My husband and I have been blessed from the beginning of our marriage with the gift of Natural Family Planning (NFP) . We were two young, eager Catholics embracing the teachings of the Church and excited about living out our vocation in married life and raising a (hopefully big) Catholic family.

We got engaged while still in college and took the Couple to Couple League’s course on NFP at St. Gertrude’s Parish in Madeira over the summer. This was a unique and growing time in our relationship. My husband was responsible for charting my cycle (and won the name “chart-master” for his great knowledge), and I was responsible for calling him each morning to let him know my latest information. The communication between us began to grow not only in NFP, but overall in our relationship. As a woman, I felt appreciated for my God-given gift of fertility and that my soon to be husband was grateful as well. My husband felt included and informed of every aspect of my life with all doors open, including life. This was the best way to begin and live our marriage. I can see now how 99% of couples using NFP remain married in our culture where divorce has become so common.

Once we were married, my husband still had a year and a half remaining in school. I was working full time, and we knew through prayer that is was not God’s time for us to have a child. This was also a fruitful time in our life. The times of abstinence were fun and reminded us of dating again! We were affectionate and loving and experiencing a new “honeymoon” each month.

After 11 months of marriage we felt God’s call to have a child. He blessed us immediately, and we were thrilled. Nine months later our son Maximilian Augustine was born. My husband graduated, and he got a job offer in Lexington, KY as a youth minister.

Following our son’s birth I became a stay at home mom and followed the Couple to Couple League’s information on Ecological Breastfeeding for six months. This was also a time to trust that God knew what was best for our family. When would my fertility return? When would we be ready for baby #2? Around Christmas time this year our son was turning one and we started talking about having another child. We wanted them to be around two years apart. Within a few weeks, we found out I was pregnant again!

At every moment of our marriage God has had his hand upon us. It took a leap of faith to trust that there is a natural way to avoid/obtain pregnancy. The whole family benefits from using Natural Family Planning physically, emotionally and spiritually. God’s plan is greater and better for us than what the world could ever offer us. To bring a new life into the world and to co-create this new life with God is such a responsibility. We are grateful to this beautiful teaching of the Church to embrace life. With the Church’s guidance and wisdom in our marriage and family we hope to live out each day according to His plan.

Lisa

Due to world wide access of these sharings, last names have been omitted from our parishioner testimonies. Please do not reprint these sharings without permission. Please request permission for additional usage by contacting the Natural Family Planning Ministry Team. Thank you.