God's Mysterious Dealings

This past summer Has been a real test for me. In my whole career my as a pastor and chaplain, I have never been more tried. I was in the hospital for six weeks for gout initially and then for a severe fall down the basement stairs and another worse fall in the hospital when I was left unattended for a brief few moments. Before this time, I had only been in the hospital overnight during an emergency as well six days when my pacemaker was installed.

I well remember the joke on me when I was brought to my room in the rehab hospital. There were three ladies in the room. I said, "I think you've taken me to the wrong room". They then made it clear to me that the facility was co-educational. I learned to use the curtains around my bed to good advantage. One of the women jokingly said to me,"We're all over eighty. One us is deaf, another is out of it most of the time, and the third one has her curtains pulled all the time. So you see you have nothing to worry about!" Those words were encouraging to me.

Most of the time, I used a walker so I would not fall again. At the end of my stay I graduated to a cane. I learned the truth of Psalm 56:3, " When I am afraid, I will trust in You ( the Lord)." When man could not help me, I soon learned that the Lord was my Helper. Also, my family (especially my wife), and God's people helped sustain me in a time of great loneliness. I learned what it was like to walk with a walker, how to improvise to help myself , and to live at length in institutions. The Lord also taught me to feel more deeply what the sick and infirm go through.

I learned to be a warmhearted Christian as a testimony to the Lord and feel and experience what people go through when they walk through the Valley Of Deep Darkness (Valley of the shadow of Death - Psalm 23)!

On one occasion, I sang hymns for the folk for more than half an hour. One nurse asked me to keep it up while patients in this emergency (section) (30 people) asked for favourites. On Canada Day, I led two wards in singing "O Canada". I included the last verse( four) which speaks of God as "Ruler Supreme" (a Great Verse - look it up some time soon . You'll be blessed!).

So God helped me and taught me much about sickness, despair and depression. God bless you with good health so you will not have to go through what I went through this past summer. I still feel quite shaky on my feet. Putting on my clothes is a real trial, but God is helping. Please keep praying for me as I soon will start into my chaplaincy work again. If you can send a gift for our chaplaincy work it would be much appreciated.

May Jesus, our Lord, bless you and yours abundantly.