trbccoffeebreak

“My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”  Psalm 73:26

I took a trip to ED the other evening. (For those of you around my age, it was previously known as the “ER”—not sure when the shift happened. But I digress.) It was not fun. At all. I’ll spare you all the details of the adventure, because there aren’t many positive things I can say about the entire experience…and “if you don’t have anything nice to say…”

What I will share—because we’re friends, after all—is that I herniated a disc, which, after working beyond the injury for another nine hours, turned into a complete whole-back seizure series that lasted for hours. Anyhoo, after almost a week of functioning in either a standing or prone position, I’m slowly on the mend.

I needed this incident. I didn’t need the intense physical agony, for sure. But I needed to be reminded that my flesh will fail, but God is my strength. I needed to be reminded that it doesn’t matter how competent or confident we are in our work, how close we are to loving family members, or how rooted (or not- rooted) we are in our community, we must always be 100% dependent on God.

Our finances will come and go—and every provision is from the Lord anyway. It’s all His. And our money could evaporate like smoke (layoff, medical bills, car repair, etc.) or pour down like rain. Regardless, God does not come and go. He is here and with us always (Matt 28:20).

Friends do come and go. Although I have a handful of friends who’ve known me over the decades and some deep friendships that are just a few years old, I believe the Lord brings friendships into our lives for seasons and reasons. They ebb and flow like the tide. But God never leaves us or forsakes us (Duet 31:6).

And, even though my husband and (very upset) son were next to me as I was lying on the floor unable to move, screaming and crying, they could not help me. I was alone in my pain, completely dependent on God.

I was truly terrified. But through that time—and the days since when I haven’t been able to do a whole lot for myself—the Lord has made it very clear that He is in control, and I am not. We are not. We can make plans, determine where our path is going to lead us. But God directs our steps (Proverbs 16:9). He is Sovereign, and we are depended on His provision and goodness for the very breath in our lungs.

“Lord, thanks for the reminder to hold on loosely to the things of this world and depend on You completely.”

For His Glory

Julianne Winkler Smith
TRBC Women’s Life