Divorce affects 40 to 50 percent of families in the United States today. My family was one of these.
When I was around four years old (I honestly can't remember my age), my parents went through a divorce. They split up and I don't remember much about it; I remember moving and going back and forth between my parent's houses. I remember Santa coming to two separate houses each year. As I got older, both of my parents moved on and fell in love with different people. Before I knew it, I had a new stepmom and stepdad. Both of my parents were happy and I had two new people in my life that loved me just as much as my mom and my dad.
Because my mom and dad split up and remarried when I was still a pretty young kid, I rarely dwell on their separation. That was, until I started attending a small group bible study my sophomore year of college. The first night of our group, we started talking about family and whether our parents were still together or not. I was the only one in the group who's parents were divorced. In that moment, for the first time ever, I felt real sadness about the situation and was slightly embarrassed. Shortly after, my small group leader asked how their separation affected me. I told that both my parents are remarried and they are both happy, and how I am happy for them. It was in that moment that I realized how blessed I am and how God worked things together for good when my parents split up. I now have two sets of parents that love me dearly and give constant support and get along with each other! You heard that right: my mom, stepmom, dad, and stepdad all get along great. So much so that my sixteenth birthday party AND my graduation party were held at my dad's house and both sides of my family attended and truly had a blast. That's not common. Seriously, what a blessing.
I have many more siblings, nieces, and nephews now in my crazy family, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Someday when I get married, I'll have two men to walk me down the isle, and two mommas in the front row crying. To me, this is just another example of the goodness of God in my life. What the enemy meant to harm me with, God weaved into a beautiful story. I am blessed with close relationships with each of my parents. They all played a specific role in raising me, and I would not be where I am today if it weren't for each one of them. Every family has a story, and this is mine.
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8: 28
