Three years ago, there was anger: My stepson didn’t want another sibling.
I had seen anger before in him when we had announced our two other ours pregnancies. But not to this level.
As stepmoms with ours children, we are also just regular moms who want to revel in the joys of pregnancy. But it doesn’t always get to be like that for us. In my experience, I have had to hide my joy out of respect for my stepkids.
When my younger bio son, C, was born, resentful comments and things like, “‘That baby’ is crying,” often came out of my stepson’s mouth. He refused to call C by his name for the first year.
Facing Rejection
It hurt me so deeply that my child would be rejected. But I knew Jesus didn’t reject him, and my stepson just needed time. I prayed for his heart to change toward our new baby. Not wanting to cause further resentment by forcing him to comply, I either ignored his comments or gently redirected him.
But God is faithful. C is 2 1/2 years old, and at 17 years old, my stepson now loves his little brother dearly.
Now “that baby” has been replaced with “Buddy.”
In the dark moments it doesn’t always seem like there is hope. But we cannot let the discouragement of the current situation rob us of the joy God promises to those who love Him.
Perfection doesn’t exist with imperfect people, but the beauty lies in daily redemption and grace.
God is at work and our prayerful persistence is powerful.
The above picture was taken on a recent family vacation and I think it captures the promise of hope God has for all of us stepfamilies.
And the icing on the cake? I noticed my stepson has this picture as his cell phone screen saver. Never doubt what God can do…
