Samuel: “God has heard”

While in the pre-op waiting room for my 4-year old Andrew’s tonsillectomy, we met a lady who was with her 2-year old son named Samuel. He was recently (like in the last month or less) diagnosed with leukemia.

She was crying as she told us of the treatment regimen; the daily visits, the chemo that will last for weeks.

It struck me that Steph and I will take Andrew home with expectations that he will be stronger and healthier and more able to enjoy life as a child, while this mom’s expectations are darkening, and that her son will have decreasing health and limited ability to enjoy life as a normal child.

And ultimately, that he will die of this disease.

What a stark contrast between the outlooks of two families sitting next to each other. Not by coincidence, but divine appointment. We were able to talk with her and provide her some time to talk about how her son plays, how energetic he is, and the normal things two sets of parents might share.

This morning as we were about to leave the house, the Lord brought to mind some little scraps of paper in my dresser drawer that I brought home from Asia in September 2013. Some were on hotel notepad paper; some were on pages from my Moleskin notebook I carry with me. One was from the Singapore Grand Hyatt, and it carried the following verses:

I am afflicted and needy;
hurry to me, God.
You are my help and my deliverer;
Lord, do not delay.
(Ps 70:5)

Therefore let everyone who is faithful pray to You
at a time that You may be found.
When great floodwaters come,
they will not reach him.
You are my hiding place;
You protect me from trouble.
You surround me with joyful shouts of deliverance.
(Ps 32:6-7)

I carried these verses with me in my pocket and read them several times a day during a very hard time of severe pressure, stress, and negative criticism at work that ultimately resulted in depression and doubts in the Lord’s goodness and willingness to shepherd me. I would read them and call out to God, but ultimately didn’t fully believe He would step in and solve my problems.

But that isn’t what He was after…Jesus was trying to teach me dependency upon Him, and a wholehearted belief in His deep and unconditional love for me. He held me through with these verses, and led me very pointedly one day at the end of September to seek help with a biblical counselor at church.

I felt very led this morning to give this scrap of paper to Samuel’s mother, saying “These verses helped me through a very dark time.” I pray that the verses get past her mind and into her heart, and into her husband’s heart, to give them enough strength and courage to believe in the Lord and His goodness, that His love is deep and never fails, so that they can lift up their eyes and see through this very hard time…and see Jesus on the other side reach His hand in to help pull them through to Himself.