In my recent sermon, I shared deeply personal stories of faith, loss, and the power of prayer, intertwined with the journey of starting the Maggie Jean Foundation. This foundation was born out of our own experiences with loss, as my wife and I suffered through the heartbreak of losing three pregnancies, including an ectopic pregnancy, a miscarriage at seven weeks, and the loss of our baby Maggie Jean at 22 weeks. These experiences taught us the profound lesson that we are not in control and that we must trust in God's plan, even when it is beyond our understanding.

During this time, my wife and I leaned heavily on our faith and the support of our Christian community. We were part of a couple's Bible study that provided comfort and strength. The idea of starting a foundation in honor of our lost daughter initially met with resistance due to the freshness of our pain. However, through persistent signs from God, including a song on the radio that spoke to my wife's heart and a Bible study focused on obedience, we were moved to action.

The Maggie Jean Foundation's mission is to support families who have experienced the loss of a baby, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, early infant death, or a lost adoption. We provide a "box of blessings" to these families, which includes personalized items like a knit blanket and hat, bereavement books, and a handwritten note. We also hold a candlelight vigil on October 15th, World Lost Pregnancy Day, to honor these babies.

Throughout the sermon, I also shared stories of my own brushes with mortality, including a severe case of meningitis and a stroke. In both instances, the Holy Spirit guided me to make life-saving decisions. My prayers during these times were not just for healing, but for the strength to accept God's will, whatever the outcome might be. The peace I felt, even in the face of potential tragedy, was a testament to the power of prayer and the presence of God.

Key Takeaways:

- The journey through loss and grief can lead to a deeper understanding of God's sovereignty and the importance of trusting in His plan. The creation of the Maggie Jean Foundation was not just a response to personal tragedy, but a testament to the belief that God can use our deepest pains for a greater purpose. [42:45]

- Prayer is not always about changing our circumstances but about aligning our hearts with God's will. In times of crisis, the Holy Spirit can provide guidance and peace that surpasses all understanding, helping us to navigate the most challenging moments of our lives. [34:57]

- Community and fellowship are vital in the Christian walk, especially during times of suffering. The support we received from our Bible study group and the broader Christian community was instrumental in our healing process and in the establishment of our foundation. [36:41]

- Obedience to God's calling may require stepping out of our comfort zones. Delayed obedience is disobedience, and it is through prompt action in faith that we fulfill God's purposes for our lives. The Maggie Jean Foundation is a result of heeding that call. [40:42]

- Commemorating loss through rituals, such as the candlelight vigil on World Lost Pregnancy Day, can provide healing and a sense of global community. It is a powerful reminder that we are not alone in our grief and that our lost children are honored and remembered. [44:36]

**Bible Reading:**

1. Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV)
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."

2. John 14:27 (ESV)
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."

3. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (ESV)
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."

4. James 1:2-4 (ESV)
"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

**Observation Questions:**

1. In Proverbs 3:5-6, what does it mean to trust in the Lord with all your heart, and why is it important not to lean on your own understanding?
2. How does acknowledging God in all your ways relate to experiencing His guidance and making straight paths, as mentioned in Proverbs 3:5-6?
3. Reflecting on John 14:27, what kind of peace does Jesus offer, and how is it different from the peace the world gives?
4. Considering 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, how does God's comfort to us in affliction enable us to comfort others?

**Interpretation Questions:**

1. What are some practical ways to demonstrate trust in God when facing situations that are beyond our understanding, as suggested in Proverbs 3:5-6?
2. How can the peace that Jesus gives, as described in John 14:27, influence a person's reaction to life-threatening situations?
3. In what ways might God use our experiences of comfort during trials to prepare us to minister to others, as described in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4?
4. How does the testing of faith, which leads to steadfastness according to James 1:2-4, contribute to spiritual maturity?

**Application Questions:**

1. Reflect on a recent difficult situation. How did you respond, and how might you deepen your trust in God's sovereignty in similar future circumstances?
2. Identify a specific area of your life where you need God's peace. What steps will you take this week to seek His peace in that situation?
3. Think of someone you know who is going through a tough time. How can you use your own experiences of God's comfort to offer them support this week?
4. Choose one trial you are currently facing. How can you view this as an opportunity for growth in faith and perseverance, and what practical action will you take to embrace this perspective?

Day 1: Trusting God's Sovereign Plan
When faced with the incomprehensible pain of loss, it is a natural human instinct to seek control, to understand, and to rationalize. Yet, it is in these moments of profound sorrow that the truth of God's sovereignty becomes most evident. The establishment of the Maggie Jean Foundation serves as a living testament to the belief that even in the darkest of times, there is a divine plan at work. This foundation not only honors the memory of a lost child but also provides solace to others in their grief, transforming personal tragedy into a communal bridge of empathy and support. It is a poignant reminder that one's journey through grief can illuminate the understanding that God's ways are higher than our own, and that trusting in His plan is an act of faith that can lead to healing and purpose beyond our pain. [42:45]

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55:8-9

Reflection: Reflect on a time when your life did not go as planned. How did you see God's hand at work in that situation, and how might it have led you to a deeper trust in His sovereignty?

Day 2: Aligning with God's Will Through Prayer
Prayer is often perceived as a means to request change in our circumstances, yet its true power lies in its ability to change us. In the throes of life-threatening illness, the act of praying for strength to accept God's will reveals a profound trust in the Almighty. It is through prayer that one can find peace amidst turmoil and guidance through the Holy Spirit. This peace, which surpasses all understanding, is a testament to the transformative nature of prayer, not as a tool to wield control but as a conduit for aligning one's heart with the divine will. [34:57]

"And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us." - 1 John 5:14

Reflection: When you pray, do you find yourself focusing more on changing your circumstances or on seeking to understand and accept God's will? How can you shift your prayer life to align more closely with His will?

Day 3: The Strength of Community in Suffering
In times of suffering, the Christian community becomes an indispensable source of strength and comfort. The support received from fellow believers can be a lifeline, offering not just empathy but also tangible assistance in the healing process. The establishment of the Maggie Jean Foundation was not a solitary endeavor but was buoyed by the encouragement and fellowship of a Bible study group. This collective effort underscores the importance of community in the Christian walk, especially during the darkest seasons of life. [36:41]

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." - Galatians 6:2

Reflection: Consider the role of community in your own life. How can you both give and receive support within your Christian community to better navigate times of suffering?

Day 4: Prompt Obedience to God's Calling
Obedience to God's calling often requires stepping out of one's comfort zone, and delayed obedience can equate to disobedience. The creation of the Maggie Jean Foundation exemplifies the courage to act promptly on God's signs, despite personal pain and resistance. This act of faith demonstrates that true obedience involves not just hearing God's call but also responding with immediate action, trusting that He will use our steps of faith to fulfill His greater purposes. [40:42]

"And Samuel said, 'Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.'" - 1 Samuel 15:22

Reflection: Is there an area in your life where you sense God is calling you to act, but you have hesitated? What is one step you can take today to move toward obedience to that call?

Day 5: Honoring Loss and Finding Global Community
Rituals such as the candlelight vigil on World Lost Pregnancy Day serve as a poignant means to honor the memory of lost children and to find solace in a global community of shared grief. These acts of remembrance are not only a personal tribute but also a collective acknowledgment that no one grieves alone. Such rituals provide a space for healing and a powerful reminder that each life, no matter how brief, is significant and cherished. [44:36]

"You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?" - Psalm 56:8

Reflection: How can you honor the memory of someone you have lost in a way that brings you comfort and connects you with others who have experienced similar grief?

"In my recent sermon, I shared deeply personal stories of faith, loss, and the power of prayer, intertwined with the journey of starting the Maggie Jean Foundation. This foundation was born out of our own experiences with loss, as my wife and I suffered through the heartbreak of losing three pregnancies, including an ectopic pregnancy, a miscarriage at seven weeks, and the loss of our baby Maggie Jean at 22 weeks. These experiences taught us the profound lesson that we are not in control and that we must trust in God's plan, even when it is beyond our understanding." [42:45](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"During this time, my wife and I leaned heavily on our faith and the support of our Christian community. We were part of a couple's Bible study that provided comfort and strength. The idea of starting a foundation in honor of our lost daughter initially met with resistance due to the freshness of our pain. However, through persistent signs from God, including a song on the radio that spoke to my wife's heart and a Bible study focused on obedience, we were moved to action." [44:36](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"The Maggie Jean Foundation's mission is to support families who have experienced the loss of a baby, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, early infant death, or a lost adoption. We provide a 'box of blessings' to these families, which includes personalized items like a knit blanket and hat, bereavement books, and a handwritten note. We also hold a candlelight vigil on October 15th, World Lost Pregnancy Day, to honor these babies." [44:36](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Throughout the sermon, I also shared stories of my own brushes with mortality, including a severe case of meningitis and a stroke. In both instances, the Holy Spirit guided me to make life-saving decisions. My prayers during these times were not just for healing, but for the strength to accept God's will, whatever the outcome might be. The peace I felt, even in the face of potential tragedy, was a testament to the power of prayer and the presence of God." [34:57](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Key Takeaways: - The journey through loss and grief can lead to a deeper understanding of God's sovereignty and the importance of trusting in His plan. The creation of the Maggie Jean Foundation was not just a response to personal tragedy, but a testament to the belief that God can use our deepest pains for a greater purpose." [42:45](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Prayer is not always about changing our circumstances but about aligning our hearts with God's will. In times of crisis, the Holy Spirit can provide guidance and peace that surpasses all understanding, helping us to navigate the most challenging moments of our lives." [34:57](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Community and fellowship are vital in the Christian walk, especially during times of suffering. The support we received from our Bible study group and the broader Christian community was instrumental in our healing process and in the establishment of our foundation." [36:41](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Obedience to God's calling may require stepping out of our comfort zones. Delayed obedience is disobedience, and it is through prompt action in faith that we fulfill God's purposes for our lives. The Maggie Jean Foundation is a result of heeding that call." [40:42](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

"Commemorating loss through rituals, such as the candlelight vigil on World Lost Pregnancy Day, can provide healing and a sense of global community. It is a powerful reminder that we are not alone in our grief and that our lost children are honored and remembered." [44:36](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)

My turn. I'm going to just give you a little background on me first, and then I'll go into a little bit of what was going on with me when he was getting sick.

So first, I grew up in a Christian home. Church and Sunday school were expected and welcomed, really. I think we all got very comfortable with being at church. We were usually the last ones to leave since my father loved to visit with everybody. I was confirmed in the Lutheran faith, participated in Athletes in Action in college, and Paul and I were active members of the Lutheran church. We were married while living in the Twin Cities.

I have four older siblings, all happen to be boys. A couple things about that: we were also a very athletic family—hockey and golf. I grew up on the Canadian border, and there's not much to do in the summer except play golf, maybe fish on Lake of the Woods. In the winter, which is usually about nine months long, you play hockey. But I also was the youngest and the only girl, and a lot of people will comment to my dad, "Oh, she must have been spoiled." And he goes, "Oh no, I was way too selfish to raise a spoiled child." So there was some discipline in our house, which I think was a good thing. He always said a little discipline is really an act of love.

But now that you've heard Paul's journey, I want to let you know what was happening with me during that time. I didn't know him when he had the kidney disease or when he had Hodgkin's. We had been married about eight years and living in Marshall when he came down with the meningitis. We have two living children, and they were four and one and a half at the time.

So just to give you a little perspective, the weekend that he came down with the meningitis was a very busy weekend in Marshall. It was Hawaiian night—they don't call it that anymore—but it was Hawaiian night on Friday night, and Paul was in charge of helping to run the event. Saturday night was the hospice ball. I say hospice ball because that meant the doctors were really unavailable.

At the ball, also on a side note, my niece, who was living in Alexandria, was coming to town to play hockey, and my brother could not make it. So could I please go watch her play hockey? Seemed like a reasonable request. We lived very close to the, well, we still do, the old arena where we could have walked to the arena.

So Friday, Paul was sick, and what we thought was the flu. He went to teach a class, but the illness progressed, and he ended up falling in the bathroom and hitting his head on the sink. So as you can imagine, blood everywhere. He was rushed to the ER, pumped full of fluid, and had 33 stitches. He was sent home for me to take care of.

So on Saturday, Paul was home sick. Joe, who was one and a half, had a fever. I remember him talking to the basketball coach on Friday night, and I'm like, "Okay, good." He had hit his head, so I was on head injury duty. I'm like, "You're talking to somebody else. I'm gonna quick run and get some baby Tylenol at the store and come back." So Joe had a big enough fever that we wanted to give him something.

But on Saturday, he's still—Joe is still kind of sick. So I finally get him down for a nap. Jessica, our four-year-old, was over at a friend's house playing in the neighborhood, and I was fielding phone calls all that morning. "How's Paul?" Everybody from the athletic department had heard that he had hit his head, and so they were quite concerned.

So Joe's down for a nap, Paul's resting on the couch—not doing a whole lot, but he liked to do that when he was sick. He just held up and let him sweat it out. So I thought, "Okay, here's my chance. I'm gonna go maybe watch a period of that hockey game real quick to satisfy everybody, right?" You always want to satisfy everybody's request.

So I started walking towards the arena down the middle of the street—not a busy street. I was walking down the middle of the street, and I got about, I don't know, two or three houses away from our house, and a voice inside of me is like, "What are you doing? You have a baby at home who's asleep with an adult, but that adult is in no condition to be taking care of a baby."

And so maybe going to the hockey game isn't such a great idea. I took a couple more steps, and I'm like, "Nope, turning around, going home. I am going to get Paul the help that he needs." I contacted the ER, and we ended up calling the ambulance. At the same time, Joe wakes up. Jessica's at the friend's house she was playing at. Actually, the woman was an EMT.

So the kids with the ambulance are running out. They take the kids, and I go in the ambulance with Paul to the hospital. So again, the doctors are gone, except there's a locum in the ER, which, Godsend, he was used to dealing with ER things that don't happen very often in Marshall. So he diagnosed meningitis right away, and luckily the EMT who came for the ambulance started the IV, so he was already getting pumped with IV antibiotics.

We had a lot of support, a lot of support from our neighborhood, and he ended up spending 17 days in the hospital. If that gives you any indication of how sick he was. But what struck me most about what was going on inside of me was how calm I remained, even though the doctors told me to call his family.

So just, I think a very much a God moment. I call them where I felt that support and that presence.

So now we're going 20 years later, and he already told you about the prostate surgery. Two days after his prostate surgery, now we're back in Marshall, and one of my brothers calls and tells me my father had a stroke. He was in the hospital, and he was doing fairly well. But could I please come in and be with my mom? Again, I'm the only girl, and my mom is—they were living in assisted living, so it was going to be hard for her to be at the hospital by herself. She wasn't driving anymore or anything like that.

So that happened to be October 15th. That date we'll allude to later. But we had just started our foundation, which is also what I'll talk about in a little bit, and that night was an event. I took one look at Paul, and he had major surgery. Prostate surgery is kind of a major abdominal surgery, and so I'm like, "I don't think I can leave." Again, that voice saying, "This isn't a great idea for you to leave."

So I said no. It's hard; you get pulled in two different directions, both of which are good. So two days after that, Paul comes stumbling down the stairs, and after talking to him a little bit, I realized he was having a stroke. Another God moment.

I had my typical morning routine, which is to go exercise. I'm a physical therapist by trade. I go exercise in the morning, and while I'm cooling off, I do my devotions or my Bible study. That day, I just said, "You know, I think I'm going to wait until he wakes up." If I had been in the basement exercising, I never would have heard him.

And so, again, whatever you want to call it, that was the Lord in my mind. So we get him to the ER, and he gets airlifted to Sioux Falls. But while we're driving—or while I'm driving to Sioux Falls—I am talking to Big Stone Therapies, which is where I work. They are a Christian organization, and they have prayer chains. I call Bruce Sogsted, who is the acting athletic director. Bruce is a Christian guy. "Start calling your friends; let's get some prayers going because I don't know what's going on."

He could not continue at the level he was at. If any of you know a stroke, he had such left-sided neglect. He would never have coached again. It would have been—we'd have to move; he couldn't have used stairs, that kind of thing. The vascular neurosurgeon said his recovery was—he'd only seen it one other time and no adverse effects, truly, and no long-term damage.

But to me, that is the power of prayer. But it was a little bit different from what we've gone through. My prayer was different. I didn't ask necessarily for him to be healed. What I asked for is if it is in your will to please let him come out of this. But if it is not in your will, I prayed that I would be able to handle and live with the outcome.

So it was just a little different take on that. But I can only believe that the voice in my head on both occasions was the Holy Spirit keeping me in the right place at the right time.

So one of my favorite things in church is the benediction, actually. I like to sing too, but I'm not very good at it.

So may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you. May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

And in John 14:27, Jesus says, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

So the peace I felt throughout both times was beyond any understanding, considering he was close to losing his life both times.

So now we're going to do a little backing up into before we moved to Marshall. Before we had our two children, we lost three pregnancies. I had an ectopic pregnancy, a miscarriage at seven weeks, and at 22 weeks, we lost a baby we had named Maggie Jean.

I can tell you that going to a doctor's appointment and not hearing a heartbeat, seeing a lifeless baby at the bottom of an ultrasound, and then being induced to give birth to a baby you know you will never take home is absolutely heart-wrenching. I am so glad that I had my faith and other Christians to lean on.

We had been involved in a couple's Bible study at the time, and after we lost those three babies, you start to wonder if you will ever be a parent. What is the bigger purpose in God's plan? Most of all, you begin to realize that you are not in control. You are at the mercy of a gracious God, and you have to trust that he knows best. Proverbs 3:5 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."

So at the time, Paul wanted to have a golf tournament—remember, I came from a golf family—in honor of Maggie. I was not ready, and I think mostly afraid. The pain was just too fresh. She was born in August; it would have been a year later or the next summer probably.

But we eventually started trying again to become pregnant, and we were fortunate and became pregnant with our daughter Jessica. While I was pregnant, Paul changed jobs three times. God's plan landed us in Marshall, but that is a story for another time.

So Joe followed Jessica two and a half years later, and we became busy raising our kids. The secret of three lost babies just was never brought up. It is not the first thing you say when you are meeting a bunch of new people.

So the kids grew up and left Marshall for college, and one day I started listening to the radio station 96.5. A lot of you are probably familiar with it. We get a lot of our songs from there. I was drawn to a song, "Thy Will Be Done." Now, this is probably four years ago, so it's not on the radio very much anymore, but the artist is Hillary Scott.

I didn't understand why that song just spoke to me so much. The lyrics talk about a broken heart being part of God's plan. But what struck me is the line, "Sometimes I got to stop, remember that you're God and I'm not." It hit home a little bit when we try to be in control and do everything—we think we have more control than we should.

I did a little extra research on who she was because I was just curious why was that song so important to me. But she wrote that song after having a miscarriage. So again, another God moment.

I am also involved in a coach's wives Bible study that's run by Robin Knutson with the FCA, and we were studying Priscilla Shrier's book in 2019, "Discerning the Voice of God." It's not an easy study, but the first chapter was on obedience.

The very first chapter—I grew up in a fairly strict household, and disobedience was not really tolerated. Priscilla talked about how delayed obedience is really disobedience. If you think about it with your kids, "We'll clean your room." "No, I don't want to," or "I will do it later." They're really being disobedient. Sorry, kids.

But that struck a nerve with me, and I felt very convicted that I was being disobedient by holding on to my secret and avoiding the suggestion of having the golf tournament. I was driving back and forth to Minneapolis about three times a month, and that song kept coming on the radio.

So anyway, I think when God asks you to do something, he is persistent, and he used the Bible study and the song to push me out of my comfort zone and let him lead me or us. That led us to starting this Maggie Jean Foundation.

A little bit about our foundation: our foundation's purpose is to walk alongside those families who have suffered a lost baby, either through miscarriage, stillbirth, early infant death, or a lost adoption. We want no family to suffer alone.

We hold a golf tournament in August to raise funds to purchase supplies that go in a box of blessings—we call it—that is sent to the family free of charge.

Yeah, it's just out of here, so if you want to look at it, that's fine. Well, if we know what happened, we can make the box more personal. We don't need to know, but we can.

So one of the things that's in there is a knit blanket and hat that's gestational size. So if we know if it was a girl or a boy, then we can make the blanket maybe a little more appropriate. If we know, I always write a note in there so I can speak to—since I've had three, I can speak to maybe what they were going through.

Again, it's therapy for us as much as it is hopefully therapy for the other people. There's two bereavement books in there: one is "Grieving the Child I Never Knew," and then the other one is from the baby's perspective from heaven, "There Are No Tears in Heaven." So hopefully that helps.

We also hold a candlelight vigil on October 15th, which is World Lost Pregnancy Day. From 7 to 8 p.m. in any time zone, your lit candle honors your baby that is not on this side of heaven. The hour corresponds with the international wave of light. So when the candle is lit for one hour local time, there is a light that will go around the globe.

The event is held at the Outdoor Environmental Learning Center at SMSU, and that is also open to all free of charge.

We hope our story has encouraged you to rely and trust on God's plan. His ways are higher than our ways, and His timing is perfect. He is for us, and we hope that His glory was revealed in our story.

Thank you.