It's always HARD (and painful!) when birthing a baby!

A friend of mine is in the process of adoption. She's becoming wearied in the wait. She's in the throes of the labor. She's getting impatient. She's tired. SHE WANTS HER BABY! Now!

She doesn't see the point of waiting another two months (or three, or four, or more), another week, another day, another hour, another minute. Not another second if she had anything to do with it.

I wrote a letter to encourage her. I think, instead, she'll probably hate me after she reads it.

Here's what I said:



My forever dearest sweetest friend,

Laboring is never easy, is it? I suppose, truth be told, it's not supposed to be. Shall we be reminded of that faithful verse in Genesis 3? The one that warns us of our horror in birthing a child from the very beginning?

"To the woman He said,

I will greatly multiply your grief and your suffering

in pregnancy

and the pangs of childbearing;

with spasms of distress you will bring forth children..."

Does that make you feel any better after reading that? Or would you like to slap me now?.. and run from our friendship forever?

If you're still with me though, I'll continue....

I couldn't help but wonder as I was pondering that verse again. Does that word "greatly" really mean greatly? And what's it mean by greatly if it does? How greatly is greatly? Just how greatly is God talking about?

Would you be surprised if I told you that I looked "greatly"s meaning up? (And of course, you wouldn't, here's what I found.)

"greatly" - rabah =

• to be or become great
• to be or become much
• to be or become numerous (Hmm??? I guess that means alot?)
• to become many
• to GROW GREAT
• to MULTIPLY
• to be multiplied
• to increase greatly
• to INCREASE EXCEEDINGLY

Uh, that sounds pretty "greatly" to me!

What was it that He was gonna "greatly" do?

"I will greatly multiply..." Another defining moment awaiting me! Here goes again:

"multiply" hmmm... - "rabah"  It's that very same word as the "greatly" one used again. So, it's saying all of that to say that it's a DOUBLE DOOZY! It's GREATLY GREATLY! Or, our GREATLY is INCREASED! And increased EXCEEDINGLY!

Ow, already!

It is: to be or become:

• great great
• much much
• many many
• exceedingly exceedingly
• multiplingly multiplied!

Ewe!... A WHOLE L-O-T, huh?

Shall I hush now? Go home? Close the email? Stop writing? Stop typing? Stop talking? Hush?

Have you slammed the door in my face without my knowing it? Or, in the obligation to our friendship, do you travel on with me in this note to humor me while balling your fists with a greatly multiplying desire to punch someone (Hopefully, not me!)?

If you're still with me, I can't resist from continuing....

What's growing? What's multiplying? What's exceeding? What's increasing? What is it that will be getting greater? "Much" of what? "Many, many" what exactly???

"I will greatly multiply your grief and your suffering in pregnancy."

Wow! Those kinds of mathematics coupled with the two descriptive words such as the two the verse has chosen sounds too frustrating and painful to be able to handle. Are you living it now? And feeling the magnifying: grief and suffering of this pregnancy that we're promised to have?

Here we go again. Let's define them!

"grief and suffering" - itstsabown =

• pain, labor, hardship, sorrow, toil.... It means to HURT, to be in PAIN, to be GRIEVED / to have DISPLEASURE / to be TORTURED / TO BE VEXED

Or,

• Great, great pain!
• Much much labor!
• Many many hardships!
• Exceedingly exceeding sorrow!
• Multiple multiplied torture!
• To HURT greatly and in increasing greatness!
• OW! OW! OW!

Ouch! Is that you? When you look up the meanings to find their definitions, are you seeing your face behind the picture of their words? If so, then guess what? You're having a baby! I do believe you're pregnant! Your labor's begun!

Webster defines labor as:

• an expenditure of physical or mental effort especially when difficult or compulsory
• the physical activities involved in giving birth
• to exert one's powers of body or mind especially with painful or strenuous effort: work.

Okay... Are you thinking that I must have waaay tooo much time on my hands? I'm so sorry. I was just trying to help you breathe in the process.

Okay... okay... okay.... I'll hush now! I won't finish defining the rest of the sentence. I can see that that might be pushing the envelope! Wearing out my welcome. Saying more than needs to be said! I can tell when I've gone too far. I'm going to bed! I was just wondering if the "much much" / "great great" seemed to be an overkill of way too much?........................

Too truthful?

Shooosh.... I'm outta here!

Night! and LOVE you! Hope you sleep well! :)

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