Hope Shines A Light Into The Darkest Moments #TheGarden #Flyby

#TheGarden  #FlyBy

Have you ever had felt so discouraged that you thought there was no way out? In times like those it can almost seem as if the air you breathe is trying to suffocate you instead of sustain you. Life seems to lose it's color and things are drab and dark. The veil of despair can blind you to the beauty around you. But then there is hope. Hope can be sneaky, slipping though the veil like a tiny flower poking through a crack in the concrete. Hope offers so much, you don't even stop to ask HOW the flower grows there! Hope can be a bright light bearing down on you, forcing it's way through the veil of despair, refusing to not be seen. Not matter how it presents itself, hope is always there, waiting to be acknowledged.





We all have a story that is uniquely our own. The events of our lives, along with the people in it, influences and even mold us as we move through our time on this Earth. It's not always pretty, it's not always perfect, but if we look for that bit of hope in the hard times, it is so sweet when we come through the other side. 

I received a copy of Kari Jobe's newest CD, "The Garden" to review and it was the story behind the CD that drew me. Ms Jobe and her sister we pregnant at the same time, but her sister gave birth to her stillborn child at 7 and a half months. Her story of that heartbreak touched me as it drew some similarities to our story. I had to have fertility treatments and after a couple years of wacked out hormones and uncertainty, I finally got pregnant, only to miscarry. It was early in my pregnancy and I still felt so discouraged, the gut wrenching pain of loss and not having any answers. With hope,we decided to try again. The fear was incredible. Not fear of the unknown, but rather fear of what we DID know. We knew it could happen again. We knew it could happen in the blink of an eye. Since we knew what worked, the second pregnancy was eisier to accomplish. Because of the anguish of telling everyone about the first loss, we kept the second pregnancy a secret for awhile. I couldn't bear the idea of crushing our families again. When I was barely 6 weeks, I had a severe bleeding incident. We rushed to the ER at the hospital where my doctors were located. I was just praying all the way there that I wasn't losing another baby. I was checked and the ER doctor was confused because the bleeding had not only stopped, but he could not find any source. And he saw the pants I was wearing! He could see the amount of blood. They suspected breakthrough bleeding, but there was no indication that that was indeed what it was. He was about to release me with orders to rest for the weekend and see my regular doctor the following Monday morning, but he asked me to wait a moment. When he came back he said he just wanted to check something else, so he wheeled me to another room where I saw a sonogram machine. I was so used to these. Since I was a fertility clinic patient, I had been getting sonograms at least 3 times a week. I also figured we see what we had been seeing at my regular appointments- the little butterbean sized speck floating around. And as soon as the probe was in place, we saw our little butterbean. A ray of hope shone though the fear. Then that doctor said "let's see...." as he turned a dial. Suddenly that little room was filled with the sound of the fastest, little heartbeat I had ever heard! I felt full blown hope, joy and love explode in my chest. I burst out crying with it. It was the reassurance I needed. I knew it still wasn't a guarantee, but it was hope. After that scary weekend, everything was great. I was around 13 weeks before we let our families know. We soon found out my sister was pregnant as well and due the month after me! And a little later my sister-in-law announced she was pregnant with her second child! It was almost unbelieveable that after the storms of our despair dissipated, that there was such joy. Such hope. 

On "The Garden" Kari Jobe sings of finding hope. Of finding joy. Through her experience and the heartache of loss, she shows that even when we don't have the answers, we can open up to the hope and joys around us. She finds peace and hope in her faith and in these songs her soft voice is calming as well as uplifting. You can check out The Garden for yourself over on iTunes. Would you like to win a copy of "the Garden"? Simply enter using the Rafflecopter below for the opportunity to win!

* Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller /FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days on the same blog, you are not eligible to win. Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

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About Kari Jobe:

Grammy nominated Kari Jobe is the premiere female worship leader in Christian music. Coming off her last live album, Majestic, which featured the worship anthem “Forever” and radio hit “I Am Not Alone," Kari Jobe has returned to the studio to record her new album, The Garden, full of brand new worship anthems for the church and for personal reflection. Finding inspiration from life’s joys and hardships, Kari leans into the firm foundation of Christ through it all. 

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Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

The Happy Clown With A Frown is not responsible for prize delivery.