Mey Deras | ROOTED Biblical Counseling Services

By Mey Deras | Estimated Reading Time: 6 mins. | Part 2

A Tiny Baby and a Big Problem

After being told I might never have kids (just like my mom), I found myself unexpectedly pregnant. It felt like a miracle. But a few months in, doctors noticed problems with the baby’s heart.

I ended up bedridden. When our daughter was born, she was born with a heart condition that included multiple malformations. We were young and honestly didn’t know what any of it meant. But we did know we couldn’t afford to keep her in the hospital in Mexico.

The doctor told us, “If she can suck and go to the bathroom, I’ll let her go home.”

So we prayed. A lot. Like… a 24-hour prayer chain with people from every continent kind of praying (at the time we were serving as interpreters for missionary groups that would come to Mexico, so we knew people from around the world.) And God answered: six days later (instead of 30), she came home.

Lesson? God hears weird, desperate prayers. Even the “please help my baby poop” ones.

A Move We Didn’t Plan

Doctors said she’d need more heart surgeries. And Mexico didn’t have the medical tech for it. So we moved to the U.S. for treatment.

We had a life in Mexico, jobs, ministry, even a small business. But we gave it up because our daughter needed us to. Her surgeries were successful (thank you, Jesus!), but then the immigration stress began.

After years of temporary visas, we got a letter: leave the country in 20 days.

We packed up everything. I was crying while making an inventory of our furniture. We didn’t even have a life in Mexico anymore, but we were going back. Just like that.

In the middle of all that, God reminded me of Daniel in the lions’ den (Daniel 6). It wasn’t fair that Daniel got thrown in there, but God protected him anyway. That was my focus: stay faithful, stay innocent before the Lord and the government (v.22), and trust God, even if I didn’t like the plan.

Surprise in the Mail

Our attorney said, “I’ll submit one more application, but don’t get your hopes up. It’ll take 6 to 12 months.”

Three weeks later, he called: “You’re approved.”

Huh? Wait… what?

We didn’t even know how to feel. We were still mentally living in Mexico, and now God opened a door back to the U.S. But only for one year.

We prayed, talked to our pastor, and decided to go back. We packed up (again) and crossed the border (again). We came back to the U.S., still unsure of what was ahead.

Then another surprise. We received a multi-year work permit in the mail. Even our lawyer was like, “I don’t understand how this is happening… but I’ll take it.”

I do. That’s God.

But You See?

In the Bible, we’re not promised a life without trouble. What is promised is that Jesus will be with us in all of it.

And sure, we know that in theory. But when the storm hits, when the visa is denied, the baby’s in the NICU, the grief won’t go away, that’s when we get the chance to actually live it out.

I can’t say I’ve always responded in a godly way. (Trust me, I haven’t.)

But I can say this: over the years, suffering has changed me. It’s taught me to trust God more. It’s pushed me to find safety in Him, not in my circumstances. It’s helped me let go of control (even though that part is still hard), because I know He is in control and not confused. His plans are better than mine.

And when hard seasons come, the best thing I’ve learned to do is this:
Cry. Pray. Trust. Praise.

That’s what softens my heart to receive what God wants to do. That’s where healing begins.

“It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your ways.”
—Psalm 119:71

No one wants to suffer. But in those deep valleys, we get to know Jesus in a way we never could without the pain.
We taste His goodness. We learn His ways. And somehow, we come out different, closer, stronger, steadier.

Maybe This Story Is for You, Too

If you’ve faced loss, trauma, life-changing stress, or just a season of “I’m falling apart,” I get it.

But more importantly, God gets it. And He’s not far away.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” (Psalm 34:18)

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