For Marina Hofman, being a mother was something she had dreamed of. However, in 2014, Marina and her husband were in a head-on collision that left both of them with life-altering injuries.
"Although we survived, I had a lot of issues after my surgeries were complete," said Hoffman. "I was depressed all the time and anxious constantly. I had PTSD and a brain injury, in addition to several body injuries."
Two years passed, and Marina worked hard to get back in shape in hopes of having a child one day. She was devasted when she found out that her chance of having a child was just 0.001 percent.
"I prayed so hard, almost obsessively," Hofman explained.
She was eventually able to put it in God's hand and move forward. Just a few months later, Marina was blessed with a daughter.
Hofman, who is a professor at Palm Beach Atlantic University, and author of the award-winning book, Women in the Bible Small Group Bible Study, says her story is similar to that of Hannah.
"Hannah demonstrates that we can trust God with our painful situations and challenges—and we can move forward in faith and let God carry our burdens. We can trust God despite every situation that seems impossible, and like Hannah, we can be faithful in the midst of the challenges we face—committing everything to God in prayer."
Marina says as we head into Mother's Day, it is important to think about the moms and women of the Bible.
"I think all of us, parents, or not, we're going through struggles in our life, and we can look to the Bible and find that person who has gone through a similar situation," said Marina. "Even though it was thousands of years before, we can dive into their life and study how they responded, and see what lesson there is for us and how we can follow God in faithfulness."
Today on Connections, Marina shares her testimony of how she became a mother. She'll also chat about who her favourite mother is in the Bible and why it's so important to talk about the mothers and women in the Bible.