The Presence of the Lord
| The Lord stood at my side
and gave me strength. 2 Tim. 4:17, NIV. |
My husband and
I heard our oldest son, Chuck, scream and then shoot himself to death.
It was 7:10 p.m. on a dark night, physically and spiritually, in December.
But I want to share with you something that even to this day I believe
is remarkable: the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength! We talk
of miracles and of throwing out our fleeces, and we moan that we no longer
live in the age of miracles. I don't believe that. Miracles happen all
the time, and I consider what happened that lightless and desperate night
one of the greatest sensations of my life, even as we stood there appalled
and disbelieving that such a thing could happen.
I actually felt a Presence
beside me as the various thoughts raced through my horrified mind.
I can't explain it, but I know I felt it. As the sad months went by and
we tried to gather the fragments of mind and spirit, I would think about
that Presence and give thanks that He was—and still is—there. Otherwise,
I don't know how I could have kept going that night. Psalm 110:5 declares:
"God stands beside you to protect you" (TLB). I thought of this verse,
too, that night, when I remembered the article I had recently read about
the young man who killed his mother and father before he killed himself.
God protected us that night—another miracle.
One of the greatest statements
of faith appears in Daniel 3:17, 18: "If we are thrown into the blazing
furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it. . . . But even if
he does not . . ." (NIV). But if He does not . . . ! I recall begging God
to not let this horror happen. But it did happen. Sometimes what we pray
for doesn't happen, but God compensates, of that I am sure. Several months
after Chuck's death I wrote a booklet, literally on my knees, that was
eventually published and went into a worldwide ministry. Chuck lives in
those hearts that have been comforted!
| If you're going through tough times,
remember, the Lord is standing by your side and will give you strength. |
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