Of course, I immediately responded upon receiving the email and said I would be completely honored to be interviewed for WORLD. Caroline contacted me on a Monday and her deadline was that upcoming Friday, so we didn't have much time for the interviewing process. I asked to be interviewed by email, rather than by phone, so I could have time to think about and pray over my responses. I am very thankful I did it that way because some of the questions were quite in depth and difficult to answer.
Something that's really precious about this article...Caroline wrote me and mentioned she was looking for an additional source to briefly quote in the story. She wanted to interview someone from some sort of Pregnancy Center who could comment on why my story is important and worth sharing. She had the idea to interview Anna, who she had read about on my blog. Anna is my precious friend who I met at the Center that I went to when I was early in my pregnancy with Lily. She was a counselor there. This made me extremely excited because Anna is an amazing, beautiful woman and it's so special to be in the article with someone who was such a sweet part of the story, from close to the beginning. Anna graciously agreed to be interviewed.
Caroline and I emailed back and forth for weeks and through our correspondence, a sweet friendship has blossomed. Not only did we discuss the article, but things like our mutual love for the Lord, photography, and Eric and Leslie Ludy. ;-) I truly consider Caroline a dear new friend and look forward to keeping in touch with her and hopefully one day meeting her in person. It's so amazing how God has brought so many precious friendships into my life through Luke and Lily's lives...Bex, Anna, Bonnie, Brittany, and now Caroline. :-) The promise He whispered to my heart all those years ago - that if I chose LIFE, I couldn't imagine the beauty He would bring, is still being fulfilled! It's amazing. For Lily's birthday, Caroline sent me the most precious card in the mail!
From the first email I received from Caroline to the date of publication was about a month...the month of March. Lily's special month. Caroline and I both thought how neat it was that God would work this out to happen during her month. It felt like a beautiful gift from Jesus on her birthday to share her life and legacy on a broad scale. I had really hoped the article would publish at some point in March, but it ended up publishing on April 1st due to different reasons. It was published on the day after Easter, which I think is special, as a reflection of the redemptive work Christ has done in my life through my little ones. As Caroline said to me, it was published on April 1st, the day after the end of March. New beginnings... Yes, indeed. :-)
I am so thankful WORLD was able to include my website in the article because they usually don't include links to outside sources. It is my hope and prayer, as well as Caroline's, that this article will open up more doors for me to share my story, both in speaking and writing. It has been such an amazing experience to be interviewed, to make a new friend, and to see the hand of my God. He has spoken through this entire thing that He is in control. He is sovereign over all. He has a mighty plan and purpose. All I must do is be obedient to Him and what He asks of me, one step at a time. I was obedient in sharing my story on the CNN iReport, which is how Caroline discovered my story. I am wondering who will discover my story through the WORLD article and what doors God will open next...it's such an exciting adventure, this life with Him! :-)
I was also quite pleased with the photo they chose for the article. In the photo, I am wearing the necklace my grandmother gave me on March 27th, 2010 - the day of Lily's burial. It has a heart and symbolizes the four generations - three pearls on the bottom to symbolize my grandmother, mother, and myself (living on earth), and the stone above symbolizes Lily in Heaven. How incredibly sweet and thoughtful! It was so special to have to wear to the service. It's precious that it's in the photo.
I didn't quite know what to expect with how the article would turn out and couldn't read it before it was published. But, once I did read it, I was quite pleased with the final result. Of course, it was disappointing that so much had to be left out because of length constraints. But, I thought Caroline summarized everything beautifully. She had a hard time knowing how to consolidate everything, but didn't she do a lovely job? :-) And thankfully, since my website was included, if people wish to read in greater depth, they can visit and read all they want. All my responses to the interview questions were so lengthy, so it's interesting to see how short the article ended up being and how little of my responses could be used. That's the world of writing and articles, I suppose.
It meant so much to me when Caroline told me that engaging with the material I shared with her was such a blessing and got her thinking about the importance of promoting the Pro-Life message and being an encourager to other young women facing similar situations as I once did. She said she even looked up local Pregnancy Centers that she could volunteer at in the future.
I am so honored and blessed to have been interviewed for this magazine. The article is one of the Lead Stories published today - April 1st, 2013. I am thankful for this opportunity to be a voice for my precious Lily Katherine and Luke Shiloh, like I promised them I would be. I pray their lives and legacies will help change and save lives, in Jesus' name! And I pray my story will touch those who have had an abortion, those facing an unplanned pregnancy, and those who have lost a child. I hope those in the church will better understand those who are post-abortive and have a tender heart of mercy and compassion towards them. So many men and women are affected by this topic, both in and out of the church, and I think it's time it is discussed and time for the church to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I hope whoever reads this article will walk away with the hope of Jesus in their hearts.
Thank you, Caroline, for thinking my story is worth telling and for having the desire to tell it. You are a beautiful person and writer.
Thank you, Anna, for being willing to be interviewed and for taking part in this awesome opportunity with me.
Thank you, WORLD Magazine, for publishing the article!
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Read the article here:
I am so happy for you! So glad I finally got to read it. It turned out wonderful!
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