Escape to Reality

Doctors and waiting and tests... oh my!! Last Friday the 14th, I hit the medical wall. I felt like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, navigating through an area where there might be lions and tigers and bears, when she exclaimed ,” I don’t like this forest... it’s dark and creepy!”

At 10:40 a.m, Robert and I decided to catch a 12:40 flight to San Diego. After a whirlwind hour of preparations, we made it to the airport in time, and off we flew into the wild blue yonder.

The weekend was just great. We rode bikes, ate, laughed, ate, sang, took goofy pictures and oh, did I mention we ate? The Lord truly provided for and blessed us every step of the way and we felt His strong hand of grace upon us. His still small voice reassured me that His eye is on me and that I am the apple of it! “....for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye.” Zech. 2:8

The way we see things is important. Our perspective can certainly affect our decisions and our reactions.

In high school, before I started wearing contacts, I had a bad depth perception problem. I would park my car near the curb by my house and in the morning come out to discover I was several feet from it!

I thought I was all lined up, but in reality, I was way off the mark.

More important then even driving, when navigating our lives, we need crystal clear vision!

Spiritually speaking,we can be so far sighted that we miss important truths that are right under our noses.

Or, our nearsightedness can keep us from seeing the bigger picture, causing us to trip  over insignificant details that can appear larger than life.

We must then ask ourselves, “through what lens, am I viewing this situation? Or this person? Or myself?

Does my vision line up with the direction given in the only real GPS- God’s Word? (Global Positioning System, you know)

His Word is readily available, but what can keep it from penetrating our hearts and making a difference in the way we walk down the path set before us?

The way I see it,  (no pun intended, well, yes it was..:)

there are two main factors that help us look through the glasses of God’s word effectively.

1.Light-Psalm 119:30 says,”The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”

If you go out walking at night, you need a flashlight. If we just carry it around and never press the on button, it is pretty much useless. We can all “know” the truths found in God’s word, but not apply them in our present situations.

Let’s be honest, have you ever had someone share a verse with you and your first inner response is “I know... I know that?” Well, KNOWING something intellectually is not the same as letting it light up your life!

We have to let those timeless, powerful truths enter our hearts. Again and again. Today, tomorrow and the next day.
For example, how about this well known verse: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28 . Take a second and think of that thing that you are most concerned about. 

Then, allow this spotlight of truth to penetrate your heart and shine on your present situation.

If we truly believe it, then we have NOTHING to worry about. It really is all good.

2.Love -A favorite verse of mine is Jude 21. It says, ..”keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

If we believe the lie that God doesn’t love us, every minute of the day..and even on our worst days, we can struggle with applying His Word, because we can think we are excluded from the club that it applies too. Our thinking can resemble this, “yeah that verse is true, but is is for ________ not me because I am so________ and they are really good.”

Not so, Christian! “...there is no partiality with God” Romans 2:11

He truly loves each of us as if there was only one of us.

Above all realities, become CONVINCED daily of God’s love for you.

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Eph. 2:4-8

*So, my great escape vaca came to an end Monday night. Yesterday, Tuesday morning , I had to have another PET scan so they can have a baseline to start treatment.

I am waiting for the results of the genetic marker test and the PET results to start treatment. I’ll be honest, I am sick of waiting and the anxiety over beginning to kill this thing is hard to keep at bay. I would appreciate your specific requests for God to intervene in the medical staff’s hearts and minds and direct them to His will for me.

In the meantime, today and everyday, I’ll be gazing at the reality of His Word and praying with the psalmist, 

“Keep me as the apple of Your eye;

Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,

From the wicked who oppress me,

From my deadly enemies who surround me.” Psalm 17:8-9