May Devotional

Just Stay

 A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. "Your son is here," she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened. Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.

The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile. He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients. Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. "Who was that man?" the Marine asked.

The nurse was startled, "He was your father," she answered.

"No, he wasn't," the Marine replied. "I never saw him before in my life.

"Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?"
"I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed. I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey. His son was killed in Iraq today, and I was sent to inform him. What was this Gentleman's Name?"

The nurse with tears in her eyes answered, “Mr. William Grey.”

This is an email story currently circling cyber space. It gives us a strong visual image of what we are to do with God: Hold tightly to His Hand and “just stay” as we take this life journey. We are to wait on Him because “God acts on behalf of those who wait for Him” Isaiah 64:4. During the long hours of waiting it is easy to be discouraged, we feel as if God has forgotten as this dying man must have felt. Charles Stanley writes in 30 Life Principals on page 47

     “You may feel as if God has forgotten you. He has not. God is always at work, and
      at this very moment He is engineering your situation to provide His very best for you.
      In fact, He is lining up circumstances in a way that is better than you could ever imagine
      (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Another example to us from this story is how the Marine whispered words of strength and encouragement. As we wait on the Lord He whispers His Word of love and encouragement to us. Isaiah 40:28-31

    “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the
     ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
     He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired
     and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their
     strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk
     and not be faint.”

When we stay focused on God and His Word nothing around us causes us to lose our focus and our strength is renewed, our purpose is verified and God’s plan is revealed to us. When we put blinders on our hearts and minds to the world and its resounding gongs and clanging symbols, He intimately speaks to us of His love and the pleasure He takes in giving us the best that He has for our lives.

Taking a second look at this Marine, we glean another lesson. We see how we are to be God’s Hands extended to bring encouragement and comfort to others. As we reach out to those marginalized in our world that live in poverty, we too can not only share words of encouragement but we can take action to make a difference and bring Light to their darkness. It is not easy to deny ourselves the conveniences and comfort that giving to others often requires. Some of us know like this Marine the smells, sounds and sights of sitting by a hospital bed as a loved one lingers and finally breathes their last breath. As Women of Vision, we know that the needs of those who are waiting to be released from modern day slavery do not present a savory picture to our world. Through our advocacy efforts we have seen how people prefer to stay in their comfort zone, live their life and turn an eye to the needs of victims of sex and labor trafficking. God’s Word admonishes us to reach out to the poor and needy in our world to bring them hope and freedom.

“He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.” Isaiah 61:1b-3

Is this not a perfect picture of modern day slaves and what we can do to make a difference in their lives? As we stay the course of our cause against slavery, we know that God will bring His Word to pass and prisoners will be released from darkness, their broken hearts will be mended and they will wear a crown of beauty instead of ashes. They will walk in fullness of life in ways they never thought possible. Staying the course is stressful and we will come under attack, yet we know that “Though the righteous man falls seven times, he rises again” (Proverbs 24:16). The discomfort is worth it when we see bills become laws in Olympia and in Washington DC, when we see changed lives through documentaries like “Money + Sex” and when we learn about how Light has overcome darkness in the World Vision After Care Facility in Cambodia. God is faithful to His Word and to His children.

The title of this story is compelling to us as Christians. As we fulfill our role in our Women of Vision Chapter, let us remember it. We are faced with the planning, preparation and presentation of another major event to educate Puget Sound about the condition of women and children in the world who suffer. We find ourselves overextended, out of our comfort zone, and frustrated with a plethora of details. Let’s remember the image of this Marine in the story. Just stay holding tightly to the Hand of God; just stay on course as we present an event to raise funds for human trafficking victims; just stay and watch Him do the miraculous.