Today was a beautiful day. It was a day where my spirit could not help
but praise God. It was a day of
redemption.
Monday morning I dreamt of a huge insect sitting
in a devastated field. My son Joel (God
has such a good sense of humour…) woke me and immediately I asked God what the
insect was and the word ‘locust’ came to mind.
We spent Monday morning prayer time asking God to restore to us the
things in our lives that the locusts had eaten.
(Joel 2)
Last week, God did a deep work of forgiveness in me as I blogged about then, and today I know why and just how deep it was.
I was awoken at 2.15am by our friends, who were
in labour with their first child.
Because the baby was breech-transverse and with a cord around the neck,
there was no option but C-section and we raced through amber lights to the
emergency of a small hospital in Lima centre.
My friend’s personal doctor was unable to attend the birth, and neither
were any of her staff, so I had the privilege of being able to enter the operating
room instead of her doctor (her doctor was going to have a non-medical role!!). I was able to film the whole thing and
support her and her husband during the different stages of the birth and
post-natal bonding.
God set it up.
Judah (who lives up to his meaning ‘praise’) was
programmed in to be born tomorrow.
Everything was set, and my friends’ doctor would be back in town. But just over 24 hours early, right on his
due date, Judah/God decided it was time.
And I am humbled that I found favour with Him to
be able to be part of the birth and support them through it all.
And reflecting this evening, I saw just how much
God had restored today. He allowed my
nearly identical but unprepared c-section experience in that same hospital just
14 months ago to pave the way for my friends’ preparation and my ability to
help guide during the day. And He also
allowed me to see how much my attitude towards the medical staff had
changed. The fruit of the work of
forgiveness in me.
If today had happened before that forgiveness
process I would have been in battle mode – trying to push my friends’
preferences on the doctors – trying to fight for them. But instead, we prayed, I spoke up
respectfully and kindly to the medical staff and God melted their hearts
towards us and opened doors. His peace
surrounded the day.
And God began to help me see my c-section birth
in a different light too. And snuggled
up at bedtime tonight to my big 14-month old baby who is becoming a little boy,
sensitive and calm and joyful, my heart began to be overwhelmed with thanks for
everything God did for me during his birth. Everything that I was too fearful, or angry or
confused to be able to acknowledge at the time.
And to see my dear friends at peace because God prepared them so well, and remembering Kaleb’s birth and the sacrifice that a c-section was for me at the time, makes me realize once again, that God’s perspective is so much greater. I am so glad that He knows best and that I submitted to Him in it all.
And to see my dear friends at peace because God prepared them so well, and remembering Kaleb’s birth and the sacrifice that a c-section was for me at the time, makes me realize once again, that God’s perspective is so much greater. I am so glad that He knows best and that I submitted to Him in it all.
‘I will repay you for the years the locusts have
eaten –
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm–
my great army that I sent among you.
You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm–
my great army that I sent among you.
You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
Joel 2:25-26
And today – I am full.