If God is All You Have ...

The patient had been stripped of everything but the thin, barely concealing, faded, worn print gown.   She was lying on a thin stretcher, with locked wheels and cold metal sidebars in place.
Her personal clothing had been removed.  Her jewelry was gone.  And so was her purse.  There was no backpack. No bags, no book, no phone, no electronics of any kind.  There was nothing to write on.  Nothing to write with. No TV.  No radio. No music.  Just silence.

There was no one else around at that point either.  It was a time of waiting.  Alone.  Stripped naked except for the pre-worn, string-tied, hospital-issued garment.

Her family member was waiting outside the imposing, solidly closed and locked hospital door.
The pre-op personnel were elsewhere, attending to others.

The feeling of being alone crept in.  Vulnerability and lack of control were there too.  So the patient decided to calm her mind by counting the ceiling tiles that were the only thing directly in her line of vision.

It didn't take long.  So, next, she replayed all that had occurred this morning, up to this moment.  That didn't take long either.

Finally, she turned to God.  Finally, she prayed.  Finally, she began to relax.  As she cried out  to her Creator, His Presence filled the room.  She prayed.  She listened.  He assured her everything was going to be all right.

Life-giving Scriptures from the Book of Life began gently bubbling up within her.  She realized she didn't need anything else at that point, but what was already inside.  She remembered the Psalm which advised hiding the word of God in our hearts.  She lingered on the promise that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.
She thought about her Savior and the words He spoke and the truth of the goodness of His ways.  She meditated on His peace that passes all understanding.  She remembered her mother's favorite verses and how we're taught not to be anxious about anything.  She knew she could present her requests to God.  She began to list all the things, and people, for whom she was grateful.  Peace enfolded her.  She then let her mind dwell on what was true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and worthy of praise.

By the time the nurse returned and her family member was let in, it was almost an interruption.
She realized she had learned yet another valuable lesson that morning.  If God was all that she had, then she had all that she needed.

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