Unexpected Blessings: The Journey of Everyday Miracles of God’s Grace and Love in the Life of a Child with Unexpected Health Issues

By Julie B. Lofland

Unexpected Blessings is about God’s love and grace through the hills and valleys of our daily walk in life. It is a testimony of how a parent learns of a child’s medical diagnosis and how to overcome the everyday challenges. The journey is not always easy but with God all things are made possible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Mar 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664225381

Julie B. Lofland

Julie B. Lofland is married to her best friend and husband, Larry. The mother of two sons, Benjamin and Isaac, who are both answered prayers and blessings from God. They reside in a small town in southeast Tennessee. She attended Tennessee Wesleyan College in Athens, Tennessee and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She received her graduate degree from Tennessee Technological University with a Masters in Arts in Instructional Leadership. She works at local school district serving educators, students, families and community members as the Family Engagement and Coordinated School Health Director.

Book preview

Copyright © 2021 Julie B. Lofland.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by

any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system

without the written permission of the author except in the case of

brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author

and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of

the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of

people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

844-714-3454

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or

links contained in this book may have changed since publication and

may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those

of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher,

and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are

models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture taken from the American Standard Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked ESV taken from The Holy Bible,

English Standard Version® (ESV®), Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a

publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2537-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2539-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2538-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021903917

WestBow Press rev. date: 03/04/2021

Contents

25492.png

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

About the author

Chapter 1

25492.png

The journey of the Lofland family began on May 24, 2003, when I married Larry, my best friend and the love of my life. I met him on a blind date while I was attending Tennessee Wesleyan University. Larry was in the United States Marine Corps and was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. His home was in Goodland, Kansas. On long weekend breaks, he would come in with his buddy in the marines who lived in Madisonville, Tennessee. We dated for more than five years.

Larry and I were married in my home church in the Claxton community where I had grown up. Now looking back, we embrace the memories of sweet friends and family who gathered with us on our special day. It was the beginning of a journey that would lead us to the greatest moments of joy and tears. Throughout the ups and downs, we have grown to always trust God.

During the first years of our marriage, Larry and I learned a lot about each other, even though we had dated for five years. Once you are married, you learn more about your partner and how each other handles day-to-day life. First Corinthians 13:7 reminds us of the meaning of love: Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (ESV)

The first big hurdle we faced happened less than half a year into our marriage. I was working at Arch Chemicals in human resources when I was given notice that my job was being eliminated as part of a reduction in the workforce. As you can imagine, this was devastating. It was not something we had seen coming. I can remember coming home that day from work and telling Larry. The first thing he said was It’s going to be OK. God is going to provide. We just have to trust him.

I was like, Yeah, OK. I know this, but hello. This is not cool. I need to know a plan, like right now!

Larry and I are very different when it comes to handling things. Over time, I have learned that this is a good thing. When things happen, my husband is always the encourager and the calming one. I, on the other hand, want to know how to fix it—and fix it fast.

I was told that I could work for an additional six weeks. I started submitting job applications immediately and was able to find a job within two weeks. The new employment opportunity landed me at the administration office of Athens City Schools as the secretary for curriculum and instruction. I was amazed,