In my continuing eye surgery saga, as I recently faced my second
cataract procedure, my anxiety amped up. Reasons were that because of a head
trauma in the area of the left eye several years ago, medical professionals had
warned me the surgery might not be possible. I was already rapidly losing sight
in that eye—a process that would continue if
left unchecked. This in addition to the issues I faced after the first surgery escalated
my concern (wrote about those here).
Early the morning of the procedure, a friend texted me these
words from Psalm 146:8 “The Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up
those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous.” In reflecting on the
verse, I knew the verse could refer to spiritual sight as well as physical, but
in this case, I was holding on to a literal interpretation. And yes, I had
let concern weigh on me, bowing me over, so good to be reminded that God lifts that from us. As to the last part of the verse, none of us are righteous on our own, but God’s
word states that we have the righteousness of Christ. He loves us not because
of our deeds but because we are His—because of what He
has done for us in Jesus. Comforting.
A few minutes later, before I left for
the surgery, I read these encouraging words in Streams in the Desert, “. . .
but you need not fear when your prayers and faith pile up; for after a while
they will be like a flood, and will not only sweep the answer through, but will
also bring some new accompanying blessing.” This procedure had certainly been
prayed over. And when I picked up the Upper Room, the writer reflected on Jesus’
words in John 16:7 about going away and
sending the Holy Spirit, “Jesus assured the disciples that they would not be
left alone; the Holy Spirit would be their comforter during difficult times . .
. to lessen our worry and to calm our fear.”
One of the verses in John Newton’s “Amazing
Grace” is “The Lord has promised good to me, his word my hope secures. He will my
strength and portion be as long as life endures.” That morning, God had
promised good to me and secured my hope through his word. I left strengthened
for what lay ahead.
Medicine for the procedure is supposed to
produce what some call twilight sleep, but it never quite works for me, and I
have fairly good recall of the event. As the surgery began, I listened for any indication
from the doctor that there might be a problem, but none ever came and just as
he had concluded his work, a song came on in the room, one from back in the day.
I listened for a moment and couldn’t believe what it was—Johnny Nash’s “I Can
See Clearly Now.”
“Wow, what timing for that song. Was that
played deliberately?” I asked.
The doctor and nurses laughed as they
said, “No.”
But you see, I believe it was done
deliberately and divinely orchestrated. I can see clearly now echoes in my
heart.
This experience reinforced what God has
done a gazillion other times in my life—no matter what we face, God never
leaves us alone, and gives us everything we need for any difficulty. And if things had gone other than they did, God would have given me grace for that path, as well.
If you’re looking for comfort as you face
a challenge, 2 Corinthians 1:3 tells us He is the God of all comfort. And to
that fact, I am willing to testify.
Beverly Varnado is the author of several small town romances from Anaiah Press including her latest, A Season for Everything. All are available at Amazon. A memoir, Faith in the Fashion District, from Crosslink Publishing is also available as well as her other books, Give My Love to the Chestnut Trees and Home to Currahee. She also has an Etsy Shop, Beverly Varnado Art.
To explore the web version of One Ringing Bell, please visit bev-oneringingbell.blogspot.com
Beverly Varnado copyright 2022