Meet my friend Christy. My first exposure to Christy was when she gave her testimony publicly in 2016 (you’ll want to come back and listen to this after reading this blog!). Our paths have crossed a number of times since then, and my husband and I have gotten to know Christy and her husband, Heith, a little better through the years and have become friends with them. Christy’s story is raw and shines brightly of God’s grace. I am so excited that Christy has written a blog for Alexandra Amnesty and is willing to share her story for God’s glory.

If you find yourself in a crisis pregnancy, you can find help here and here.
If you are considering placing your child for adoption, you can find help here.
If you are a worker in the abortion industry, you can find help here.
You are not alone.

xo,
​Alexandra

“Children are God’s love-gift; they are heaven’s generous reward.” -Psalms 127:3 

In May 2011, I was sitting in an Emergency Room bed for a migraine when I found out that I was pregnant. I was in shock. Up to this point I had experienced no morning sickness, missed no periods, and had gained no visible weight. I was terrified. I had been drinking quite a bit, staying up late, and not eating great; I had not had any prenatal care. I was sure something was wrong with the baby inside of me.

I went home and tossed around the idea with my then-boyfriend (now husband), Heith, on what we should do. We did not want to bring another child into the world if we were not sure they would be okay. I was sure that I had messed the baby up. I had no faith in anything – especially God. We spent forever trying to figure out what we could do. Every option was based around our needs and our desires. Having another child would make us uncomfortable and we would have to start choosing someone other than ourselves.

​“No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.” -1 Corinthians 10:24 (NIV)

We finally decided that we could not afford to bring another child into the world. I had just finished going through a divorce and Heith was in the middle of filing his. We were both working non-stop and partying too hard. I couldn’t imagine carrying this child full-term and then giving it up either. Plus, I was convinced something was wrong with the baby. I had not even felt it move yet.

We called and scheduled an appointment at Planned Parenthood in Indianapolis to have an abortion. On the day that we were supposed to leave we had car problems. Our car was not going to safely make it all the way to Indianapolis. We cancelled that appointment and made it for the following week – exactly one week later. What was one more week after all? I wasn’t exactly sure how far along I was, but surely I wasn’t too far along. I was not even showing.

​​Heith and I got up early the next week and made an incredibly quiet one hour drive to Indy. I did not know what to say to him and he did not know what to say to me. We just co-existed in the car. When we arrived at Planned Parenthood, we were “greeted” by a great number of people standing outside with signs at the entrance. They were saying things about abortions and rights to life, but we closed the windows to try and drown them out. They were everywhere – right up to the front door.

I could not take anymore – this was hard enough. Didn’t they know that?
Can’t they see that I am already in pain?
Don’t they know that this is the last place I want to be?
Why are they trying to make it worse?

We went inside and proceeded to check in. We paid the fee and signed all the paperwork. We gave them permission to take our child. Then we waited.

I finally went back with two other ladies. They had us watch a video about the procedure. I went back into an ultrasound room. I laid on the examination bed and waited for them to come in.

As the ultrasound started, I could not watch. I knew if I saw the baby, I would not be able to follow through with the abortion. The ultrasound technician paused and said she had to go and get someone else. I knew for sure that something was wrong.

When the other person came in, she told me that I was too far along for this procedure. I finally looked at the ultrasound. They showed me on the ultrasound the evidence of how they knew I was too far along for this procedure.

I was one week too late.

One. Week.
​
They offered information on scheduling a second trimester abortion, but we would have to travel to Ohio. I felt sick after they explained that procedure. I had no idea what we were going to do.

I had seen her.
I knew she was a girl.
I saw her tiny feet and hands.
I could see her face.

I walked out of that room to Heith and just broke down in tears. I explained that I was too far along and that she was perfect. We decided to keep her. We had no idea how or what we were going to do, but I knew — it had to be a God thing.

We continued through the pregnancy with a ton of prenatal care. I had an ultrasound at least once a month. In my eighth month of pregnancy, I had a seizure. I do not remember very much about it. My husband saved me that day. He called 911 and protected me until they arrived by ambulance. Three days later and after many tests I went home – still pregnant.

​Our daughter was still safe.

​On January 13, 1984, President Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation designating January 22 as the first National Sanctity of Human Life Day. Because of this, January is very special to us, but it also holds an even more special day in it for our family. Our little girl was born on January 20 – two weeks early. We named her Hannah.

She was born perfect.
She is a miracle in every way.

On the day that I write this, Hannah is eight, but if you ask her, she is pretty much ten. She is beautiful and smart. She loves Jesus so much and loves serving people whenever possible. She is such a joy to everyone that she is around. I am not sure where we would be without Hannah.

Hannah has helped us understand that God’s ways are higher than our ways. He has a plan for every life, including Hannah’s life – even before she was Hannah.

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” -Proverbs 19:21

And since the time Hannah was born, the Lord has changed our lives dramatically. In 2014, Heith and I got marriage counseling through a local church’s biblical counseling ministry, and through that process we both decided to trust Christ as our Savior. I wanted to stop living for myself and change my life, marriage, and children’s lives. Heith and our children are the reason I chose to live for God. I want better for them than I had growing up.

We became members of a church and we are so thankful for the many opportunities to serve alongside others. God is so great — because of the ways He has worked in our lives we are now totally pro-life. We believe strongly that every child deserves the chance to live and discover what God has in store for them. We are eternally gratefully for the grace and mercy of God for the way He has preserved the life of our little daughter.

God knew just what we needed when He saved her life. He protected her before I knew she existed. He protected her through my hospitalization and the very difficult last month of pregnancy.

He will do magnificent things through Hannah’s life.