“Are you here with my strawberry ice cream?” my dad asked the young man entering his room. His smile was answer enough as he strode over to place the small styrofoam cup and plastic spoon in my dad’s outstretched hand. Daddy deposited the treat on his bedside table and said, “Take my hand.” The young man obediently placed his hand in my dad’s and Daddy began praying. “Lord Jesus, thank you for this young man and his mother. Please help them to know You the way You want to be known and help them to trust You. Thank You for Your presence with us, Lord. Bless this food as nourishment for my body. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen”
This was one of many conversations I overheard while sitting my my dad in his hospital room. My mother stayed with him round the clock for two weeks. I came for visits and had the privilege of spending two consecutive Sundays by his bedside while mom drove the hour to their home for a real shower and fresh changes of clothes. My parents will be married fifty-eight years in a little over a week and they exemplify God’s love and His intent for marriage.
“As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”
This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one.”
Ephesians 5:31-32 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/eph.5.31-32.NLT
Monday after that second Sunday, I sat in the hospital room with my parents as my mom was trained to administer dad’s long term antibiotics at home. Mom asked if I’d be on hand, an extra pair of eyes in case she had questions once they left the hospital. Two things happened that day that I am grateful not to have missed. I wouldn’t trade anything for the look on my dad’s face and the spring in his step when his nurse ducked in to let him know it was time to get dressed to go home and transport would be arriving soon. As exciting as that moment was after two unexpected weeks in the hospital, nothing could compare to his actual leaving.
Several staff members entered with a cart, at once hugging both my parents and helping them to load their belongings. Before the transport chair arrived for my dad, the charge nurse slipped silently into the room and leaned her back against the closed door. Obviously deferring to her, the room became silent. “I have something I need to say,” she began. “You came here for us to take care of you, sir, and from the moment you arrived, you have been caring for us. You and your wife pray for my staff. You ask about our families. You have made a difference here and I am grateful. I know you are happy to be going home but we will miss you. I will miss you and I wish you well.”
As she struggled to hold back tears, both my parents wept unashamedly. I don’t remember their exact words because as she pushed the door aside for my dad’s escort, the hallway outside the room filled with staff members smiling and wishing them well. The young transport driver entering this scene attempted a joke but she was quickly silenced by the surrounding well-wishers. As I walked into the sunshine on the way to pull their car around, I echoed my parents parting sentiments. To God be the glory!
““Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven.”
Matthew 10:32 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.10.32.NLT
If you’ve been hospitalized for any length of time, you know the walls invariably begin to close in on you. You are not at your best due to illness, surgery or both and the confining spaces combined with lack of privacy and freedom to move about can make you more than a little crazy. Two shifts of people have been charged with your care and they follow a schedule that largely precludes sound sleep. My husband, the surgeon, had never been hospitalized until last year. He agreed that three days gave him a new appreciation for those on the other side of his caregiving.
My parents each shared with me tidbits of their struggles, mere snatches of what they actually endured during their fifteen day confinement. Yet their departure testified to the goodness of God even in their darkest hours. Imagine if every patient and caregiver who is a child of God through faith in Jesus came to their daily shifts determined to love those they are called to serve as Jesus loved them? What if you and I made it our highest ambition to spread abroad the love of Christ in our homes and workplaces, in supermarkets and salons, cafes and commutes, not just regardless of our moods and circumstances but in spite of them? How would our days be different? How would our world be changed? We have the promise of God’s Spirit presence with us. We go, we give, we love, and we forgive in His strength and under His authority. What more do we need? Perhaps with the apostle Paul, we need to pray for boldness.
“And pray for me, too.
Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.
I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador.
So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.”
Ephesians 6:19-20 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/eph.6.19-20.NLT
“Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.
And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””
Matthew 28:18-20 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.28.18-20.NLT
“Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me
Let there be peace on earth
The peace that was meant to be
With God as our Father
Brothers all are we
Let me walk with my brother
In perfect harmony
Let peace begin with me
Let this be the moment now
With every step I take
Let this be my solemn vow
To take each moment and live each moment
In peace, eternally
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me”
(Written in 1955 by Jill Jackson-Miller and Sy Miller)
Let There Be Peace On Earth https://youtu.be/bgL1v8FZaNM?is=NqfGvAeRv1ggmvq0
A Fitting Reply 