It isn't easy for any parent to see their children suffering, but Missy Robertson from "Duck Dynasty" has learned how to become a better person because of her daughter Mia's cleft lip and palate condition.
"I feel much more mature in my faith. We use this verse a lot—Romans 5: 3-4. Paul says in Romans 5 that we should find joy in our suffering. That's like an oxymoron — how can you be happy in your suffering? That doesn't make any sense. But the joy comes through those steps that he talks about. He says we should find joy in our suffering because suffering produces perseverance, perseverance produces character, and character produces hope," she explained during an interview with The Christian Post.
If not for Mia's condition, Missy believes that she would not be the person she is today. And she believes her husband Jason and other children are the same.
"So, I know that my character has grown, I know that Jason's character has grown. My boys' characters have grown, and I see things in them that would, most likely, not have been in their personality — in their character — had they not had a sister who had some major medical problems in her life," she said. "I can say that I think we're a better family because of it."
Meanwhile, 12-year-old Mia—who had to go from one surgery to another since she was a baby—has become a lively young girl who inspires her family with her zest for life and varied interests, particularly in cheerleading.
"She is flipping everywhere and pushing herself every single day. People are amazed at the accomplishments that she's made," her mother gushed.
Reflecting on the past, Missy said she did not have an easy childbirth with Mia, and she thinks it's one step that prepared them for Mia's condition.
"If that child that I was pregnant with three months before Mia would have developed normally, we would have a completely different story in our family. Not that it would be bad — I don't know," she mulled. "Only God knows what that would have been. But I just thank Him for allowing those steps to happen so we could have Mia. I don't believe in coincidences."
