In Her Own Words
2007 at 5:37 pm | by Carolyn Mahaney
Irene—whom you met yesterday—was unaware that we were planning to post Charlotte’s tribute to her when she sent us the following email last week. The thoughts she shared with us further illustrate her faith in God that Charlotte described so well. So we wanted you to hear from Irene herself about the grace of God she’s received as she cares for her daughter Bethany.
Thanks Carolyn for doing a series on this topic. As you know my first child, Bethany is severely disabled and this was such a surprise for us to be in this trial early in our marriage. But I must say to the glory of God and credit to our church and leadership that we’ve always felt cared for, loved, blessed beyond measure. I had moments in the beginning (when she was like two) of feeling awkward when invited to a “discovery toys” party and realizing Bethany wasn’t doing anything “normal” ...but my friends and the Lord Jesus Himself has always been a comfort. My husband had led me so well in never doubting the fact that “God is always good.” This has all helped in keeping us steady and strong. Not that we haven’t had our moments but for the most part God has given us grace not to get depressed or doubtful of His love. Somehow, in more ways than we’ll know (until we get to heaven) God is using our severely disabled daughter as “an arrow (though a silent one) in the hands of a mighty warrior.” We’ve met people and become friends with people we would have never known if it were not for Bethany. We’ve brought nurses to church and they’ve been able to see our lives and hopefully the gospel lived out because they’ve been in our home caring for her. Hopefully our kids will always be compassionate toward others in need because of their sister. There’s so much we don’t know but we are grateful that we know God and that we are in a local church. His grace truly is amazing…
Love,
Irene
