Finding Myself In Prayer

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve that God's will is his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2

This past week has been a week of ups and downs. This week we have had tragic events hit our community that could easily make a person question God. Some may not agree, but it is not God we are to question. The Devil himself is who puts evil on this earth. God does not wish for evil, and he certainly does not intend for it to destroy those of us on earth. Tonight, as Mark and I read our daily devotion, the following was the verse it was on. "When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die fo us while we were still sinners." Romans 5:6-8

Tragic events can make or break a person. Tragedy can also bring families closer, or it can tear them apart. What can make the difference? What can keep a family together and what can keep a person from their darkest point? Faith can. Faith in Jesus, faith in each other, and a lot of hard work can keep people from breaking. It can keep families from breaking. Our family is living proof of this. We could have given up on ourselves, each other, and our family. That would have been the easy way out. Instead, we turned to God, and we work our tails off every day to be better individuals. We work hard every day to better our marriage. Nothing in life is free. It takes hard work to make a good life and a good marriage.

This past week we prayed for two specific families. One family lost a son, brother, father. A senseless tragedy that only God knows the specifics too. All we can do is pray for peace for the family and pray that God wraps his arms around this family and that they feel his unfailing love. There is a lot of healing that needs to be done emotionally and we pray that God provides this healing to this family. The other family had a son badly burned. He is currently in the ICU at St. Paul burn unit. He is heavily sedated and faces months or more of skin grafts and the future is unknown. We pray for comfort for this boy. We pray for God to keep him safe in the doctor's care and for his upcoming grafts and future grafts to be as pain free as possible. We pray for healing for this boy. God is good and he provides miracles every day. We pray for the entire family and their son, that they find peace and faith in this tragic accident.

Considering these tragic events, the small communities they reside in feel their hurt. The communities have come together and set up GoFundMe accounts. The communities have helped harvest crops. You see, within the tragedies, God is shining his light. Others are showing their compassion and grace. Others are supporting these families. By the grace of God, there is good even amongst hate and tragic events. "The things that seem out of control are still in God's control."

Despite the sadness, we have so much to be grateful for. Myself, I finally chose an Al-Anon sponsor. I already completed the 12 steps-some by myself, some alongside Mark, and some with the help of my counselor last year. I will be repeating the 12 steps with my sponsor this time. I finally wrote my story and shared it. I have been asked to be a guest speaker at an Al-Anon meeting in New York (via Zoom, not in person). I am honored to do this, and I finally am getting the whole Al-Anon concept and the fact that I need to care for myself first. I wasn't truly doing this and as a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, and nurse frankly; the concept is hard to do. I felt selfish at first. Then someone explained it to me in this way, "If you were in an airplane and the oxygen masks deployed, are you not to put the oxygen on yourself first and then help those in need? If you don't help yourself first, you are no good to anyone else." That right there put things into perspective for me and it started to click.

The close of this I want to ask for all your prayers. Pray for the two families that I mentioned above. Pray for healing. Pray for God to bring both families peace. Pray for strength. Life is not easy and sometimes it seems so unfair. Pray for those around you. Many suffer in silence and your prayers are needed. Choose kindness. Choose goodness. Choose gratitude. Choose grace. Choose prayer.