Closeness and Truth

We can all fake a smile. Hide the cane for a quick picture.

Published by Deborah Negron- Child of God

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What does not come out in photos…

The fact that you stand when you know you can’t climb.
The fact that you smile when you may be masking some pain.
The fact that you are hopeful and may not be seeing what you are still hoping for.

Recently, my niece suffered a horrible experience. Her pelvic bones separated from her muscle… Debilitating and painful. But as I spoke with her, she shared that sometimes we may need a wake up a call to get us on the right track.

Thank God for his power and mercy. He can use the most adverse conditions to touch our hearts and mend what is broken.
All the while this was happening to my niece, I was experiencing my own unexpected chaos.

I had an accident, my car was totalled. I kept on going. I do not quit. I never quit. I stayed in a bad relationship for 25 years. It nearly cost me my life. I have been working going in to homes as a social worker and providing Case a planning and Home Family Therapy. I love doing this kind of work. However, I do not listen well to my own body’s warning signs. Pain is not something I tend to focus on. I push through it and move on.
Bad choice. I have been walking and climbing 6 floor walk ups in NYC. I have been doing all I could, no matter how much I was overexerting my body.
I’m not 25 anymore. I am 55.

So, said the doctor at the hospital. So, said, the physical therapist at home. A month of so much choas and many changes.

For all this I am grateful. I can say as my niece has said, “Sometimes we may need a wake up a call to get us on the right track.”

These days have made me look at the fact that we are not meant to be self sufficient. We are not meant to be autonomous. We are meant to be dependent on the One who orders our steps. We are meant to commune with him everyday.
In good times and bad times. Sometimes we think we can handle more than we really can. At other times we are afraid to say we cannot do something.
We may find it hard to show we too are vulnerable.

We have heard it said –
Don’t show your weakness.
Fake it till you make it.
Look tough.

All these are the wrong approach.
The Bible says that when we surrender and we give over our cares to Him, he cares for us.

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
2 Corinthians 12:9

We can be open.
We can live in Truth.
We don’t have to put up a front. We can say, Lord, I can’t do it.
He already has the plan. He knows what How will bring out of this.

He is the Potter. We are His clay. He understands how we are to be made in to His image. The image of rhe Son of God.

Jesus, was our best example. He often went to be alone with the Father. He did not act unless he had prayed to the Father.

For some of us, prayer is an action taken at the last moment. It is a rescue plan.
It is then that we call out for help. When things are in the red, we cry out.
But the Lord wants to have us seeking Him daily. He desires a relationship that is long term. It is a daily commitment. He is the Bridegroom. If we are his Church, His Bride, then we need to have this close knit fellowship, this constant communication.

In the beginning of every day and in the close of every evening His desire is that we would come to Him and lay our burdens on him.

Its not rushing because one has to find shelter in the middle of the storm.
His desire is that we would Abide in Him at all times. Then when the evil day comes we are secure in Him.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” Psalms 91:1‭-‬2

We can trust Him when we are in trouble. Yet we can walk with Him as we take on the new day. He is the friend that stays when others abandon. He is the one who does not change because of some circumstance. He remains faithful.

So, during this tough season, we can rely on the fact that He has prepared the steps we were supposed to walk in beforehand.

He has the game plan. He knows the turns in the road.
So, then, I will speak to myself…

“Hey Self, Remember that the Maker of the Universe has your back. He has you in the hollow of His hand. He is not surprised by what happens. He knows the beginning from the end. He promises to keep us in perfect peace when we place our minds on Him.”