Grace In a Time of Need

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’”

About two weeks ago while getting dressed, I felt a sharp pain in my armpit. Sometime during the night, a large red boil had formed. When it seemed determined to stay there despite the combined prayers of Al and me, he took me to Urgent Care.

 It was Sunday morning, so there were few people ahead of me in line. After being admitted to a room, a nurse came in to take down the necessary information. We chatted for a few minutes.

She shared a story about one of the doctors there who had seen her head covering and assumed she was Arabic. He expected her name to be a long name and was surprised to hear that it was Sarah.  She said, “I told him, ‘It’s S-a-r-a-h. That’s all!”

 “It’s a good Biblical name,” I said, with a smile. She just nodded. I went on to tell her how I could have come into the facility earlier but wanted to go to church first.

“It was a wonderful service,” I said. “We even got to take our grandson! I’m so glad I went.”

“Well, at least you have your priorities straight!” she said.

Then Sarah left to get the physician’s assistant. The PA confirmed that there definitely was a boil under my arm and prescribed an antibiotic for the infection. She instructed me to come back if the swelling didn’t go down in a couple of days. 

Monday morning I awoke hoping that the boil would have disappeared. But it was stubborn and still painful to the touch. Unfortunately, Al and I were scheduled to have two annual shots that day.

One of the worship songs from Sunday’s service kept going through my mind…

“ I will sing through fire and thunder
'Cause You are on my side, I trust You with my life
I know my story, it isn't over
Even against all odds
You are a faithful God
You're faithful God…”

 

“I am convinced that Your promises will hold together
And I will dwell in the hope of Your love forever
I am convinced that Your promises will hold together
And I will dwell in Your love…” (“Faithful God,” I Am They)

That song helped me get through the day in spite of having the pain of the boil and a shot in each arm! It was powerful!

Persistent pain under my arm in spite of the antibiotics motivated me to make an appointment with a doctor of internal medicine for Thursday. At least the after effects from the two shots on Monday were gone! He directed me to take over the counter medicine for pain, continue the antibiotics and make an appointment with a dermatologist for the following week!

This saga was dragging on! Like Paul who prayed that God would heal him from a “thorn in the flesh” three times, I also prayed for healing—constantly. It was hard to think about anything else.

 At the dermatologist’s office, it was determined the culprit was small cyst that had become infected. He recommended that I make an appointment to come back in one month to have it removed!  

While checking out at the receptionist’s desk, I smiled at a woman who was sitting against the wall, several layers of white tape over the corner of her mouth, imagining the pain she was feeling. She couldn’t smile. 

Before turning to talk to the receptionist, I motioned that I would be praying for her. Once the next appointment had been scheduled, I turned back to wave good-by to the woman, however she had been called in to see the doctor.

Things improved from then on. It happened to be my birthday, so Al and I celebrated that evening by going out to dinner, a fun occasion. And the swelling seemed to go down a bit too.

In what ways have I experienced God’s grace during this health issue? Strength as I  leaned on Him through the hard times. His power in my weakness. Endurance from one day to the next. Joy in my soul regardless of pain.

God’s promise to the apostle Paul applies to each of us.  His grace is more than sufficient for us. As we look to Him for help in the time of need, may we choose to say  “I will dwell in the hope of your love forever.”