Rory and Joey Feek's journey to bringing a baby into the world wasn't as clear-cut as one might think. Learn their story here.
During a special event benefiting Indy Feek‘s school called “A Baby Changes Everything,” Rory Feek shared the beautiful story about Joey Feek‘s path to motherhood before introducing his dear friend Bradley Walker as he came onstage.
Fortunately for all of us, Rory shared the touching story again via his blog, This Life I Live. The songwriter revealed that Joey, despite her strong faith, was extremely apprehensive about having a child— the altering of goals, the physical pain of childbirth, and the lifetime commitment of having a child.
That all changed in the summer of 2013, when the songbird approached her husband and declared that she was ready to put the ‘baby or no baby’ question into God’s hands.
“I want what God wants”… I can’t keep even the smallest part of my hands and my heart closed to Him any longer… not after all He’s done for us… for me. He’s allowed all my hopes and wishes to come true, beyond my wildest dreams. And He’s given me the gift of our wonderful marriage and love… so I wanna to trust Him. I need to trust Him,” Joey told a surprised Rory.
In February 2014, little Indiana Feek made her debut into the world. “And from the very first moment my wife held Indy in her arms, she was never the same. It was Joey’s first real glimpse of what unconditional love felt like. She knew in that instant, what life was truly all about. She didn’t care that Indiana had almond eyes and a single-line across the palms of her hands. And that she was going to grow up with some difficulties that most children don’t have. All she knew was that she had been given a gift. The greatest of all gifts. And from that moment on, the woman who was scared to death of being a mother, wanted to be nothing else but a mother,” Rory shared.
Now without Joey by his side, Rory has found Indy to be his light in the murky darkness of grief. He admits that he struggled with wanting to go on without his lovely bride, especially on that difficult drive from Indiana back home to Tennessee shortly after Joey passed away in March.
“I just kept looking in the rear-view mirror, saying, ‘thank you God… thank you.’ Strapped in a car seat, smiling back at me as she played with her doll, I saw incredible hope and a future and a lifetime of love that I wouldn’t have been able to see on my own. Yes, a baby changes everything…,” Rory expressed.
The Feek family— Rory, Heidi, Hopie, and Indy— will be celebrating Christmas early in Indiana this year in the warm company of Joey’s family. Though this holiday season will be especially bittersweet, Rory knows that it will also be beautiful, “Because Joey will be there… in our hearts… and in our minds. And especially in the unbridled joy and smile of our little one.”