“Everyone has one of those moments. A moment that defines your life: “Before Mom died…”; “After I found out I had cancer…”; Before the house fire…”. It is a moment that splits your life in two. Before…and after.
My moment…I was 22 years old, single, almost finished with college, and 5 ½ months pregnant. My on-again, off-again boyfriend had just left for what I knew would be the last time. It was over. I sat on my parents’ couch in the quickly-fading evening light and cried out to God. It wasn’t a “help me, Lord” prayer. It was “I DON’T WANT TO DO IT THIS WAY!!! THIS IS SO UNFAIR! WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME DO THIS WITHOUT HIM? YOU COULD CHANGE THINGS IF YOU REALLY WANTED TO!” Even now, I can hear my hoarse, tear-soaked voice screaming in an empty house. I was a Christian. I had asked God to make that relationship work. And there I sat. Alone. Angry. Completely unable to turn the tide of what my life was now.
The next couple of months were excruciating. Sometimes it took all my strength just to get up in the morning. I learned what true repentance was. I learned was it was like to be totally dependent on God just to put one foot in front of the other. I would leave my room ready to face the day, only to end up back face down on my bed in a puddle of tears half an hour later. Slowly, I began to feel alive again. When Caleb was born in March, just shy of 4 months since my world changed, I glimpsed a pure picture of true grace and sweet mercy. Here was this beautiful, perfect being given to me…ME?! I, who deserved death, who deserved punishment, guilty of turning my back on God, rightfully accused by my very own hand; God was placing into my arms this precious gift? It is the single most humbling, undeserving moment I have ever experienced. It was truly unmerited favor from the Creator of the universe.
But God wasn’t finished! Who else but God could take a rebellious relationship and give me a ministry 20 years later? God led a group of ladies to begin Embrace Grace at Concord Church in Calera. Embrace Grace is a group that provides emotional, practical, and spiritual support for single, young pregnant women who find themselves in an unintended pregnancy. The primary goal of Embrace Grace is to empower the church to be a safe and non-judging place for the girls to run to when they find out they are pregnant, instead of the last place they are welcomed because of shame and guilt. It is a 12-week program that teaches them about God’s love and grace, and at the end we will give them a baby shower to honor them for choosing life and to help provide for their baby’s needs. We also celebrate them with a pampering day where we take them to have their hair cut and styled, have their nails done, and have someone do their make-up. Then we take pregnancy pictures of them to cherish. We want them to know God loves them no matter what they have done, but that He loves them enough not to leave them where they are.” – Dondee Osburn
We encourage you to ask God how you can be a vital part of helping the Embrace Grace mamas feel special.
Ongoing needs (all new items):
- Baby clothes
- Bouncy Seats
- Strollers
- Diapers
- Wipes
- Car Seats
- Bath Time Items
Drop off location for items:
Grace Klein Community, 2652 Old Rocky Ridge Road, Hoover, AL 35216.
Covenant Heating and Cooling: 2596 Hwy 87, Alabaster, AL 35007
Please label “Embrace Grace.”
