Be the Olive Tree...

My friend Penny sends the best email devotionals. Every time I read one, I end up with so many "Aha!" moments, but until now I never took the time to write them down. Well, that all changes today! Thank you, blog!

Penny's email today was about wanting to be like an olive tree. Kind of weird-sounding at first, but it totally makes sense! Olive trees are super-hardy little things that can bear fruit at any time of year. Even in seasons of drought, they can thrive if they are pruned and maintained.

I love the parallel of this to our lives. Can you imagine what it would be like to be able to be content and happy, no matter what season of life you're in? Or to be able to not just survive, but thrive through extended periods of tough times, with direction and instruction from God?

Sometimes (okay, a lot of times) in the midst of our struggle with infertility, I feel like my whole life has stopped, and the only thing I can see is my disappointment and frustration. I find myself thinking that I need to put my life on hold, just in case this is the month that we get pregnant! We have postponed vacations, turned down job offers, and ruled out opportunities in our lives because of the possibility of being pregnant when the time came. Well, the time came for all of those cancelled plans, and we still weren't pregnant.

It took me a long time to realize that this could be a very long process for us, and if I put my life on hold until it happens, I won't have a life at all! So a few months ago, I decided to make a change. No more postponing plans or goals in the hopes of being pregnant. I have to live my life to the fullest, even if it's a childless life right now. I have to THRIVE in this season, even if it turns out to be an extended drought.

And that's exactly what we're doing! Last August, we booked a trip to Italy for a few months down the road. The time came, I still wasn't pregnant, and I enjoyed every sip of red wine and cappucino while we were there! In January, I signed up for a 10K. I had never run a race before, and I knew I'd probably need to drop out if I got pregnant, but I did it anyway. I'm running it this Saturday, still not pregnant, but very excited about achieving a goal! Now I'm thinking of training for a half-marathon in July!

The idea of making plans far in advance with the idea that I still won't be pregnant isn't easy. It's tough for me to admit the possibility that we still might not be pregnant that far in the future. But it's our way of thriving in this season. I feel that God is pruning us to be content in our current place in life, even though we would rather not be in this place at all. And hopefully, one day the drought will be over, and we can keep on thriving!