“All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose”
Romans 8:28
Last week, I visited a dear friend’s loved one in a large hospital. Arriving on the third floor, I realized it was the place where my late husband had been admitted several weeks before he died. Walking into the waiting room, I spotted the corner where our children and family gathered to weep and pray while Joe lay in the trauma ICU.
As the nurse buzzed me into the locked unit, I walked past the room where Joe had been. I remember the physician coming in to do his rounds. He did a double take when he saw us sitting up side by side in the single hospital bed; eating ice cream. He looked at the monitors and asked if we had any questions. Joe said, “Doc, what’s it going to look like when I die? I’m a little scared because I don’t know what to expect.” The physician answered gently, “You will probably fall into a deep coma and eventually stop breathing. It should be a peaceful death.” I remember how surreal that moment was. My best friend was dying and I could do nothing to stop it.
How does one recover from an experience like this? For me, it was my faith in the Living God and His Word. All the years I’d spent studying and applying His Word came to fruition during that terrible time of suffering. God’s strength was enough to "walk through the valley of the shadow of death" (Psalm 23:4). God is sovereign and faithful. He sees the big picture and doesn’t make mistakes. We walked through that time with God in the lead as we submitted to His will. We experienced supernatural peace and joy as we trusted God to show us the next step. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding, In all your ways acknowledge HIm,and He shall direct your paths”. Proverbs 3:5-6
Father God, I still fight the tendency to control my world. I trust You to continue to lead the way. You love me and have my best interest at heart, so in faith, I believe and accept that promise. Amen.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10