The Visitor ( Day 1 from Cleansing Thoughts)

 

        

       THERE ARE TIMES IN ALL our lives he the hand of God is all that sustains us. we know that God does not have a physical body as we do; therefore, all throughout the scriptures, the metaphor "hand of God is used to refer to His power, authority, and greatness. I remember reading that water covers two-thirds of the earth's surface, and in Isaiah 40:12, we are told that God can measure the waters in the hollow of His hand! When I read this I was amazed at His greatness, and it made me feel safe and secure knowing that the Word promises us in John 10:28 that no man can take is out of His hand! I remember a time not too long ago when my little grandson asked me how God could remember each of our names when there were so many to remember. I read to him from Isaiah 49:16 (NKJV), "I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palm of My hands." This opened the door for me to share with him other scriptures that told about the power of God. I shared that in the New Testament, many accounts are given when Jesus laid hands on the sick and they were not sick anymore. Then I told him of different times I know in my life when the "hand of God" had unmistakenly touched me. Maybe it was because I was his grandma and he knew he could trust me, but for whatever reason, he seemed to accept with childlike faith all that I shared with him even though I knew it was without full understanding. Little did I know what I just shared with my grandson would serve to strengthen my own faith for I was about to witness the mighty "hand of God."

    I had gotten a call early the next morning that my dad had been admitted to the hospital during the night and admitted to the intensive care unit with what they believed to be congestive heart failure. I left for the hospital as soon as possible, and when I arrived, my mother was waiting for me in the lobby. We were immediately directed to the ICU waiting room. Because the unit was fill, we were told to wait there until the nurse came to get us. As we entered the room, the conversation stopped, and the small group warmly accepted my mother and me. Within a few minutes we became members of the ICU family and joined the conversation.

    There were two families that had occupied the room for several days. One had been called in for their grandmother, who at the age of eighty-nine, was preparing to go home to be with the Lord. arrangements were being made, and one by one, the family members were gathering for her final journey. Differemt members of the family came and went, but one woman remained on constant watch. She appeared to have been staying at the hospital day and night. I learned her father had been alone when he passed away and she had made a promise to herself to remain at her mother's side until the end. However, she shared with us that she was feeling guilty because it had been her mother's wish to die in their family home, where her husband had passed on. The strain was beginning to show as she fought to stay alert, but with some of the decisions now out of the way, she closed her eyes for some much-needed rest.

    There was another woman there with her husband, who had been brought to the hospital a few days ago and had been out on a life-support system due to heart failure. Yhey had been married for fifty-three years, and she could not bring herself to let him go, so against his wishes, sdfhe had called the EMTs and was feeling the strain of guilt by knowing she had given her permission to keep him alive this way. Approximately eight-six hours had passed since Bid, as his wife called him, had been brought in, and she had just been told at 5:00 p.m. that her husband would be taken off life support. I also learned they had no children, so now, she would be facing this difficult time alone.