I absolutely love the “On this Day” feature on Facebook. I can’t help it. I am hopelessly nostalgic and love to see where I was last year and the year before and so on. I mean look at yesterday’s memory. Who wouldn’t want to re-live that?? When I shared the picture, it made so many people laugh at the “Greerswalds.” Nothing makes me happier than to put a smile on other people’s faces.

Who knew that God would use this little feature to give me the encouragement I so desperately needed today…

You see I started this blog in May with a primary goal – to increase my online presence (aka my platform), so that I could publish my book with a major publishing house. That is what everyone says you have to do. Seriously. I have attended seminars, read articles, watched YouTube videos. They all say it.

I am happy with what God has help me accomplished through self-publishing my book “Full Heart Empty Womb: How I Survived Infertility…Twice,” but if God has a wider audience for me out there then I have to at least try.

But no one told me that trying would be so hard. This morning I was so discouraged. I realized that it has been well over four months since my book proposal was taken by a publisher to be reviewed. I was told that it was a long process, so I hadn’t even let myself think about it until recently. As my calendar drifts towards the fifth month of waiting, my fiery passion I felt months ago has simmered down to a flicker.

And the doubting voices in my head have gotten louder and louder. Your book proposal that you worked so hard on is just a coaster for someone’s coffee mug. That is if isn’t sitting in the REJECTION file, and they just haven’t gotten around to contacting you. What is the point of this whole “platform” thing anyway? Who cares what a 30-something-stay-at-home mom has to say? Your own kids don’t really listen to what you say. You really are just wasting your time. 

So with tears in my eyes and a defeated heart, I sat down to pray. I have been so busy that I am ashamed to say that I haven’t taken the time to have a true quiet time in a while. (And I wonder why I was so defeated? 😉 I am not talking about nightly prayers with the kids, prayers for needs of loved ones, or even Hallelujah prayers for life’s little blessings. I am talking the sitting down with God and letting it all hang out. All the fears. All the questions. The pleading for something…anything to keep me going in the right direction.

After I dried my tears, I went to my mission control – the kitchen island. I started assembling breakfasts, lunches, and unloading the dishwasher all while listening to my Christmas playlist. As I waited for my Eggo to pop out of the toaster, I clicked on Facebook and immediately saw this memory:

Tears immediately filled my eyes. I knew this was encouragement from God. December 2, 2014 was one of the best days of my life. It was the day that I got my proof copy of my book. It was my rainbow at the end of a storm. I finally got to see that by sharing my pain, I would help countless others find healing. And it healed me.

I don’t know if I will ever see my book on the shelves of Lifeway or Barnes & Noble (However, you can find it here 😉 But I do know that with God’s help, I have made a difference. I have a file of letters I have received from women who have been touched by my journey. If sharing my story with those women is the extent of His plan is for me, then I feel blessed to be a part of it.

And this blog? I never in a million years would have thought I had anything “worth” writing. If I hadn’t written my book, I would never have started the SLM blog. Seems as though I can write about a lot more than Infertility and people enjoy it.

Whether I am helping people who are struggling with Infertility, encouraging Mamas, or just making someone laugh, I feel so blessed that God has brought me on this journey.

The only thing I am going to try to do is stay on God’s path for me.  And as long as I stay close to Him, He will keep me between the lines.