Chaos. Calm. I took a temporary 24-7 live-in caregiver role. The posted job description didn’t match the actual duties.
I refrain from agonizing details, but after tending to an unnerving episode with this elderly post-surgery patient, I stepped outside to calm myself. I walked outdoors and silently asked God to shepherd me from a fearful lamb to a courageous ram. I was unqualified for this position, but sensed I was led to the job. I went back inside to resume my caregiver post.
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That night I read my devotionals and nearly choked when I read Deuteronomy 20. The words were like a spiritual Heimlich maneuver. “…you are approaching the battle…today. Do not be fainthearted. Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble before them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you…” (Dt. 20:1-4).
God never stresses. He instructs me to allow His strength to overpower my shortcomings, “Do not be alarmed by them.” In this case, alarmed by them applied to family dynamics, living conditions, and health concerns. I was troubled because I didn’t have training to nurse this patient.
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But God. I have a God who manages what I miss. “For it is Your God who goes…to fight for you.” Our Father fights for you. Our Father fights for me. He’s here for me and I want to be available for Him. I trust God to train me for what I’m unqualified to handle now.
Deuteronomy 20:8 questions, “Is there anyone who is afraid and weakhearted? Let him return home.” I was 800 miles from home and came too far to turn back from this health care mission. I asked God to carry me through to the point of no return. I recommitted my determination. He is the only perfect Caregiver.
At the end of the assignment, I walked outside and breathed another cry, “Thank You, God!”
Strengthened on the lily pad of life,
Christina
“When you go out to battle against your enemies and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you. “He shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel, you are approaching the battle against your enemies today. Do not be fainthearted. Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble before them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you” (Dt. 20: 1-4).