There is a special strength that adrenaline brings. Or maybe it's love that drives us to do things we otherwise would never be able to do? Either way, things we never think we could do can sometimes occur when people we love are involved . . or in danger. And I don't think this was adrenaline.
It was right around lunchtime when I got the phone call from my sister in Michigan. Our 87-year-old dad was in the hospital with pneumonia. He wasn't responding to any of the treatments they had tried and she thought it might be a good time to make the trip.
That news ate at me for the rest of the afternoon. I began to pray as I worked, not really focusing on my job as I should but focusing on my dad and my mom and my sister who was with them. I asked my praying friends at work to please pray for my mom and dad and began sending text messages to many other prayer warriors. I went home that day anticipating to make the 6-hour trip to Michigan the following day. That plan didn't last long.
My wife was making steak on the grill that night. It was good but I didn't eat much. Then my wife asked me, "Do you want to go tonight?" I wasn't really sure. I dislike driving at night and usually try to avoid it whenever possible. That's the way I was leaning . . . until I got a text from my brother.
"I'm in Chicago."
That changed everything. My whole family was going to be there . . . except for me.
"Let's go," I told my wife and we spent the next half hour packing for a who-knows-how-long trip and making arrangements for someone to watch our diabetic cat. We were about to leave for a six-hour trip at 8:45 at night. Right around the time I usually go to bed.
"We'll see how far we get," I thought. Five and a half hours later we arrived in Battle Creek. I never dozed off. Not once. I can't drive home from work some days without my head bobbin'!
God is a great sustainer and a great provider. He enables us in many ways we can't even think of. There are somethings we do that simply could not be done without God's help. I believe He helped me and my wife get to Michigan. He is helping my sister as she coordinates the treatment and comfort of our dad. How did God know that at this point in my dad's life He would need an full-time nurse? So He provided one in my sister. And a very good one at that!
Has God ever shown you His strength? Or has He shown you His presence by allowing someone in your life to do something "beyond normal"? I have heard stories of soldiers carrying other wounded comrades to safety despite themselves having been shot and mortally wounded. Where does that inner strength come from but above.
There will be some that claim earthly super-human strength is induced by hormones or other artificial means. I don't know about that. But I DO know about the God I believe in. He can get us through just about anything if it in His will to do so. I thank Him for His provision and for getting me and my wife safely to Michigan . . . at 3:15AM.
God's giving me the ability to stay awake was one thing. Wait until you hear about how He is working in my sister! Next time.
"He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. " - Isaiah 40:29
No comments:
Post a Comment