It is a reality of life that we will all face hardship and pain, it is in these moments that we can choose to blame God for the pain we feel, or instead choose to accept his presence and peace as he helps us through these times.

Two months ago my pregnant wife and I found out our baby due this spring has a condition called Spina Bifida. It’s a condition where the spinal column hasn’t formed properly, in our daughters case this meant important nerves were left exposed outside of her back. We have now just returned from London, where my wife underwent a new type of surgery which allowed the surgeons to operate on our daughter whilst still in the womb. The procedure was essentially a C-Section, except after the neural-surgeons had finished repairing our daughter’s back, they returned her back to the safety of her mothers womb to keep growing.

There is a verse from one of the Bible’s Psalms that we have found encouraging at this time, it reads: “For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb”. Whilst the surgeons were literally knitting our daughter back together in her mother's womb, so also was her creator God present with her in those moments. Not only was he present with her in those moments, but also with my wife and I giving us his peace.

Jesus doesn’t promise us that our lives will be free from pain or hardship, but he does promise that he will be with us at all times, even when times are hard.

Revd. Nik Gower - Assistant Curate, Romsey Abbey