Lean on Him

"I WANT YOU TO BE ALL MINE.  I am weaning you from other dependencies.  Your security rests in Me alone-- not in other people, not in circumstances.  Depending only on Me may feel like walking on a tightrope, but there is a safety net underneath:  the everlasting arms.  So don't  be afraid of falling.  Instead, look ahead to Me.  I am always before you beckoning you on--one step at a time.  Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, can separate you from My loving Presence."  Taken from Sarah Young's, Jesus Calling, daily devotional. 

When I first read this devotional I thought about it long and hard.  You see, there was nothing that was really different from any other sermon, lesson or commentary prior to my reading this.  Yet, I thought about where my attention had been focused since 2005 after being on a ventilator for 10 days and walking away from that hospital stay. Many males with SCD never get a chance to continue living; morbidity is high from such a traumatic event.  You see, I was afraid living and what might happen next. The passage started to percolate. Only God knows when it is time.  Our "circumstance" allows us to lean on other people and be dependant on them; like our caregivers, physicians and others to supply us the courage we need to walk that "tightrope"  of recovery and continuing on life's journey.  We often blame someone else for our setbacks and then applaud ourselves for successes or right decisions related to our healthy daily living.

I thought about all of my medical challenges over the years; infections, pulmonary issues, sleep apnea, acute chest syndrome, heart failure, total hip replacement, end stage renal disease, and neuropathy to name a few.  All of these issues interspersed with the Sickle Crisis have contributed to layers of baggage that I among others carry around on a daily basis.  These "circumstances" focused my attention on the wrong things.  How did I pull through?  God's Mercy and his desire for me to continue this journey.

Spreading the word, advocating a cure for SCD should be a daily focus in our lives.  Our ability to reach out to others with SCD around the world whether on Twitter or Facebook allows us to speak in one voice.  Many of us will advocate for economic reasons getting into the business for all the wrong reasons.  However a true test of our outreach should be to help others through testimonials, research, and spreading God's ambition for us to hear His "presence" and to never give up.