277 How to Overcome Pain, Infertility and Divorce while Cherishing Your Miracle Child

Your Hope-Filled Perspective with Dr. Michelle Bengtson podcast

Episode Summary:

Sometimes life seems to bring one heartache after another until we can feel beaten down by all we’ve been through. My guest today, Cherie Denna, shares from her wounds and pain, and the sacred scars she has gained through infertility, divorce, and ultimately a child custody case for the care of her miracle child.

Quotables from the episode:

• None of our past experiences is wasted.
• I have a collection of trauma upon trauma, with lots of PTSD triggers.
• Years of childhood sexual abuse negatively impacted my dream of becoming a mother. There was a lot of damage to my reproductive organs, which led to anger toward my perpetrator and toward God.
• God met me in the middle of all this. What the enemy stole, God began redeeming.
• My hopes and dreams were not fulfilled in the way that I had hoped.
• It was ironic, or God’s perfect plan, where God had me in a job with four other women who understood the pain of infertility, while there were many others who were having babies and baby showers.
• I had a perfect picture painted in my mind of what motherhood would look like. Ultimately, after years of treatment, God gave me my miracle daughter.
• It was devastating to me to have women in my family who chose abortions.
• I learned a lot about taking my focus off of myself during that painful time.
• God kept showing up with His promises.
• My ex-husband couldn’t handle my PTSD triggers, and divorced me, then spent five years in court trying to take my daughter away from me, leaving me to represent myself in court to fight for my daughter.
• I had to keep remembering God’s promises, and the promise that he would not let the enemy win.
• When I was fighting for my daughter, I recommitted my life to the Lord. He gave me Matthew 10:26 to hold onto.
• The previous judge had been removed from the bench, and in his place a righteous judge was put in his place, and he granted me custody of my daughter.
• There was a lot of healing that had to take place between my daughter and myself because there was a lot of parental alienation during this time period. When I recommitted myself to the Lord, he healed the pain between my daughter and I.
• After I had my one miracle daughter, it didn’t bother me anymore that I couldn’t have any more children because of the physical scarring in my body.
• I thank God that He calls me His Beloved.
• It’s painful to be betrayed, especially by someone who’s supposed to love you forever. I just clung to the hem of his garment. I committed everything to God, and learned to wait on Him to act.
• Commit your ways to God’s ways, and you will experience the miraculous.
• We don’t always have a choice about things that happen to us, but we do have a choice in how we will respond!
• Pain often prompts us to isolate from others and from God, but we have a choice in our pain to either walk away from God or to lean in and reach for the hem of his garment.
• God loves you. He is for you. He always purposes good for you even your circumstances are not good. When you go through pain and suffering, He hurts for you. Scripture tells us that he is close to the broken hearted.
• He says draw unto me, and I will draw unto you. That is a promise He makes to you, but He wants you to make the first move.
• Call out to God and He promises He will meet us there. It won’t always look the way we want it to look, and it won’t always happen in the timing we want it to happen, but God promises you a future and a hope. My challenge to you today is to reach out to Him and watch Him bring a beautiful sacred scar to replace your painful wounds.

Scripture References:

• Matthew 10:26 NLT “But don’t be afraid of those who threaten you. For the time is coming when everything that is covered will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all.”
• Psalm 37:5-7 NLT “Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.”
• Psalm 34:17-19 NIV “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.”

Recommended Resources:

• Beloved Outcast – A True Story: The Quest for True Belonging by Cherie Denna
• Sacred Scars: Resting in God’s Promise That Your Past Is Not Wasted by Dr. Michelle Bengtson
• The Hem of His Garment: Reaching Out to God When Pain Overwhelms by Dr. Michelle Bengtson
• YouVersion 5-Day Devotional Reaching Out To God When Pain Overwhelms
• Today is Going to be a Good Day: 90 Promises to Start Your Day Off Right by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the AWSA 2023 Inspirational Gift Book of the Year Award, the Christian Literary Awards Reader’s Choice Award in four categories, and the Christian Literary Awards Henri Award for Devotionals
• YouVersion 7-Day Devotional, Today is Going to be a Good Day
• YouVersion 7-Day Devotional, Today is Going to be Another Good Day
• Breaking Anxiety’s Grip: How to Reclaim the Peace God Promises by Dr. Michelle Bengtson
• Breaking Anxiety’s Grip Free Study Guide
• Free 7-Day YouVersion Bible Reading Plan for Breaking Anxiety’s Grip
• Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey Through Depression by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award
• Hope Prevails Bible Study by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award
• Trusting God Through Cancer 1
• Trusting God Through Cancer 2
• Revive & Thrive Women's Conference
• Subdue Stress and Anxiety: Fifteen Experts Offer Comprehensive Tools in Ten Minutes a Day. Use my link plus discount code BENG99 to save $90 on course (course will be $99.)
• Free Download: How To Fight Fearful/Anxious Thoughts and Win

Social Media Links for Guest and Host:

Connect with Cherie Denna:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / X

For more hope, stay connected with Dr. Bengtson at:

Order Book Breaking Anxiety’s Grip / Order Book Hope Prevails / Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter (@DrMBengtson) / LinkedIn / Instagram / Pinterest / YouTube

Guest:

An award-winning writer, author, and speaker, Cherie Denna’s messages guide audiences toward belovedness in Jesus Christ in their everyday lives. You can find her writing on the Northern California coast with frothed coffee in hand or on an RV adventure with her purposed-mate husband. Join the Everyday Belonging Movement at www.cheriedenna.com.

Hosted By: Dr. Michelle Bengtson Audio Technical Support: Bryce Bengtson