No one wishes to be hospitalized to meet someone.

During the short, quiet moments of hospital life, I could hear a woman in the adjacent room anxiously stirring around and soothing her baby. Did I think of having a conversation with her? No. All I could think about at that moment was my newborn baby lying in the hospital bed, connected to an IV, two little ones at home and how we were going manage things for the next 10 days of my stay.

As days went by, the young woman and I would bump into each other in the small kitchenette or in the hall that connected our newborn wards. It was those short encounters that forged the camaraderie of two Greek-married foreign women who nursed their newborns, refused to give their babies infant formula provided by the hospital and whom the hospital personnel scolded daily.

Ten days were over soon enough and after discharging from the hospital, we both went to our respective homes, back to our families and lives in Greece. Yet the friendship formed in the hallways of the children’s hospital continued.

Before we noticed, our babies had become toddlers, and not long after that, we celebrated the birth of Beatrice’s second child. Several more years of friendship between our families ensued.

Though Beatrice was not a born-again Christian, she did believe in God as a loving Father of humanity at large. During the years of friendship, we had many conversations about the security and acceptance we can experience on a personal level in the presence of our Heavenly Father.

Beatrice grew up with an alcoholic father, and though she believed God is love, she truly struggled with the idea of trusting that God would care for her. One warm fall afternoon, as our children played on the beach, we had a very meaningful conversation about finding peace and purpose in life. At that time, I felt impressed to ask Beatrice if she would like to commit herself to God. She nodded in agreement and asked me to pray for her. We parted a little later in joy and deep thought.

During the following months, Beatrice was very busy with family issues, and we hardly got to see each other. Then one early summer morning, Beatrice knocked on our front door. She was distressed and alone.

“Do you have a moment? I need to talk to you about something,” she said after initial greetings and inquiries about the well-being of respective family members.

“I’m pregnant. You know we have been struggling financially lately. Klyde said the pregnancy is up to me to decide. He said he is okay with me having the baby as long as I work through the tourist season this year and, of course, all the summers after. I don’t feel I can cope with this: two children, pregnancy and working 8-10 hours a day all summer with Klyde working long hours every day till the season is over,” her voice cracked in sorrow as she continued.
“I came to town today to go to the hospital to have an abortion. I don’t think I can do it, Lina. I don’t have the strength to go through what it takes to have this baby, but neither do I have the strength to go through an abortion. I just don’t know what to do!”

As I listened to Beatrice’s sorrow, I realized there was so little I could do or say. She longed for that baby, yet life circumstances were not easy at all. Could I guarantee that life would be okay if she made the right choice? No, all I could do at that moment was to accept her internal struggles, help her see what it was that she wanted, pray for her and provide a safe place for the day as she needed to think things through.

Beatrice went home later in the afternoon. For the next several weeks, I prayed and waited. She came over a month later while scheduled for a prenatal check-up.

Life did not become easier for Beatrice. The daily struggles did not go away, yet she had coped with what seemed an insurmountable challenge before.
The difference? She found the strength she needed in knowing God, in experiencing that the God who is love is not some distant God of love but is with her and for her.

Years have passed since then. Three bright young men call Beatrice mother. Hundreds of miles and busy schedules have put some distance between our families. Yet, no matter how far apart we are, the constant of God loving each one of us is a daily strength-giving reality.

Please pray with us for Beatrice’s family. May they all experience that God is their Heavenly Father who has loved them since even before they were formed in their mother’s womb. And that having experienced that love, they would love Him back and have life eternal.

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