• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
life{in}grace

life{in}grace

live with more presence, passion, & purpose

  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
  • Work with Me
    • Courses
    • Life Mentoring School
    • LIVE Event – Your Best Beautiful Year – January 4, 2020
  • Natural Healing
    • Get Started
    • Essential Oil Resources
  • Free Resources
  • Podcast
  • Books

Something More Than a Miracle

August 25, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 96 Comments

I’m writing this in part to tell you that if you ever wonder what you’ve done in your life, and everyone does wonder sooner or later, you have been God’s grace to me, a miracle, something more than a miracle. ~Marilynne Robinson, Gilead

IMG_1348

It was a crisp October day when we stood on the back porch of our brand new house looking out on this near perfect landscape.

We could hardly believe that this was the exact same place we had stood nine months earlier and watched our house burn to the ground.  We were overwhelmed with gratitude at how these ashes had turned to beauty—not just how God has raised up a house, but how He had once again raised  hope in our hearts.  We wanted this house to be a house of blessing.  We prayed that maybe we’d even be able to adopt another child.  We went so far as make an appointment with an attorney because we had always felt this sense that our family wasn’t finished—that we wanted to raise a son together.  I would dream about “him” and in my mind, I knew just where I wanted the nursery.  More than anything else, I wanted the chance to raise a child without the added pressure of working a high stress job.

I already had a name for him.  John Elijah Wadsworth.  We’d call him Jack after C.S. Lewis.

While my dreams for another child were bubbling over in my heart, we kept on living our life.  We homeschooled our girls.  We lived hard in these rooms—cooking, sewing, crafting, reading, learning.  And a few months into enjoying our new place, my husband’s son moved across the country to live with us and get his life back on track.  He moved into our guest room with his oversized backpack, his barrel o’ monkeys mustache, and his heartache.

Those early days were long and hard.  There were so many tears.  There were days we weren’t sure we’d make it.  And we were often unsure if he would.

There was that fight in the garden when he yelled and I cried.  There was that time he ran off and we worried we’d never see him again.  There were those times I should have reached out and didn’t.  All the mistakes, the misunderstandings, the failings.   And then there was that day we made salsa in the kitchen—the first time I thought that maybe, just maybe this was all gonna be okay.  There were those hundreds of meals he and I cooked together.  The food that tastes so good that you know it had to be made by someone who loves you.

And then there was that day.

The one I couldn’t have prepared for in a million years.

The day he left.

I stood outside and watched him load the last of his things.  I promised myself I wouldn’t come apart.  I was so happy for him—that he’d come this far, that he was standing on his own feet so well.   And that’s when I saw the miracle.  God had given me another child to love.   Not one born of my flesh but one so stitched into the fabric of my heart that he will never be anything to me but a son.  I told him how grateful I was for him—how he had so blessed us by being here.   I told him I couldn’t love him anymore if he were my own.  I watched him drive away and cried for two hours straight.

Turns out God answered my prayer.  There was no cute nursery to decorate.  There were no baby blankets to wash.  But the sacredness of this life intertwined in mine is no less a miracle.

And to think I almost missed the  grace of God because it came dressed up like a wayward boy.

Maybe I’m finally learning that grace almost never looks like grace at first glance.

 

Filed Under: confessions, family life

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AvatarJennifer D. says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:07 am

    loved this — thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  2. AvatarMarty says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:19 am

    One of your best posts. LOVE it.

    Our oldest child, our son Joshua…has Down Syndrome. When we got married and started talking about children, we wanted a son named Joshua. And, oh…in our young hearts, we were convinced he would change the world.

    But he was born and we had to let go of OUR dreams in order to accept what God had planned for us, and it has been a struggle and a joy. I never would’ve wanted to miss it because, like you said, it “didn’t look like what I was looking for.”

    “But the sacredness of this life intertwined in mine is no less a miracle.”

    This son of mine, my 28 year old man-child…he might not change the WORLD, but he changed MY world.

    Thank you so much for this post…it really blessed me today. 🙂

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 5:02 pm

      LOVE this!
      What a beautiful story.
      xoxo

      Reply
  3. AvatarLaura Ingalls Gunn says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:36 am

    Sweet tears slipping into my tea this morning. You have richly blessed me.

    We will soon be moving to a new home in a new state (Texas) I’m already dreaming of the grandparents we might find. 🙂

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 5:02 pm

      🙂
      xoxo

      Reply
  4. AvatarConi says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:45 am

    Edie,
    Your post today really touches my heart. I have five children of my own, 1 daughter, 4 sons, and one step-daughter, age 24, the same age as my youngest son.

    My husband and I have been married 11 years. There were so many times it was wild and crazy. A couple of the kids really gave us a run for our money. We wondered more than once if we should have even gotten married or if we even liked each other sometimes. And now all of the kids are gone, just like that.

    The kids are doing well, even the ones that had the hardest time growing up.
    Three of them are married to wonderful people.
    And by faith and the grace of God, we are really close to all the kids and still married. And now have 3 beautiful grandsons.
    Love You,
    Coni

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 5:02 pm

      LOVE!!!

      Reply
  5. Avatarkari says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:56 am

    Thank you for the reminder that what you pray for and receive isn’t always how you dreamed it would look. I’ll take this into my marriage today, and treasure it in my heart.

    Reply
  6. AvatarDawn says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:09 am

    wow, this was an amazing testimony and one that I need to send to a friend. Love has no boundaries and there are no boundaries with God who is Love! I am sure He Thanks you for being obedient and willing to put aside the image you had in your mind to follow HIS heart!!!

    Reply
  7. AvatarRachael S says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:11 am

    Oh how this left me with my heart in my throat. You are so wonderful, eloquent, kind…

    Reply
  8. AvatarKathy says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:19 am

    So glad I stopped for a moment to read your post. Thank you for sharing your faith, love and wisdom. As soon as I pull myself together, I will carry on with my day! Your words are a blessing to me.

    Reply
  9. AvatarCarol says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:25 am

    Oh Edie! You’ve got me bawling. HE always answers prayer….but sometimes, rather than giving us what we think we want, He has something better. Hugs.

    Reply
  10. AvatarSandy K says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:26 am

    Beautiful

    Reply
  11. AvatarKellie says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:39 am

    Thanks for the reminder about finding beauty and blessings in unexpected places.

    Reply
  12. AvatarMary says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:54 am

    Beautiful! Put a lump in my throat.

    Reply
  13. AvatarLiz says

    August 25, 2014 at 11:58 am

    Oh goodness, this is so beautiful.

    Reply
  14. AvatarL_Overcash says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:05 pm

    Absolutely beautiful. Thank you for this post.

    Reply
  15. AvatarMarian says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:19 pm

    What a touching post, brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. Couldn’t help but think how the Lord so often answers prayers this way. He came as a defenseless baby when the Jews were expecting a king. Over and over, he turns everything upside down. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  16. AvatarLauren says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:25 pm

    Beautiful. And hits home. Thank you once again for sharing your heart.

    Reply
  17. AvatarErin says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:39 pm

    In tears . . . so beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  18. AvatarHeather Adams says

    August 25, 2014 at 12:42 pm

    Edie, this is SO beautiful and heartfelt and moving. I’m so glad you had that time with him and I know he must have been so blessed by his time with you.

    Reply
  19. Avatarchrissi says

    August 25, 2014 at 1:11 pm

    so simply beautiful.

    Reply
  20. AvatarMichelle says

    August 25, 2014 at 1:31 pm

    Oh wow. Beautiful, Edie. Just beautiful! Thanks for sharing. Your life is a gift to so many!

    Reply
  21. AvatarKelly F says

    August 25, 2014 at 1:34 pm

    beautifully written, beautifully told.

    Reply
  22. AvatarCamille says

    August 25, 2014 at 1:46 pm

    Stunningly beautiful. And on this first day of school. The one where I send my own boy off to high school. My tears were brimming and ready. Now they fall effortlessly. For you. For me. For all the mamas. ALL the mamas. Thank you, Edie.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 2:52 pm

      Oh, the mamas! Such a blessing to be one.
      🙂

      Reply
  23. AvatarSouthern Gal says

    August 25, 2014 at 2:15 pm

    I had to catch a sob in my throat when I got to the end of this post, Edie. So sweet. So bittersweet. Prayers for you and that boy.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 2:52 pm

      🙂

      Reply
  24. AvatarLinda says

    August 25, 2014 at 2:24 pm

    Big ole sob here. We just never know how He will fulfill our heart’s desires. Saying good bye even whem it is time is so heart wrenching! Why would we not shelter our kids to us when they really need it? I miss my sons so much. They both left when it was time for them. I said goodby to my warrior son and by God’s grace he returned safe both times. He stayed with us a year afterwards in the shelter of our home as he reentered the “real” non combat world. It had been so long since our family had been on the same continents much less so close! At one point we were spread out in 3. There is so much more to our story of God’s grace and love; He is our shelter.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 2:51 pm

      Love your story, Linda.
      xoxo

      Reply
  25. Avatarmarie says

    August 25, 2014 at 2:44 pm

    This post has nothing to do with the awful situation going on in my life at this moment, but it is an amazing reminder to keep my eyes open for God’s grace. Even in the middle of what seems to be insurmountable, I know He’s there. Thank you for these beautiful thoughts.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 2:51 pm

      Bless you, Marie.

      Reply
  26. AvatarGina says

    August 25, 2014 at 2:47 pm

    Oh Edie. I loved this!! God’s ways are not our ways. He knows exactly what we need!! 🙂

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 2:50 pm

      Yes, He does.
      He always does.
      🙂

      Reply
  27. AvatarKaren Moresco says

    August 25, 2014 at 3:10 pm

    Thanks for sharing this! I was moved to tears!

    Reply
  28. AvatarJamie says

    August 25, 2014 at 3:13 pm

    This story brings tears to my eyes. I have a very similar story except I was the step child. There is so much pain in divorce and trying to love another parent who has no connection to you other than through marriage or maybe the parent to your half/step siblings can be so hard to overcome. I too know the joy of coming out on the other side though and how God’s grace was at the very center of that healing. I’m so glad to hear that you got the boy you prayed for~ God is so good and His ways are so much higher than ours! Psalms 136:1 and Isaiah 55:8-9

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 4:25 pm

      So much love! Thank you for sharing.
      xoxo

      Reply
  29. AvatarCindy Smith says

    August 25, 2014 at 3:14 pm

    Oh my…I am so touched. To the point that I am sobbing as I read this. What a beautiful story of life laced with grace. It’s amazing how our Lord God surprises us and slips in our deepest longings in where we least expect in. The thing is…if you hadn’t been paying attention, you would have missed the gift right in front of you. Makes me wonder just how many gifts I’ve missed because they didn’t come wrapped up exactly like I wanted or expected them to be. Blessings to you and your famly and always thank you for you vulnerability to open up and speak truth into our lives. so thankful I found your blog!

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 4:24 pm

      What beautiful encouragement! Thank you, Cindy.
      xoxo

      Reply
  30. Avatarstacy says

    August 25, 2014 at 3:25 pm

    Beautiful. Edie. I love how God answers our prayers in the most unexpected ways sometimes.

    Reply
  31. Avatarpaige says

    August 25, 2014 at 4:14 pm

    so powerful edie girl
    & so full of honor for him!
    tears…

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 4:24 pm

      mwahhhhh!
      so glad you got to meet him.
      xoxo

      Reply
  32. AvatarLisa Young says

    August 25, 2014 at 5:34 pm

    That was beautiful! How lucky you are to have each other!!

    Reply
  33. Avatarsandi whitlow says

    August 25, 2014 at 6:52 pm

    We all are redeemed by love. God chooses redemptive love as his theme.

    Reply
  34. AvatarAngela says

    August 25, 2014 at 6:54 pm

    beautiful, Edie! God is so good!!! xxoo

    Reply
  35. Avatarangela conklin says

    August 25, 2014 at 7:08 pm

    Our struggles are all so real. This life is hard. But, we know the blessings because of the heartaches. This blessing of yours will bless many. Thank you for being so *raw* and encouraging us by sharing your story.

    Reply
  36. AvatarTessa says

    August 25, 2014 at 7:14 pm

    Wow … my arms were tingling with goosebumps as soon as you started talking about making salsa together. My husband and I adopted our daughter at age 10 after she lived with us for a year, and it has been a crazy 4 years … now she is age 13 and we are slowly seeing the light. It is hard to believe that things are finally getting more comfortable and “easy” now that she is a teenager, however that is truth. We are still holding on for that miracle … and I have a feeling we are truly not going to feel it until she is also walking out the door on her own. 🙂 Thanks for the preview.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 8:01 pm

      Bless you, Tessa and thank you for sharing.
      Hang in there!!
      xoxo

      Reply
  37. AvatarKaren S. says

    August 25, 2014 at 7:56 pm

    Edie, that was a joy to read! sniff sniff!!!! I always wondered who the mustached boy was in your photos…..God is soooooo good!

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 25, 2014 at 8:02 pm

      He’s completely adorable.
      🙂

      Reply
  38. AvatarJuli says

    August 25, 2014 at 8:12 pm

    Edie, what a beautiful story. I’m speechless . Xo Juli

    Reply
  39. AvatarLisa says

    August 25, 2014 at 9:03 pm

    What a beautiful story. You’ve touched more hearts than you know today 😉

    Reply
  40. AvatarSandee says

    August 25, 2014 at 9:26 pm

    Oh, Edie, how your story touched me and made me realize that God does indeed give us what we need in unexpected ways. Two years ago a beautiful but broken 13 year old girl walked into my life. In the process of helping her mend her broken heart and find her place in the world again, I now realize just how much she healed my broken heart. In loving her and mothering her, I found the joy of being a mother all over again! Amazing how your story made me realize just how much she healed my heart! I am E-mom (extra mom) to her and she is my 5th daughter. She has my heart and love. Thank you for allowing to share the moments of your life – it means so much!

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 26, 2014 at 5:05 am

      Wishing you and your awesome daughter ALL the love!
      xoxo

      Reply
  41. AvatarBonnie says

    August 25, 2014 at 9:58 pm

    Beautiful….

    Reply
  42. AvatarAngie says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:08 pm

    Thanks for opening up and sharing your heart with this post. It is beautiful.

    Reply
  43. AvatarWhitney Walker Alexander says

    August 25, 2014 at 10:37 pm

    This. This is beautiful. Thank you for sharing. Your words, and more importantly, your heart behind those words, are so pure…so lovely. So, so beautiful.

    Reply
  44. AvatarBeccy says

    August 26, 2014 at 12:59 am

    I was just finishing up my Bible study time reading chapter on “grace” when I read this. “…grace almost never looks like grace at first glance.” Amen. God has been showing me some graces in my life that I could not see before. Thank you for sharing and saying what my heart is learning. :o)

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 26, 2014 at 5:06 am

      LOVE!
      xoxo

      Reply
  45. AvatarDayle says

    August 26, 2014 at 4:11 am

    God’s ways are so far above our ways … and so much better.

    Reply
  46. AvatarAthletic Greens reviews webblog says

    August 26, 2014 at 7:56 am

    Much of our health is determined by the way we live our
    lives, and nutrition choices are a huge part of that equation.
    But even more concerning was I contacted Jeremy Saffron who is a good friend
    of mine and he told me that he too thought it was once good
    and he did more research and found out it really
    wasn’t. You need to have a number of superfoods in your diet
    daily.

    Reply
  47. AvatarMJPDodson says

    August 26, 2014 at 10:01 am

    This post hit home and brought happy tears. I have a son that I too inherited. He was 5 when his Dad and I started dating in 1995. Fast forward 11 years (2006)and he moved in with us to get his feet back on the right footing. There were some great times and boy where their some awfully rough and ugly times….. It is the difficult things that make us stronger. Now, he is married to a young lady who I am honored to call my daughter. They have given the best gift I could ever imagine, a little boy who I provide daycare for and calls me Mamaw. Life is SO good!

    Reply
  48. AvatarStacy says

    August 26, 2014 at 10:26 am

    We were once introduced as “the people who are raising my kids”. Really? He couldn’t have been more wrong. But his own wounded mess of a life couldn’t really see it. I gave him grace. Your words remind me of this great gift that I’ve been given—this opportunity that I never really wanted—to mother another’s children. We are all living in the overflow of His grace.

    Reply
  49. Avatarsally says

    August 26, 2014 at 10:51 am

    thank you for sharing so honestly about your blended family! it is hard to keep going sometimes without knowing where you are heading or if you are on the right path, isn’t it? loving is never wrong, though, so I keep loving in ways that are open to me even when futility appears to frame every effort. God requires faithfulness and perseverance, especially when the way seems darkest and for those times when grace. praying for your family as you continue to live in grace “that almost never looks like grace at first glance.” I am striving to live graciously in my blended life having transitioned from single-parent-of-one to step-parent of two grown “children”, their spouses and seven beautiful grandchildren in nine years of marriage (my first, his second). How to do this well is my daily, at times hourly, prayer. I love the joy in your writing!

    Reply
  50. AvatarLaura says

    August 26, 2014 at 11:00 am

    Oh, how I love your words! I love when God does this: answers our prayers in the most unexpected way just like He did so long ago in sending our Savior when they were expecting a warrior.

    Reply
  51. AvatarPam says

    August 26, 2014 at 11:26 am

    That was wonderful! Thanks for sharing that. God’s grace shows in ways we can never expect to see. We were in a similar boat. Had two children, didn’t feel quite ‘finished’ having babies when I found out I had stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. Kids were 3 & 18 mos. God didn’t give me more children, but he gave me a bigger fight and equal blessing. Life. Living. Counting every minute with those I have. Ten years later, and still cancer free, that grace, those blessings are still the greatest things. Life. Love. Time. Thankful for you, sharing God’s grace!

    Reply
  52. AvatarSharon O says

    August 26, 2014 at 11:39 am

    Wonderful story. Wonderful writing.

    Reply
  53. Avatartiffany says

    August 26, 2014 at 12:34 pm

    100% love this — what an amazing lesson and how wonderful to have something so deep written on your heart – grace is an amazing thing!

    so glad you shared this!

    xo

    Reply
  54. AvatarSoCalLynn says

    August 26, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    This made me teary-eyed. So sweet, and thanks be to God for the healing and love. I love the quote by Marilynne Robinson you have there. I have a book of her essays next to me that I’ve started, and I keep seeing Gilead popping up on my radar these days so I’d better get that one, too.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 26, 2014 at 8:47 pm

      LOVE her! She’s got a new book coming out in October.
      🙂

      Reply
  55. AvatarJenny says

    August 26, 2014 at 4:05 pm

    I can absolutely relate to your post. After birthing 3 babies, I had a few physical limitations but we felt our family wasn’t yet “complete.” We pursued adoption for awhile, but things just weren’t working out. Finally, a time of unemployment opened my husband and I up to do anything God had in mind. Five years ago we moved away from friends and family in IN to SC to begin our work as houseparents at Boys Farm, a Christian home for kids in need of guidance and family structure. God answered my prayer for one child with more than 30 boys who I’ve helped parent in the last 5 years. It was never what I planned, but turned out to be something I love. He knows best!

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 26, 2014 at 8:46 pm

      So incredibly awesome, Jenny!
      🙂

      Reply
  56. AvatarHeather says

    August 26, 2014 at 6:18 pm

    Oh so beautiful, this post. Don’t you just adore God’s knack for putting a spin on our lives like this? He who gives us the desires of our hearts, He made you desire a son, love the way it worked out. “Pray and duck!” my mom always says.

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 26, 2014 at 8:45 pm

      LOVE that, Heather!!
      xoxo

      Reply
  57. AvatarMindy says

    August 26, 2014 at 7:27 pm

    Such God-blessed beauty in these words.

    Reply
  58. AvatarJen says

    August 26, 2014 at 9:44 pm

    I don’t usually leave comments but this truly touched my heart. Thank you for sharing

    Reply
  59. AvatarJulia says

    August 26, 2014 at 10:21 pm

    Edie- I am SO glad you didn’t miss it! Oh when I think things are “supposed” to look a certain way. All wrapped & tied up just so- Thank goodness for being awake & aware. God is always teaching me- I am so happy for him as he starts over again! What a handsome young fella 🙂 Prayers & Love

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 27, 2014 at 4:00 pm

      Beautiful, thank you!!
      xoxo

      Reply
  60. Avatargayle says

    August 26, 2014 at 11:54 pm

    love you, love your words!

    Reply
  61. AvatarKimberley Mapel says

    August 27, 2014 at 8:28 pm

    The heartfelt story…beautiful and touching.
    The last line…life changing.

    Reply
  62. AvatarShannon says

    August 28, 2014 at 8:09 am

    Hi Edie!! Thank you for sharing your heart once again. We have 3 bio kids and 3 adopted kids so I get that hole in your heart for another child and then the amazing love for a child that doesn’t share your blood. My heart is full of love for ALL of them!! I have a crazy question….how do you mount the ceramic animal heads that do not come with a back board?? I have a new one and I feel like it is going to fall forward off of the wall. Are there any tips?? Thanks!

    Reply
    • AvatarEdie Wadsworth says

      August 28, 2014 at 10:41 am

      Thank you, Shannon!
      Mine are all paper mache, I think.
      I don’t have the ceramic kind so you may need wall anchors?!

      Reply
  63. AvatarJen says

    August 28, 2014 at 8:25 am

    Wow. Just Wow.

    Reply
  64. Avataroutlet Borse celine milano says

    August 28, 2014 at 1:27 pm

    All’iniziativa Wwf hanno partefipato 6.500 fittà,borse burberry outlet, 400 in ItaliaMilano,miu miu portafogli, 1 apr. (TMNews) – Dopo il blafkout mondiale nell’Ora della Terra,camicie burberry, il mondo ha riaffeso la lufe. La speranza del Wwf, ideatore dell’iniziativa “Earth Hour”,celine outlet, è fhe gli interruttori siano stati riaffesi in modo più fonsapevole dopo la maratona fhe il 31 marzo ha foinvolto 6.500 fittà nel mondo e 400 Comuni italiani, da Roma a Firenze.Cont

    Reply
  65. AvatarTrudy K says

    August 28, 2014 at 7:53 pm

    Beautiful Edie! Thanks for sharing this story of love and hope.

    Reply
  66. AvatarTeresa says

    August 29, 2014 at 3:35 am

    This is so beautiful. It is amazing how God gives us more than we thought we wanted when we least expect it at just the time we need it most.

    Reply
  67. AvatarFlower Patch Farmgirl says

    August 30, 2014 at 8:41 am

    Oh, friend. I feel every single word of this post. It’s uncanny. Love your heart and so thankful you share it.

    Reply
  68. AvatarHeidi @ Decor & More says

    September 1, 2014 at 11:59 am

    Oh, Edie — how timely your post is. We just returned from visiting my stepson and celebrating one year of very hard won sobriety for him. God gives us unexpected opportunities to love and nurture and mother, doesn’t he? No baby blankets, but baby steps toward whole and healthy living. I’m in awe of this flood of love and pride in a young man that has put our family through the ringer over the past several years. God’s grace covers everything and helps to heal the broken. Over and over again. Praise Him!
    xo Heidi

    Reply
  69. AvatarMaxine Downing says

    January 2, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    Thanks for sharing this beautiful story! I can relate: wayward boys, blended family, ideas of motherhood revisited and eventually quenched. God has a way of answering our hearts desires. It’s not ever the picture perfect idea that we initially have. It takes spiritual maturity to understand that it’s not always about OUR desires as it is God using us to help heal those we love.

    Reply
  70. AvatarLeigh says

    June 2, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    Loved this story. It made me teary. There is just something about having a boy. They grab your heart like no one else can. What a joyful story. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  71. AvatarAmy says

    April 30, 2016 at 8:19 am

    I needed this exact post today. All these months later. As I pray for my own hurting, broken, wayward son. Thank you for your vulnerability. And for the hope.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Weekend Recap {Good Stuff} | Decor & More says:
    September 2, 2014 at 6:09 am

    […] when I got home, I read this post by Edie and I totally understood — loving hard one that is not yours but is as good as […]

    Reply
  2. Life is Weird & Also Wonderful | life{in}grace says:
    July 14, 2015 at 10:06 am

    […]  the gift comes as a man who stands 7 feet tall dressed in a unsightly tights or an adorable 20 something with a barrel o’monkeys mustache or even a letter from an editor that feels for all the world like it’s not a gift at […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

ediewadsworth

Coach. Healer. Life Mentoring School.
💕💕I help women heal & rediscover their purpose & calling.💕💕 Click below for my free purpose field guide!

Dr. Edie Wadsworth|Lifeingrace
2 years ago today, your world shattered into a mil 2 years ago today, your world shattered into a million pieces.

Sometimes I marvel at how we were blessed enough to be there holding you when it all came crashing down. I do know this—I can’t remember my life without you.

I do know that thousands of tears and meals and boo-boos and toy trucks later, we stand in awe of you---your courage, your brave big boy fight, your tender little boy heart, your hilarious old man ways. 

We know how sacred this walk with you is and we don’t take it lightly.

We are here for it all and we couldn’t be more grateful.

We have always loved you and you have always been our special gift.

 Love you little one. Let’s keep listening for Aslan. He will find a way to put everything back together. 

“Herein lies the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Do not be afraid.”
Hiring these two out for all your ring bearer and Hiring these two out for all your ring bearer and flower girl needs.  They provide ample entertainment to your guests and accept plush toys for payment in lieu of money. May or not be VERY strong willed.  And also adorable. @williamsperformance @ginawilliamsh @ameliadurand4
I turned 51 last week and spent a much needed few I turned 51 last week and spent a much needed few days alone with this guy.  As soon as we drove out of the driveway I started crying. I don’t think I realized how much I needed a break.

it was incredible and relaxing and amazing and so life-giving. 

this week it feels like last week was 100 years ago because you know, life. 

I am excited to say that despite the fact that I’m another year older I managed to figure out how to go live on YouTube with my new camera. It only took me approximately 6000 hours. So maybe you’ll join me at noon today on YouTube and we’ll try something new together.

Here’s to 2021. Maybe it will get its act together but if it doesn’t we will get ours together😂🥳❤️❤️❤️
“To have Faith in Christ means, of course, tryin “To have Faith in Christ means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you would not take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him. But trying in a new way, a less worried way. Not doing these things in order to be saved, but because He has begun to save you already. Not hoping to get to Heaven as a reward for your actions, but inevitably wanting to act in a certain way because a first faint gleam of Heaven is already inside you.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Got my halo yesterday🤩😇😂 (That ridge lin Got my halo yesterday🤩😇😂

(That ridge line right above my head is the infamous Angel’s Landing)

Here’s to climbing out of tough spots in 2021❤️
What I learned in 2020?? I am HERE FOR ALL THE L What I learned in 2020?? 

I am HERE FOR ALL THE LOUNGE WEAR. 

Amen. Goodnight. 🤩🤩🥳🥳🥳 

Okay fine. Currently sporting sweater from Target which I have worn everyday for 3 months.  Natori PJ’s which I HIGHLY recommend, and Ugg slippers which I’ve worn everyday for a solid year. 

How’s your lounge wear game?? Tell me everything.
Day 2 of LIVE YOUR DREAM starts in 30 min. We’ll Day 2 of LIVE YOUR DREAM starts in 30 min. We’ll be talking all about DESIRE and the difference between false desire and true desire and how true desire leads us to our calling. 

It’s not too late to join us and if you could see the comments inside this group, you would 😭😭😭 and 🥳🥳🥳 because we are getting to the heart of things and it’s only gonna get better! 

If you’re already in, tell us how yesterday’s training impacted you and if you’re not, JOIN US FRIENDS!!

Head over to https://lifeingraceblog.com/dream
We took Tommy boy for this first ski adventure tod We took Tommy boy for this first ski adventure today and it was so satisfying to see him tackle something hard and keep his chin up and have a BALL doing it.

He was very entertaining to his ski school friends, despite the fact that his German instructor couldn’t understand a WORD he said. 😂🥳

But all you mamas out there can see through all the pretty pictures and videos to know that days like today can also be full of frustration.

Making sure everybody has their stuff, the reservations, the snacks, the HASSLE of boots and poles and gloves and skis, the tears, the snappy replies, the hurt feelings, the wrong turns, the missed moments, the potty breaks.

NEED I GO ON??????

But then there’s the down to your soul goodness of being smack dab in the middle of God’s glorious creation, the sheer joy of the wind and sun on your face, the fleeting feeling that everything is right in the world, the triumph of tackling something hard and pushing through all the doubt and fear.

I felt every emotion today. What a privilege to live this life we’ve been given. What grace to live it with these people.

Today was a dream. But like every dream come true, it has a cost, it requires more of you than you think it will. You will want to quit.  A million times.  But what waits for you on the other side is worth fighting for. 

That’s what we’re diving into this week in my online workshop LIVE YOUR DREAM.

You may have given up on setting goals, but don’t stop dreaming.

Come dream with us and let’s make 2021 the year we were willing to be so alive that we would risk feeling EVERY emotion, every setback, every failure in order to see it come true.

We start tomorrow.

It won’t be the same without you.

Join us at https://lifeingraceblog.com/dream.

It’s time to dream again.
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

What’s one thing you’re dreaming about this year???
It was magical. ⛄️⛄️⛄️ Know what’s It was magical. ⛄️⛄️⛄️

Know what’s more magical for me???? The week between Christmas and the new year and I’ve made it even more epic by hosting an online workshop called LIVE YOUR DREAM🥳🥳🥳🥳

This one is for the dreamers and the doers!! Join me at lifeingraceblog.com/dream and let’s make some magic❤️❤️❤️❤️

Tell us in the comments if you’re already in!!!
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

© Copyright 2008-2019 life{in}grace · All Rights Reserved · Graphic Design by Jenna Riccio Laible · Website by Erin Ulrich