Equip Yourselves

I was listening to KLOVE recently. They were interviewing Jason Gray and he said something that kind of caught my attention. He was talking about the trials we all endure, not the same trials but we all have difficulties and problems in our lives. He commented that some of the worst things the devil throws at us can be turned around to best equip us for ministry to others.

Jason Gray went on to talk about some of the misery people endure. The one that caught my attention was divorce. I've not been divorced but I know and love many people who have gone through that and I know that it was one of the worst things they ever endured. I saw the heartbreak. I saw the pain. I saw the suffering. Through it all I have to admit I usually didn't think any good would come of it. Sometimes the sadness and grief over the loss of a marriage was so overwhelming and the pain could extend far beyond just the two people in the marriage. I couldn't see any good coming from it.

After thinking about it, I realized there was truth in what he said. Someone who has suffered through marital distress and divorce is certainly better equipped to help someone else through a similar loss. Better yet, they may even be able to help others prevent such an outcome. Who knows? I just know that we have all suffered in some way from evil in this world. If we can somehow turn that pain around to equip us for ministry, what a triumph over evil that would be!

What have you endured that you feel has better equipped you?

Ephesians 4:12

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹² to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ...

Blessings

"Blessings"
by Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not our home

What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy
What if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise

This song really touched me today.  Please click here to listen to Laura Story sing it.   I found Laura Story's website here.    

Death Can Bring Out the Best or the Worst in People

One thing I've learned as a hospice nurse is that the death and dying process can bring out the best or the worst in family members.  It is part of our job to educate and comfort family members as well as the patients.  We teach them what to expect, what symptoms may develop, how we will help them and things like that.  Sometimes we have to help family members understand each other.

There are times when family members cause a patient more pain and suffering than their disease process causes.  Two adult children arguing over a parent's possessions, while the parent is still present, is a heart-breaking event.  In some cases there may be one family member who has been the caretaker for the patient for months or even years,  only to be criticized by another who shows up near the end.  There are times when a hospice nurse has to guide people to being their best version of themselves.  Sometimes a hospice nurse has to remind people that they have the choice to forgive or hold on to their anger.  These are not things I expected in nursing, but I find satisfaction in the effort.

More often than not, though, I see examples of remarkable sacrifices and acts of love.  I encounter people who guide me to be a better version of myself.  I see spouses spending all day, every day, at the bedside of their loved one.  I peeked in to check on a patient this week to find her in her bed asleep, with her spouse in a chair pulled up close to her bed.  They were holding hands.  They were both asleep.  Is that not sweet?

I've seen adult children who do everything they can to keep their parent as healthy and happy as long as possible.  I've seen them sacrifice of their own time to care for them when they could not care for themselves.  I've often heard statements along the lines of "I will do whatever needs done."  Sometimes "whatever needs done" can be tasks that are not so very pleasant, tasks that are humbling for both patient and caretaker.  I hear family members telling me how remarkable their loved one was and why they would do anything for them.  I love that.

These are the things I'm thinking about today.  Thanks for "listening".

Romans 12

Elizabeth left a great scripture for me yesterday.  Thank you, Elizabeth.  I am certain there are many who are having a rough week so I am sharing it with you as well. 

Romans 12:12

Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.

In fact, I'd recommend reading the whole chapter.