It’s been a month since I last posted a blog. Much has happened in my life. Most recently, I had to submit myself again to surgery to fix a health issue. Not one surgery, but two procedures within a week. That took me to a special place.
In addition to the surgeries, I decided to move back to Sacramento to be closer to family and friends. The decision to move not only involved packing up my condo, but also involved putting the condo on the market, staging it for sale, deep cleaning, and painting. One can never say my life is boring. There is always something exciting happening to keep me from being bored.
But along this leg of the journey, something happened. While alone in my hospital room for my second surgery, changing into the dressing gowns, I broke down. As the tears rose and began to overflow, I sunk into fear and panic. Why is this happening to me? How am I going to do this? I am depleted – I have no strength for my journey!
“In my distress, I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.” Psalm 18:6
“He (God) gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak…. But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength.“ Isaiah 40:28-31
What could I do but go to the source of my strength: God. Psalms 18:6 says that when you are distressed, to call on the name of the Lord, to seek him and he will hear your pleas. Isaiah 40:28-31 says that he will give strength to the weary and power to the weak. All we simply need to do is call upon his name and wait for his response; he will give us the strength we need for the journey.
But it is not enough to call upon the Lord. We need to act upon it. We need to have unwavering faith that what he says will come to pass. We need to proceed with confidence in God and His promises; We need to walk in the truth of His word and how it aligns with God’s will for our life; we need to push past the fear and panic, follow God and trust He will take care of us.
Finally, we need to give thanks to God for all he has done for us. Giving thanks acknowledges his sovereignty in all matters great and small, good and bad. Giving thanks ushers us into his grace and mercy. Being in God’s grace and mercy brings about a state of peace and joy. Having God’s peace in our lives is assurance that all will work to His will and our good. And it is here that I found my strength in God for my journey.
God provided me the strength and courage to face the procedures. No only that, the surgeries were a success and I am on the mend. My condo sold after being on the market for one week for more than I expected. What a mighty God we serve! Try Him for yourself – he’ll bless you real good!
Teri McClanahan 