Prayers Needed for Fellow Twin Mommy

I think it is life's biggest honor when God uses me to help others.  To know how divinely my circumstances are designed so that I can help a friend, or even sometimes a stranger.  This time it happens to be a friend.

I met Jackie around 15 years ago.  At the time, she was the girlfriend of one of my best friend's college roommates.  Now, he is her husband and they are expecting twins, one boy and one girl.  Jackie and I lost touch for many years, but got back in touch about a year ago, and have become good friends since March. Jackie is a good bit shorter than average, standing 4' 7", but she has enough personality to fit in a 7' 7" person.  Because of her size, she was worried about prematurity in her babies, but the doctors had said everything looked good for her.  

The circumstances of Jackie's pregnancy have been very similar to mine, but I was hoping they would stop now. They haven't.  Her babies are perfect, measuring 1 lb, 8 oz each at 24 weeks.  But Jackie has started having contractions and is now on complete bed rest.  Just like me, at 20 weeks, everything looked great, and she went to her 24 week appointment expecting the same.  Talking to her is like reliving the events of November 13, 2008.  Shock, worry, disappointment, fear, uncertainty, but also hope and faith.

One big difference is that I did not have me. I'm not saying this to sound conceited, the opposite really, since I am humbled to be used in this way.  Three years ago, God knew where I would be in three years, and where Jackie would be.  I know this is not the only reason for my kids' circumstances (and hopefully I will be able to help many more), but this is one of the most special to me, because it is a friend.

When my friend, Sara, went on bed rest two years ago, I was happy to be able to help her.  Now her boy/girl twins, Lane and Rowen, are almost two, and are very healthy, happy babies.  I am praying hard and I have faith that I will be saying the same about Jackie in two years.

For now, I am being completely honest with her.  I have told her that the bed rest might drive her insane, and she may have thoughts that she feels guilty having.  I told her that there is no such thing as erring on the side of too much caution in this case.  I told her that there is no favor too big to ask of our family, because we have been there, and we know how important it is that she follow her doctor's orders (the same doctor I had) and have very little activity.

She will have the same home monitoring that I had.  The one that revealed on my second day of bed rest that I was having five contractions each hour, and that I needed to go to the hospital.  I'm praying that her contractions are spread much further apart, and that she can carry these babies another 12 weeks.

I am so honored to have been able to offer advice and an ear through her entire pregnancy, and I'm certainly not going to stop helping now.  I will cook, clean or anything else she needs, but I know what she needs most is prayer.  Please join me in praying for her and her family.  Pray specifically for Jackie to have mental and emotional strength through this time.  Pray for her contractions to slow down, or even stop completely. Pray for her husband to have the time and emotional strength to pick up doing the household duties that Jackie usually did, and for him to make her feel cherished and special now more than ever. Pray that the babies' continue to develop so well, and that they are ready whenever they come. Pray for wisdom for the doctors to know how to treat Jackie now, and how to treat the babies if they do arrive early.

So many times I asked myself "why" in regards to my pregnancy and the kids' early arrival.  Now, I am thanking God for using me to help an amazing friend through what I know is a difficult time. These types of answers come not in my time, but in His.  I will keep praying for His timing to be perfect for Jackie's sweet babies too!