Waiting Room

Today I find myself back at the hospital with another one of my grandparents. Looking back through this year, I have spent more time in this hospital than I ever hoped to. I can officially find my way around the first,second, and third floors without a map and today I am working on learning the fifth floor-useless knowledge that I hope to never have to use again. When I started my trip back to this dreaded place, I admit I was defeated. I had made it through the past few days and felt like that was enough. I felt like I had earned some time off. Funny now when I think about it-I was asking for time off from my Christmas break. My last post I talked about hope and how regardless of circumstance, our hope should be founded in God. "And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee."-Psalm 39:7" He quickly reminded me of that post when I got in my car. You see, I made a cd back in October for the girls in my small group. I had filled it with songs that were encouraging and uplifting and reminded me of God's love and faithfulness to us. I had one of those cd's in the radio in my car. The song that was playing when I started my car was Our Hope Endures by Natalie Grant. It made me cry in sorrow and in jubilation.My favorite part was at the end. It says, "Emanuel, God is with us. El Shaddai, all sufficient. We never walk alone and this is our hope." In that moment, I felt that hope and peace that can only come from Him. These are the rest of the words to the song.

You would think only
So much can go wrong
Calamity only strikes once
And you assume that this
One has suffered her share
Life will be kinder from here

Sometimes the sun
Stays hidden for years
Sometimes the sky
Rains night after night
When will it clear
But our hope endures
The worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
Let the Earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

How do we comprehend
Peace within pain
Or joy at a good man's wake?
Walk a mile with a woman
Whose body is torn
With illness
But she marches - on
Oh

Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient
Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient

Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient
We never walk alone
And this is our hope

Our hope endures
The worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
Let the Earth quake
Let the Earth quake
Let the Earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

If that wasn't enough, He gave me even more comfort through scripture. I had made an index card of one of my favorite verses with all of the different roles of God highlighted. I've carried that card around and read it in times of discouragement, but true to my nature I had misplaced it somewhere. Today, I found that card as I sat in the ER. I'll leave you with this verse and the resounding thought that the words to that song are indeed true, we never walk alone and that is the hope that we have in Him.

"I love You, LORD. You are my STRENGTH. The Lord is my ROCK, my PROTECTION, my SAVIOR. My God is my ROCK. I can run to Him for SAFETY. He is my SHIELD and my SAVING STRENGTH, my DEFENDER."
Psalm 18:1-2