If You Want Joy in the Darkest Valley…

As Christian women, we have been given a beautiful charge to delight in God and His Word. But if we’re honest, this is easier said than done. Elle Cardel, founder of the Daughter of Delight ministry, has experienced her share of struggles, including navigating care related to her daughter’s heart defect, but she will be the first to tell you that a life of delight is possible and there is joy to be found in delighting in God’s ways over our own—even when things don’t make sense. As Elle shares her story of finding joy in the darkest moments, may we be encouraged to embrace and grow in our own delight in the Lord in every season. It’s joy to welcome Elle to the farm’s table today…

Guest post by Elle Cardel

My birth experience was beyond chaotic.

Nothing about it was what I had hoped for.

I wanted a natural birth.

Because of my daughter’s needs, however, I endured a forty-seven-hour induction instead.

And just when I thought things were hard enough as I watched my daughter, Selah, fight for her life through one open-heart surgery after the next, she went into cardiac arrest in my arms the day before we were supposed to officially take her home.

It was the day after Thanksgiving in 2021, Black Friday.

And it was a very black Friday indeed.

It was around five in the morning, and Selah’s nurse had walked in to check her vitals. Doing so woke Selah and she began to cry. Having just finished a pumping session, I got up to comfort her while the nurse cared for her. As I cupped her sweet little face with my hand, she closed her eyes and her head suddenly fell into my palm as the alarm for her oxygen started blaring.

She was crashing, and fast.

Before I knew it, the nurse pushed the emergency alarm in our room while turning up Selah’s oxygen. Within the blink of an eye, I was standing in the back of the room crying and yelling for my husband, Michael, to wake up while watching several people try to save my daughter’s life. One of the doctors in the room stood by and explained what was happening, but my brain could not comprehend what she was saying because I believed I was watching my daughter die.

Selah was hooked up to an emergency oxygen tank, and they rolled her out of there and rushed her to the ICU as fast as they possibly could.

I didn’t even get to take another look at her.

“As our family journeyed through this valley, I knew I could either curse God in it or I could praise Him throughout it.“

I was frozen, trembling, and devastated. Michael and I were left behind to pray, weep, wait, and wonder if our darling Selah would still be alive when we saw her next.

Hours passed before we could see our girl again. When we finally stepped through the doors of her room, we could hardly recognize her. The moment I saw her swollen body hooked up to countless wires and screens, I just lost it.

There were so many people in the room, but I didn’t care. Sobbing, I made my way to her side, grabbed her sweet little hand, rubbed her head, and whispered songs of worship and joy over her.

I don’t know how much time passed before she had to be taken down to surgery to correct the problem that had caused her to crash and end up in the ICU. I also didn’t know how much more my own heart could have taken, let alone hers.

Hours passed with the occasional phone call that provided us with an update—each with promising news, thanks be to God.

Finally, the surgery was over, it was successful, and we could see our beautiful Selah again.

The next morning, we woke up to amazing news that only God could ordain. Selah’s heart function and vitals both looked great, and her body had proven overnight that she was ready to be taken off ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) support. This child, after almost losing her life and going through an emergency surgery one day prior, only needed ECMO support for sixteen hours. Something like this is unheard of.

You cannot tell me this is not the working of our great God.

Miracles upon miracles.

The days to follow were filled with alleviating Selah’s pain while she healed and we, slowly but surely, made our way out of the pediatric cardiology ICU and back to the general cardiac wing so we could eventually be discharged and go home.

As our family journeyed through this valley, I knew I could either curse God in it or I could praise Him throughout it.

One of the things I prayed over and over again while preparing for birth and the unknowns that lay beyond it was “Thy will be done.”

My heart kept coming back to this declaration because I deeply desired to believe it—to cling to it—with every ounce of my being.

“We knew the hands that held our daughter were the same hands that held us. And we knew that was the place to be, no matter what.“

I longed for my strength, courage, and joy to be found in the hope-filled words of Psalm 23:4: “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me” (nlt).

It was this very prayer that my husband and I prayed in the hours when we weren’t sure if Selah would pull through. We knew the hands that held our daughter were the same hands that held us. And we knew that was the place to be, no matter what.

My entry into motherhood was, undoubtedly, my darkest valley. But as I continued to keep my eyes on the Lord, I started to see how His faithfulness was with me—and Selah—and how it was carrying us through, every step of the way.

The next time you find yourself in a valley, no matter how dark it may be, know this: if you don’t look to the Lord, you will lose your way.

Even when life takes an unexpected turn, the Father’s joy can reside in your heart. He is with you, He is for you, and His joy is yours for the taking. We could live like it—with the joy of our risen Savior set before us. 

We could choose joy—for today, tomorrow, and all eternity.

Elle Cardel is a multi-passionate stay-at-home mom of two who finds great joy in being a mom; running her online women’s ministry, Daughter of Delight; writing on the truths of God’s Word; and encouraging women to keep their hearts and minds set on Christ. She is married to her college sweetheart, Michael, and they live in Tennessee with their two children, Selah and Aidan. For more information on Daughter of Delight, visit daughterofdelight.com. 

Do you genuinely want to find delight in the Lord and the life He has given you but some days have no idea where to start? In She Delights, through Elle’s personal story and unique teaching style, she will encourage you to:

– Learn what God’s delight in you actually looks like

– Discover what it realistically looks like to have a heart of delight for God

– Explore how God’s delight in you inspires and transforms your delight in Him

– Reflect on how a life focused on delighting in God looks different than a life centered on the world– and why that’s a good thing! 

Let Elle come alongside you as you are challenged, encouraged, and equipped to pursue God in every season. As you embrace the call to delight in the Lord, may you find great joy in the truth that God delights in you, always.

{Our humble thanks to Tyndale Momentum for their partnership in today’s devotional.}