I talk a lot about how personal our God is. He loves us so much and because He created us, He knows what we need the most and what speaks directly to our hearts.
I love nature, but I’m highly allergic to certain plants…stinging nettle in particular. Knowing this, I’ve been very careful for the past two years to stay away from it. However, last summer I was washing clothes that unbeknownst to me had been exposed to stinging nettle two days prior, and that was enough exposure to cause a severe reaction in my immune system.
I got started on steroids right away and figured in 24 hours or so, I’d be on the mend. We also had planned a short getaway for the family about three hours away and saw no reason to cancel.
We arrived at our destination and I grew more and more miserable as the night wore on. The steroids and Benadryl didn’t seem to be helping and I spent a miserable night itching, burning, and swelling. There was an element of fear as my voice was growing hoarse and my face was distorting. I didn’t feel as though I was in immediate danger, but I’ll admit, I was a little scared. I was wondering if my reaction was growing more severe as I aged.
Looking in the mirror the next morning, I realized a trip to Urgent Care was in order. You know it’s serious when the admitting nurse takes one look at you and escorts you to a room instead of back to the waiting room with everyone else. You also know it’s pretty serious when the doctor comes in, takes one look at you, and asks if he can take your picture “because I’ve never seen a reaction quite this severe before.”
As the doctor started examining me, he asked me a question out of the blue. “Did you say your prayers this morning?”
I hadn’t talked about God, I wasn’t wearing a shirt that spoke of my love for God, so I thought that was an interesting question. I answered truthfully, “Yes.”
He looked at me directly, then, and answered, “God wanted me to tell you, ‘He’s got this.’”
Twice in the span of under an hour, he told me “God wanted me to tell you, He’s got this.” Twice.
God knew I needed that reassurance. God knew I was scared about the reaction my body was experiencing and being away from home heightened my fears. God knew what I needed to hear to know it was truly Him talking and He knew I would need that reassurance several more times throughout the week when the reaction continued to rear its ugliness instead of improve.
What is one way God has shown up for you in the last wee, month, or year? Please share with us in the comments below so we can praise Him with you for being such a personal, loving God.
© Cheri Swalwell 2021