love of family and friends. We will always be so grateful for their support and their love. Dallas' dad flew us to Utah so we could bury Brody there. We held a very small graveside at the American Fork Cemetery on April 11th. 
We are very grateful for the understanding of the Gospel. We know that this experience, even though it is very hard, is going to help us become better people. We have a better understanding of the atonement and we feel the love that our Heavenly Father has for us. We have been comforted in so many ways and we have felt peace in our hearts to know the power of being sealed in the temple will allow us to all be together forever, if we can but endure.
We don't know how to express the love and the gratitude that we have for our family and friends, for their support and their love that they have given us in this time of need. Thank you so much for your prayers, we have felt them and they have given us peace and comfort. One of our sweet friends shared a quote from the prophet Joseph Smith that gave us much comfort, "The Lord takes many away, even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth; therefore, if rightly considered, instead of mourning we have reason to rejoice as they are delivered from evil, and we shall soon have them again..."