My daughter went missing. Temporarily.

 

One of the scariest moments of my life happened just yesterday.

To begin with, I have really started to try and retrain my brain and be a better Christian. I have started reading my Bible, praying more than ever before, and pushing myself out of my comfort zone. I feel Satan just trying to rip me away each and every day with negativity and bad situations.

So, to share some backstory on the whole occurrence, Our dishwasher has decided not to do the one job it has. Wash dishes. So my husband and I are back and forth on which dishwasher to get, and my husband is researching how to install it, right?

Well, it started before we decided to go to the actual Home Depot store to physically look at the ones we were debating purchasing. There were some bad stores in our area, so after we get done eating, my husband says to me, Let’s go home, let our little one take a nap, and wait out the store. Then we’ll go check out Home Depot.

So the storms come and go, and we look outside, and there’s a tree just behind our fence line. The top of the tree just gave way and broke off. It is funny to me because I find symbolism in everything, and it seems that Satan is just trying to see how things will be handled in this situation. 

  

 

My husband and I are freaking out, and upon inspection during this time, there’s not much damage to our fencing. So for the time being, we are leaving it until this weekend to trim up.

We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair. We are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed (2 Corinthians 4:8–9).

 

Do not love the world or the things in it. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one's possessions—is not from the father but is from the world (1 John 2:15–16 CSB).

 

Our daughter finally wakes up, and we’re off to Home Depot to check out the dishwashers. As we’re browsing, my daughter is being a normal two-year-old, trying to play and run off. We’re keeping an eye on her. Due to being 28 weeks pregnant, I have a hard time carrying her for long periods of time. So, we’re back and forth, taking turns with her. Finally, an associate comes and asks if we need help. My husband is explaining what we’re looking for and why. As I check past them talking back and forth, I say, "Where is Alice?"

 

I immediately panic, and the associate helping us gets on the radio to notify management. I start running around like a crazy lady, saying, "Alice, my daughter is missing. She is two years old. She's in a patchwork top with pink shorts!" I yell this over and over again to random people. I come to a couple, and they say okay and scatter, helping search for her. I run to the front, scanning what I could see in the parking lot, and I don't see anything, and I'm still saying over and over again, "Alice, my daughter is missing. She is two years old. She's in a patchwork top with pink shorts!" The front associate lady says, "Do you want me to announce it over the intercom?" I reply, "YES!" At this point, I am ready to break down in tears right there in the middle of Home Depot. This felt like an eternity of living in misery but was probably only two or three minutes.

 

Right as I was about to lose my mind and scream at the top of my lungs that whoever took my baby needs to let her go, I caught a glimpse of the first associate that was assisting us in pulling Alice out of a display cabinet where we were initially standing. I fall to my knees and scoop her up. The feeling of relief washes over me, and holding back tears of joy, I say to the associate, "Thank you, thank you!" I say to my baby, "No more playing hide-and-seek in stores, baby." I gathered myself as best I could and walked over to the couple that had helped us search for Alice with no questions asked. All I could say was, "I can't thank you all enough." The lady says to me, "Oh, not a problem at all. I am just so happy we found her." She looked at Alice and said to her, "You scared mom and dad." Her husband walks up and says, "Thank God!"

After all of this, we thanked the Home Depot associate for his time, tell him we will come back later, and leave the store. I tell Alice in the car that this is why we do not play hide-and-seek in stores. I can't help but think that with all of this happening so quickly, my faith is being tested in some way.

Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary, the devil, is prowling like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour. Resist him, firm in the faith, knowing that the same kind of sufferings are being experienced by your fellow believers throughout the world (1 Peter 5:8–9 CSB).

 

Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil (Ephesians 6:11 CSB).