A Divine Rescue Mission
November 2, 2022

     I am, as usual, up in the wee hours of the morning.  I awoke, could not go back to sleep, and decided to rise and meet with God.  Also as usual, I was followed by my scruffy mop of a little dog—Chica—who hopped up on the couch next to me and curled up and promptly fell asleep.  And—also as usual—my soft gray and white cat, Felina, followed me to my chair, jumped upon my footrest, and stretched out along my legs to let sleep claim her.
     It has been a really hard week. I had been betrayed in a couple of meaningful relationships.  Painfully, unexpectedly, deeply betrayed.  It had knocked me for a loop.  I wanted to trust no one again.  I lashed out blindly to those closest to me.
     But then, I was rescued by three very reliable events:  Prayer, Scripture, and what my husband calls friendly interludes.  I pulled out my journal and jotted a note to God.  Told Him how I was hurting, and asked what I could do to alleviate the pain.  Scripture began coming to me as one of His clearest answers.
     A steady stream of verses I had memorized filtered into my  mind and lifted my beleaguered spirit out of its doldrums:
          Be still, and know that I am God.
          Though a man be found unfaithful, God remains faithful.
          In quietness and confidence is my strength.
          God is my exceeding and great reward.
          Do not remember the former things.
          Forgetting what lies behind….
Others came, too.  And soon my sanity began to feel restored.
     On top of that, my husband surprised me by sauntering quietly into the room in the dim early morning light to see how I was faring.  Sitting with deliberate intent in the recliner next to me, he smiled his slow, easy smile and questioned what my morning meeting with God had produced in the way of comfort.  “I can see you’re in a better space,” he volunteered.  And so began our typical daily conversation, a rich offering I have come to rely on to strengthen and encourage me.
     And so, I was launched into a more hopeful beginning of a new and better day’s experience.  Later, my son came to talk things over with me.  And later still, my daughter called to check in with me and assure us that she and her husband had been praying for us.  I felt back on an even keel.