Keystone Stories – Caleb & Jessica Gerst
Trusting God Through Fertility Challenges
We are the Gerst family: Caleb, Jessica, Oakleigh, Logan, and Evynn.
As we entered Prepare in January 2025, Jess and I had been actively praying for a third child. That prayer came after a long journey of conception burnout.
We began trying for our first child while living in Germany. After more than a year without success, we decided to wait until returning to the United States before pursuing fertility testing. We moved to Missouri in January 2019, and just one month later, after about 18 months of trying, we found out we were pregnant with Oakleigh. While the wait had been longer than typical, we were pregnant and assumed it had simply been a fluke or perhaps the stress of living overseas.
When we began trying for our second child, we were blessed almost immediately. We had moved back to Iowa recently and Jess became pregnant with Logan just three months into trying. That experience reinforced our belief that the delay with Oakleigh had been circumstantial, and we didn’t feel any reason to seek fertility answers.
In early 2023, we decided to try for a third baby. Having experienced both a long wait and a quick pregnancy, we didn’t know what to expect. As months turned into over a year, we felt it was time to seek answers. By the summer of 2024, we began fertility testing.
Jess went through a full round of testing first, and everything came back normal. We were then referred to a fertility clinic, where my levels were tested. In October 2024, we received less than ideal news: my levels were significantly below what is considered optimal for conception. I began taking supplements and doing follow-up blood tests, but there were no clear causes and no easy fix.
Our fertility doctor initially introduced the idea of IUI. The plan was to try to improve my levels and then begin a monthly IUI process that he felt confident would work. Because we already had two children, we carried a certain level of confidence that this would resolve the issue. Still, beneath that confidence, doubt began to grow. We knew God could provide another child as He already had twice but started to question whether He would.
In December 2024, we returned to review my second round of test results and discuss next steps. We fully expected to talk through an IUI plan. Instead, the doctor told us my levels were even lower than before. From a practical standpoint, he explained that IUI was no longer a viable option. The loss during the preparation process would leave us with no better chances than trying naturally. Almost immediately, he shifted the conversation to IVF, explaining the process, associated costs, and the timeline.
We were stunned. How were we sitting in a fertility clinic talking about IVF when we already had two children?
The doctor went on to explain that a surgery I had in high school likely caused scar tissue resulting in significant blockage. There was no way to know whether my levels had always been this way and God had simply provided in that reality, or they had declined to a point where pregnancy was now unlikely.
After that appointment, Jess and I spent a lot of time in prayer. We would lay in bed and beg God to provide. We wrestled with whether we should simply be thankful He had provided two healthy children already and if we were being ungrateful for what He had already given us. We were emotionally and mentally exhausted from nearly two years of trying, months of appointments, and constant uncertainty. Neither of us felt that pursuing IVF was the right thing for us. We shared our situation with our connection group and asked for prayer. Ultimately, we decided to do nothing medically and to trust God fully.
As the holidays approached and Prepare began, we intentionally pulled back. We strongly felt the right next step was surrendering to God’s will, trusting Him and His plans, and prayer. We stopped pursuing medical options, no longer trying to force outcomes already uncertain. We anticipated an email with further information and phone call from the clinic asking when we would like to move forward. We planned to tell them we would not be pursuing treatment at that time. The email never came. The phone call never came. During Prepare, we prayed specifically for God to provide a baby. Not because we doubted His ability, but because we chose to believe He would.
Jess became pregnant in just her second cycle coming out of Prepare. We found out on February 22, 2025. Evynn was born healthy on October 24, 2025.
February 22nd holds special meaning for us. We found out we were pregnant with Oakleigh on February 22, 2019. Logan was born on February 22, 2022. And on February 22, 2025, we learned we were expecting Evynn.
During Prepare, we prayed specifically for God to provide a baby. Not because we doubted His ability, but because we chose to believe He would.
We were overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. When we finally released control and placed our full trust in God, setting aside fear, doubt, and even the unfavorable prognosis from the fertility clinic, He answered our prayer and swiftly.While we were thrilled about pregnancy, we were almost more excited to tell the people who had been praying with us, especially our connection group. This had been our Prepare prayer, and God answered it in a way that left no doubt: He heard us, and He was faithful.
