ENTITLEMENT

I had a meeting in Durham tonight with the Triangle Right to Life board members. We took care of official business, I updated the group on my Media Relations work thus far, and we began brainstorming ideas for promoting the pro-life message in the Triangle.

After the meeting was over, only a few women remained, engaging in small talk before we said our goodbyes. The woman whom I had written about in my previous blog post (Deanna, the one who wrote the book To Be A Mother) was talking about her book, and she got to talking about her experience with abortion and how she was finally called to adopt. Deanna said that after her abortion, she felt like God deserved to punish her for having an abortion by making her unable to conceive another child. This wasn't the case, as she eventually had two biological children of her own and adopted four more. She thought that she was "entitled" to a life without children because of her decision to abort her first child many years ago.

Another woman in the group, (we'll call D for privacy purposes), chimed in. A 28-year-old attorney, who has been a driving force in the pro-life movement, has always dreamed of having a family. D said that she thought she was "entitled" to the ability conceive a child because of the work that she has done involving pro-life issues and protecting the unborn. Unfortunately, she and her husband have been having a difficult time getting pregnant and are now focusing on adoption. D said, "It's funny because I thought that God was supposed to just give me with a child because of everything pro-life that I've done. I realize now that God works in mysterious ways and that we are not entitled to anything in life."

What a profound realization. I too am guilty of having felt entitled to certain things in life. When I first found out that I was pregnant, I was angry with God. How could He do this to me? I thought that because I went to church every week and I was generally a good person, that I should be entitled to a swimming scholarship in college. I never really did anything terrible (sinning a few times here and there, yes, but don't we all?), but those dreams went down the shitter when two pink lines appeared. I didn't feel like I was entitled to be a part of the plan that God was laying before me.

After I placed Deanna in the adoption with the Dollars, I kept hearing people say, "You will be rewarded for the sacrifice you have made because you have been so selfless!" I kept hearing those words resonate over and over in my head freshman year. When I ate alone in the dining hall or when I cried myself to sleep at night because I missed Deanna so much, I thought about those words. The entitlement. "When?" When am I going to be rewarded?!" I demanded of God. I thought that I was entitled to immediate happiness because I had obeyed what God had asked me to do: choose adoption.

Looking back, I can think of many more examples of how I thought I was entitled to something because of my actions. Since overhearing Deanna and D's comments tonight, I realize now that we are not entitled to anything in life. God knows exactly what He is doing. He works in mysterious ways, and who did I think I was to question Him?

Maybe I'm crazy, but I feel like I've grown up alot during these past 4 years. I am better able to see things that I could not see before. My boyfriend recently told me about an author who compares God's plan for us to a tapestry. Four years ago, my life was similar to looking at the back of a tapestry: the crazy strings, the unrecognizable patterns, all of the confusion. Now, I am finally able to see the front of my tapestry. It's a beautiful picture that God created...and I like what I see.