The Week From...

It began as the week from Hell. I broke a tooth on Saturday and couldn’t get in to see the dentist until Thursday morning. By Monday I was in a state of fear, being attacked by the minions of Satan. Added to that, I had scheduled an MRI on my foot for Wednesday night and Thursday night my semi annual boob squashing experience. (Otherwise known as the mammogram.)

Compared to the fear and anxiety I experience over the tooth, the radiology experiences were nothing, really! In fact the MRI helped prepare me for the dentist. Twenty-five minutes in a room, all alone, partially engulfed by a machine which is alternately sounding like a machine gun and a fire alarm made me reach out for something on which to fix my mind. I tried praying for my family and friends, but the real comfort came when I remembered that twenty years ago I had memorized Psalm 103. How much could I recall? Trying to dredge up those marvelous phrases lifted my spirit beyond the brain-numbing noise and encouraged my soul. The final session ended with me humming a praise chorus – to the beat and key of the alarm, of course.

I left there resolved to write out the whole Psalm the morning before the dental attack. Immersed in those words of praise and wonder I approached the dentist and survived the worst, emerging praising God for his marvelous power and amazing love. Only He can do that!

Someone once challenged me not to waste the pain in my life. This experience was one in which God redeemed pain and fear and used it to draw me closer to Him.

What began as a fearful journey through Hell’s dark assaults ended in the triumph of heaven and light. It became the week from Heaven.