The Tangible Touch of God <3

This morning I have a handful of young women on my mind and heart. Each one is facing some rough challenges while they carry on with the everyday tasks that are required for this season in life.

To me, they are warriors as they march forth into some scary territory, holding up that shield of faith and sword of the Spirit and all the armor in place. 

I sent texts to a few of them earlier, telling them I was praying this morning. And as I prayed I was reminded of a time from my own journey when I needed to know God was with me and He showed up. 

If you have followed these posts or known me for any length of time, you know my dad came to be under our care when he was deep into the ravages of Alzheimer. My mom was broken down from trying to manage him and my aunt, who had brought her own dementia to the party. 

As we juggled him around from one facility to another while my mom was being doctored and recuperated back to health, we entered a roller coaster ride we were ill prepared for. A retired military man with high mental functioning skills of management and leadership, plus a hefty dose of German temper and stubbornness; he was the worst case scenario for this evil disease. 

Disoriented and unable to understand why things had to be the way they were, he would vent his anger with no restraint. After a particularly violent bout when we were trying to get him packed up to move to yet another facility, he was carted off to the hospital to be evaluated for the medications he would need to help him deal with the frustrations he was experiencing. 

And so, one evening, I was summoned to the fifth floor of one of our local hospitals. I had given birth to our three a few floors below in happier days. That night I was going taking a Dairy Queen milkshake to my father in the darkness of what was nicknamed the “Psych Ward”. 

The door to this area was locked and heavily alarmed. There were wires embedded in the tiny glass window that separated this area from the rest of the hospital. As I walked down that long hall, unsure of what I would find on the other side, my fear of prisons and being held against my will rose as a frightening specter with each step. 

I did what I always do when life is bigger than what I can handle. I asked God to give me the strength I didn’t have. As I continued down the hall, a peace flooded me that I can only describe as this: I could not have been more convinced of the presence of invisible armed guards on either side of me if I could have seen them with my own eyes. 

My spirit knew that God was allowing me to sense His spiritual presence of protection I needed as I rang the bell to be admitted. I found my father quite docile and it was heart wrenching in so many ways, but one of the gifts of memories I have of that time in our life when we were stretched so thin between raising teens and caring for my parents and aunt. 

As he ate his ice cream and shared his dreams of eventually buying a house for him and mom, I fought back the tears. Driving back home to my own home and family that evening, I knew God would protect my dad in that place and somehow He would make a way for us to find a place for him to live. 

I can say looking back, that God was with us every step, but that night stands out as one where I truly felt it so deeply. That night became one of my Red Sea Partings that I can go back to when I feel overwhelmed.

So today, I prayed for my young friends as they face their giants. I prayed for the goodness and grace and mercy of God to reveal Himself to them as He had to me. I pray they sense in the their spirt the reassurance and rememberance that He is with them and whatever they walk through, He walks beside them. 

I pray this for each of you as well.

One of my go to verses at that time speaks of this promise:

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.

Isaiah 43:2