Devotionals for the Heart: How to experience peace during storms

Experiencing Peace Through the Storm
A devotional by Heidy De La Cruz

“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”—Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)

When was the last time you were in a storm or going through something challenging and yet, you felt peace? This question came to my mind while reading the Bible study, “Create in Me a Heart of Peace” by (in)courage ministries.

I’ve written about these studies before, but they are so good that I highly recommend the whole series. Anyway, as I’m reading about peace, week two in this particular study talks about how peace is a posture. This brought the question to my mind: “When was the last time I was in a storm or going through something challenging and felt peace?”

My mind immediately went to the season where I was drowning in grief but felt such peace in my soul. It was August 2020, and my grandfather passed away—not of COVID, gratefully. But I was saddened that it was his time to rest in peace. To this day, I still cannot believe he is gone. As I’m navigating a new life without my grandfather’s presence, God tells me to have another baby. And if you know me, you know this is all God. So, in November of 2020, I got the two lines on a pregnancy test that told me I’m expecting! But this dream was very short-lived as a few days later, I experienced my first miscarriage, and a new level of grief entered my body.

Fast forward to March of 2021. I’m still grieving my grandfather, still grieving my baby who didn’t make it, and then my mother-in-law died. And yet, I felt peace. It wasn’t because I wasn’t missing my loved ones. I was missing them hard. My grandfather passed unexpectedly, and my mother-in-law was diagnosed with cancer. Although that doesn’t make her passing any easier, I was missing them while still grieving the loss of my baby. But there was peace.

Let me tell you why. I was deeply rooted in God’s Word at that time. Remember: Peace is a posture. At that time, I was reading Priscilla Shirer’s Elijah: Faith and Fire Bible study. I don’t know if you can tell, but Bible studies are my thing! Although this study wasn’t about peace, being rooted in God’s Word, studying it, praying, and staying focused on God and not the grief and chaos around me led me to peace. A peace that only Jesus brings.

In the current Bible study I’m reading by (in)courage ministries, Becky Keife writes, “Peace always sounds like such a pleasant quality or experience, doesn’t it? The tranquil sound of a babbling book. The gentle spirit of a sweet friend. A quiet afternoon with the company of a good book. On the surface, peace is the absence of anything unpleasant. But a peaceful environment is not the same as a peaceful soul.” Take a breath and let that sink in!

The only way I was able to feel peace in my soul during that heavy season of grief was because of Jesus. There’s no other way! So today, I’m asking you, when was the last time you went through something challenging but felt peace in your heart? And if you haven’t, what can you do today to help you prepare for your next life’s challenge and be at peace?

Remember: Challenges in life do happen, but with Jesus, we can have peace (Philippians 4:7).

Let's Pray: Dear Jesus, I pray for whoever is reading this that they will encounter your peace. The peace that only You provide. The peace that calms our soul and anchors us. Lord, I thank You for the peace You provide because there’s nothing like it. When the world feels like it’s on fire, You are with us and keep us calm. I pray that we can all experience that internal peace no matter our current circumstances. In your name, Lord, I pray. Amen.

Song of Reflection: “I’ll Give You Peace” by Sandi Patty. Listen to it here.

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Author Bio:

Heidy De La Cruz is a published writer/author and podcaster. She writes the weekly newsletter “Into My Thoughts” on Substack where she shares personal development content, life experiences with life lessons, and faith-based encouragement posts. 

Heidy is the host of “The American Dream in The Eyes of Immigrants Podcast” where immigrants share their stories about moving to the United States. She is also a podcast coach and helps those who desire to host their own show launch.

Heidy holds a master’s degree in healthcare administration and a bachelor's degree in Psychology. She works as a Medical Coding Analyst.

In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to podcasts, watching movies, and spending time with her husband and their two kids.

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Connect with Heidy:
Website: https://heidydelacruz.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heidy.delacruz13/

Devotionals for the Heart: Rainbow

After the storm there is always a rainbow!
A devotional by Heidy De La Cruz

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

I was always the person who said they didn’t want to have kids. I never saw myself as a kind person, and being completely honest, I wasn’t one of those young girls who always dreamed of their wedding or getting married. After having my daughter, I thought I was done. I said I’ll be one and done. I was content with just her.

My husband and I always said we weren’t going to have kids together. He has a boy and I have my daughter. So technically, we have the pair, and we were fine by that. But everything changed after my grandfather died last August. I was sitting on the couch watching my uncles and aunt discuss funeral plans and sharing the burden of this loss. It brought me back to when my mom passed, my sister was six years old, and every decision fell on me. It was extremely overwhelming. So, I thought to myself: I cannot do this to my daughter.

I discussed it with my husband and got him on board. We started trying for a baby. After a few negative tests, we finally got a positive. I took two tests just to make sure, and I was beyond excited, so I wanted to spread the news right away to our families even though my husband wanted to wait. We told my family and then his after I told my daughter. I recorded all their reactions. I just felt like, wow, God answered my prayers!

Two days later, I had my miscarriage. I was utterly devastated. Just like with experiencing the loss of my mom and my grandfather, I kept thinking about Psalm 34:18 (NIV) “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Reading this verse and listening to Contemporary Christian songs by Lauren Daigle really helped me cope with this devastating loss.

Fast forward to April 2020: We finally got our positive pregnancy test again! I was and still am worried about losing this baby, but I remember how much I prayed and how faithful God is. I also look back at all the events that happened prior to getting pregnant, and it makes sense why God waited. I wanted it to happen so bad, and it did—right when it was supposed to happen! 

God’s timing is always perfect. I know that Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) is a very popular verse, but I feel like it’s the perfect verse to describe this situation. The verse reads, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

When God puts something in your heart, it will happen, but only in His time. We must be patient, which is something I need to continue working on.

Let’s pray: Lord, help me remember that Your plans for my life are better than the plans I make on my own. I pray that my plans align with Your plans for my life. Thank You for all the blessings you have provided thus far. I am looking forward to growing with You and trusting You more. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

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Author Bio:

Hello, my name is Heidy (Reynoso) De La Cruz. 

I am Dominican-American and I’m passionate about writing! I write poetry, encouraging blog posts about personal experiences and any message that God has stored in my heart. I am working on publishing my first poetry book.

First and foremost, I am a daughter of Jesus Christ. I am also a wife and a mother. I have my master’s degree in Healthcare Administration through Belhaven University’s online course. I have my bachelor’s degree in Science with the concentration of Psychology and Healthcare Administration.

I currently work in the medical field as a Medical Billing and Coding Specialist, and I’ve been in the medical field for the last six years. I love my career!

My hobbies include writing, reading, watching documentaries, listening to podcasts, traveling, and spending time with my family.

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Connect with Heidy:
Blog: https://heidyreynoso.wordpress.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heidy.delacruz13/
Read my poetry on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heidyspoems/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/heidyreynoso13
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heidyreynoso13

Words of Faith: God Is With Us

God Is With Us
A Words of Faith story written by Cara Putman

"When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you."~Isaiah 43:2 (NLT) 

I want to walk through life without fear. To walk with the sure knowledge that God is with me. He. Is. With. Me.

Much of my life, I have known this to the core of who I am. In fact, this knowledge is foundational to who I am. If you read my novels, you will see that ultimately they come back to this point. That God is with us.

My characters learn that in some way.

I’ve had to learn that in some deep, real way. The way that strips the candy coating from my faith and digs deeply into the bedrock of my beliefs.

Eight years ago I had a miscarriage. Prior to that I would have said life had challenges, but it was nothing God and I couldn’t handle. Much of it was the kind of thing I could handle on my own. I’d thank God for His provision, I’d ask for His leading and His direction, but there had been very few times where I had been pushed so far beyond what I could endure that I didn’t know how to find myself. 

Here, let my words from 2010, a few months after my second miscarriage, illustrate how shattering these events were:

I’m on a quest to restore my heart.

The miscarriages have caused a piece of my heart to break. And while I want to grieve fully and completely—and some would tell you a tad too much—I don’t want to live with heartbreak.

I want to live where the sight of a pregnant woman doesn’t remind me that I’m not 7 1/2 months pregnant right now. Where the learning that another relative or friend is pregnant doesn’t pierce through my heart with another reminder that I have another little one waiting for me. That there isn’t the pain of separation. Of what ifs. Of what might have beens.

Each day I think I get a bit closer.

Then there’s an anniversary of a loss or a due date.

Or I simply go to Chick-Fil-A and see a pregnant woman or someone with an infant. And I smile as my eyes fill with tears. So if you see me like that, know I am fighting back even while my heart breaks again.

That’s where I lived. But I wrestled it to the ground with God. I had to know that when I was curled up in the closet with so much pain that I didn’t know what to do, that God was there. I had to believe that He would somehow use the pain for His good. He has.

If you’re in the midst of your own pain right now (so many of my friends and loved ones are walking such hard journeys right now), know that God is there. He never leaves. He never forsakes us. Jesus endured that, so we wouldn’t have to.

So if you can’t feel Him, look up. Look out. You will find Him. And He can put your broken heart back together again.

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Author bio:

Cara C. Putman, the award-winning author of 20 books and three repackages with more books on the way, is madly racing toward deadline with her first legal romantic suspense for Harper Collins Christian Fiction. 

She graduated high school at 16, college at 20, and completed her law degree at 27. First for Women Magazine called Shadowed by Grace “captivating” and a "novel with the works." It received the Christian Retailing BEST Award for Historical Fiction and the HOLT Award of Distinction. 

Cara is active at her church and a lecturer on business and employment law and communications to graduate students at Purdue University’s Krannert School of Management. Putman received her JD from George Mason School of Law and her Master’s in Business Administration at Krannert. 

She serves on the executive board of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), an organization she has served in various roles since 2007. Putman also practices law and is a second-generation homeschooling mom. She lives with her husband and four children in Indiana. 

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Connect with Cara:

Website - www.caraputman.com
Facebook - www.facebook.com/caraputman
Twitter - www.twitter.com/cara_putman
Pinterest - www.pinterest.com/caraputman
Goodreads - www.goodreads.com/CaraPutman