“For better, for worse….in sickness and in health…I pledge myself to you.”
Do you ever contemplate the worse?
What if your worse was being told that the tumor in your brain was inoperable, in a matter of four months you lose all your senses, and given a month to live?
What if the best meant healing came in the form of spending eternity with the Father and leaving a wife and son behind?
That was the reality of a man named Eric that I recently met. I walked into his home and watched him lay in bed helpless and barely able to stay coherent.
I was overwhelmed, I was saddened, I was confused, I didn’t understand, and I was hurting for his family.
I jumped at the opportunity to pray for him. It was a honor to kneel before him and talk to the Father. As I began praying warm tears streamed down my face because comfort filled the walls of that room. Peace paraded around with gladness. Love left a fragrance so sweet it was almost too much to bear.
The more I prayed the more I saw Jesus standing in the room with us. I heard His still voice remind me that never abandons the one that he loves.
In our journey when we hit the better days its easy to rejoice. Easy to see God. Easy to hear his voice. Easy to feel His presence and smell of His goodness.
But what’s happens when we hit our worse?
When God’s face becomes blurry and not recognizable through all the pain. When we can’t smell the victory we so desire and the stinch of death and defeat grips us. When we can’t taste the freedom from suffering? And His voice is mumbled by every other voice even our own…
I watched his wife speak tenderly into his ears. I watched her sooth him in his pain. I admired the gentleness of her smile and the tears that freely fell as she gazed at his face.
I saw Jesus in his wife. I saw that Jesus whispers truth into our hearts. We are soothed by his presence. He holds us in the safety of his arms. In our pain we see his tears that remind us that by his strips we are healed. His smile brings the conviction of hope.
I watched as the pastor hugged his body and spoke tenderly into his ears. I watched him kiss his forehead with gentleness. And that’s where I saw God. We find comfort and our refuge in his arms as he speaks his promises over us. His kisses remind us that he is Jehovah shammah the Lord that is present. He is Jehovah-rapha the God who heals. He is El Roi the God that sees us. He is the God that makes his home in our hearts.
I stood listening to worship music play softly in the background. And that’s when I saw the holy spirit. The holy spirit that comes cascading comfort down the walls of our hearts. Filling our minds with a peace that surpasses understanding. The holy spirit prays for us and reminds of Abba, Father that we are God’s children. The holy spirit reminds us that what our bodies suffer now compares nothing to the glory that he will reveal to us later.
I’ve always wanted to get married, stand at the altar, and speak vows that reflect the depths of my heart. But I began thinking about the traditional vows couples make standing at the altar and how those same words reflect a covenant Jesus makes with us when we step into relationship with Him.
“For better, for worse….in sickness and in health…I pledge myself to you.”
These are the vows that he makes with us at the altar of our hearts. No matter the season for better or for worse His presence nevers leaves or abandon us. He will remain faithful, love, and cherish us. When our senses fail to identify where God is in the midst of our circumstances be reminded that He pledged himself to us when died on the cross. Every strip represents his faithfulness. Every nail represents he has suffered with us and for us. His loves weathers through every and any season.
Special thank you to the Malone family, Timothy, my mommy, and my secret Santa that came in March! I can’t yell you how much your support means to me! Thank you to the Van Eck’s for the peanut butter and socks. I tried to guard the peanut butter for two weeks and well I lost the race lol.
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Family I am absolutely in love with Chile! Its definitely going to be a hard place to leave so I’m soaking up all the goodness the this last full week. Check out my Facebook page for more photos.
