
Hey friends! I'm so glad to be back with Women Who Dare to Believe this week. This week, I'm introducing you to my Instagram Friend, Monica Harris. She is a fellow Texan and I was a guest on her podcast a few years ago, which is always so fun!
You're going to so enjoy our little chat today.
Monica, tell the readers a little bit about yourself.
Hi, I am Monica Harris and I live near Austin, TX with my husband of nearly 19 years, two kiddos and two doggos. You can find me serving in the Women's Ministry of my church, reading fantasy books, working on a puzzle or sitting on my porch while I watch my kids play in the cul-de-sac.
What is the passion burning deep down in your heart right now?
I believe that the best relationship healing and growth doesn't start with them-it starts with you. As a licensed coach with 10+ years of experience, I am passionate about helping women understand themselves and find their voice, so they can have the healthy relationships they desire. I believe God wants restoration and transformation in relationships (whether with a spouse, a friend or family) and I want to help women get there.
Has there ever been a time in your life when you had to choose to believe God - even when you didn't want to or feel like it?
After four years of secondary unexplained infertility, which means we couldn't conceive a second child for unknown reason, my husband and I decided to let go of our dream of being a family of four. Let me tell you, the loss of our dream was devastating. I couldn't understand why God wouldn't do this for us and it seemed so unfair that so many of our friends conceived naturally.
To be honest, I was pretty angry with God and really struggled to understand how he could love me if he allowed me to go through this heartache. I remember laying in bed late at night dreaming of a little girl (we already had a boy) and weeping because I was convinced it would never happen for us. I don't recall how long this went on for but do know it was during that time a new dream began to bloom in our hearts. What if we adopted? After a lot of prayer and countless hours of research, we believed God was leading us to adopt through foster care. It took us six months to become licensed foster parents and six months later we were placed with a 4 year old little girl. Fostering a child is a rollercoaster of emotion and there is very little certainty of anything. Our home became a revolving door of case workers, lawyers, and play therapists. I went to every court date, to observe and potentially advocate for our girl. I remember being torn between wanting to keep her but also knowing the best thing for her would be living with her biological family, if they were healthy and safe. We lived in limbo for months and during that time God led me to Romans 8:28: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." ESV I clung to this. I recited this anytime the need for certainty would threaten to overwhelm me. God would bring it to mind, when managing her little emotions from being scared. God would remind me of this verse when I would dream of her staying with us forever.
I chose to believe that whatever was to come, God was going to work it out for the good of our family, whether we were able to adopt her or she returned to her biological family.
Less than a year after of her placement, we were able to adopt her and we are now 4 years post adoption. I learned a lot about God through our fostering journey. I learned that He is good and sovereign, especially when we can't see what is ahead. But mostly, I learned that God is worthy of my trust. We had a dream of becoming a family of four and he said yes to that dream, just not in the way we had expected.
And you know what? If we could go back, we wouldn't change a single thing. I can't promise you that God will give you the desires of our your heart, but I can promise that He sees you, He hears you, and He has unimaginably good things planned for you. Keep leaning into him. Ask him to give you faith and to help you trust him, and believe he will. He is mighty in you, my friend!
You can connect with Monica on her website, www.monicaharris.com or on her instagram.
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