Building your Singles Ministry/Personal Growth by Other Authors

Help My Unbelief by Michelle Eigemann

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"Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief". 

​This prayer may be one of the most humble and honest prayers in scripture. A father is seeking deliverance for his son, and he's tried everything...twice. Doctors couldn't heal him; rest didn't help, medicine didn't even touch this boy's symptoms, even the disciples couldn't cast the demon out of this boy. This father is exhausted, confused, and out of options. Then he meets Jesus. Through tears, he begs for healing, restoration, and relief for his son yet admits that his heart holds some doubt...
 
I know you can do it, but can you do it for me? 
 
For years I've been where this father is, wrestling with the faith that tells me we serve a mighty and powerful God and doubting whether God will move my mountain, part my sea, or defeat my Goliath. I cry out, admitting I've been operating in my strength and begging for a breakthrough. 
 
When we read past verse 24, Jesus tells us why the disciples were unsuccessful in casting out the demon. "and he said to them, 'This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting." 
 
For months I've been working on launching my adult son into an Alternative Family Living (AFL) home, and the process has been defeating. Doctors never returned my calls, paperwork got lost, necessary testing was postponed, and we even had one family back out at the last minute. I've prayed, begged, pleaded, and cried out to the Lord with little movement. Then I fasted. The power of fasting has no limits. It can break chains, heal wounds, and open doors that were previously closed. 
 
February 9th, after 40 days of prayer and fasting, we get our breakthrough. A door previously closed will be opened. A difficult and exhausting journey will shift into bright new possibilities. I doubt; my heart is mixed with equal parts of belief and unbelief as I write this. Yet I stand before my savior raw and real. I pray these simple three words, "help my unbelief," and then walk towards my breakthrough. 
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Michelle wears an array of hats on any given day, but her favorite is Daughter of the King. She lives in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina, where she works as a Child and Family Therapist. She has been a single mother for 18 years and loves to watch God take your most difficult struggles and transform them into passionate purpose. Today Michelle has joyfully embraced her passion for speaking truth into others' lives and assisting them in finding and living out their true identity in Christ. She believes that we need to uncover the lies and labels, identity the root, and replace it with God's truth.
Contact Michelle: meigemann0425@gmail.com

Re-Entry by Single Parent Director, Holly Crain

The kids come bounding in the front door from a weekend away and almost immediately land themselves in trouble of some sort or, depending on your child, could just need downtime (away from us). Expectations are shattered, and feelings are hurt! Why does re-entry have to be so hard? Just ask retired NASA astronaut Ron Garan what he thinks about re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. As he puts it, it "is like going over Niagara Falls in a barrel, on fire, then crashing hard." He says it's the most violent thing he has ever experienced, and, as an F-16 fighter pilot, he has had to eject from his aircraft more than once.

The Apollo astronauts had very little to no control during re-entry. They had to be aimed just right, and then the trajectory was set. Loss of communication with mission control happens during blackout for about 4 minutes, and they became a fireball! Afterward, parachutes came out, and a rescue and recovery team met them upon landing.

Is the "fireball' what we see bolting through the front door heading straight for trouble? Like Mission Control, we hold our breath and hope that they re-enter safely, then we snap on our "Rescue & Recovery Team" vest to troubleshoot the situation:
  • Access the situation. Rescue and Recovery didn't know what they would find, and we don't always either. Will they need rest, are they hungry, did something upset them, or are they sad that the weekend is over? The one thing they need at this moment is felt safety. Kids are not good at articulating their feelings in words, so take your cues and expect them to need something, whether spiritually, emotionally, or physically. 

  • Recalibration (re-acclimate to gravity or change in environment) is when the kids need to re-acclimate to the house rules and family dynamics. Like most astronauts, they could be sad the mission is over BUT relieved to be back on planet Earth (or home base). Lots of emotions are unfolding in a multitude of different ways. Toss the expectations out when they first arrive home and give them their space to get re-adjusted. 

  • Debriefing is what happens after the fireball re-entry, blackout, rescue, and recovery. It's was not done immediately but soon enough that everything is still fresh on their minds. Expect to lead out in this. The kids will want to know what happened while they were gone. Maybe nothing happened...tell them, "You didn't miss much..." but let them know some things that you did while they were gone and how much they were missed.

Pack a bundle of scriptures that they can pull out of their duffle bag when they need them. Memorizing Proverbs 3:5 and Isaiah 41:10 are great starting points for all of us. And grab a copy of The Power of a Praying Parent by Stormie O'Martian for yourself to pray over them during their mission!  Will you get it right every time? No! But we are to persevere so that one day you can hear, "Mission Accomplished!". 

If we haven't met, I want you to know that I walked into this church alone with a five-year-old daughter and a two-month-old son. This church embraced me but bigger than that, the gospel and what God did in my life changed this ordinary girl forever! And I know He will do the same for you! He will! 
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Holly Crain
Single Parent Family Ministry Associate
Single Parent Family Ministry
Houston’s First Baptist Church — The Loop
Holly.Crain@HoustonsFirst.org
O: 713.957.7674
C: 832-247-4787
HoustonsFirst.org ​
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Kathy and I have had the pleasure of working with Kris of The Single Network Ministries at several events over the past three years. We always look forward to her insight and creative ways to connect with her audience sharing the Word of God with encouragement, humor and just being real. You will want to catch her for sure the next time she is in your area. Her sense of humor is a hoot and infectious.
—Kathy and Klay Watson,  Dating His Way Ministries

Leadership, General

Single Parenting

Personal Growth