“Perfect Peace” by Reva Lachica Moore (I wrote this in 2014)
I was sitting in the waiting area of the doctor’s office with my 3-year-old granddaughter when I noticed a man trying to get the little girl’s attention. She was preoccupied playing games on my IPad. Once in a while, she would look at the man and wave, and then go back to playing.
“Children are very smart nowadays,” the man said. “I don’t even know how to turn on a computer. I was watching her, and she seems to know what she’s doing.”
I smiled and thanked the man. Then he told me a story….
“I have 11 grandchildren. One of them seemed very smart at one and a half years old. But something bad happened to him. I was driving home one day and got stuck in traffic at the Mississippi River Bridge due to a wreck at the bottom of the bridge. While I sat there, I received a phone call. My son and his baby boy were in a wreck! And it was the wreck on the bridge! Since I couldn’t go anywhere, I left my car and walked to the site of the wreck. They had already loaded my son and grandson in an ambulance. My son broke his leg, but I did not see anything wrong with my grandson. We later found out that my grandson was paralyzed from the waist down. He is now 6 years old and we do our best to make him happy and live a normal life.”
It was difficult to listen to a grandparent tell such a devastating story. All I could say was: “I’m so sorry to hear that. I have two grandchildren and all my waking hours, I’m always praying for their safety. I can only imagine what you and your family have gone through.”
“Only God knows why we go through very difficult times and only He can keep our families safe,” he added.
Indeed, life on this earth is full of troubles. Rich or poor, young or old, nobody is exempt from problems. And sometimes, even after you have prayed, still, accidents happen.
I remember the story of the Baptist minister and his wife whose 6 young children were killed in a fiery freeway wreck. The van they were riding in burst into flames when a piece of metal pierced the gas tank. How do you deal with such a tragedy? How can you have peace and comfort in such a very trying time? Why did God allow it? The minister who delivered the eulogy said, “This family with their high, godly standards would be in more pain right now if these children had gone off into a life of sin and debauchery. They would be in more pain now with them alive than they are with them passed on.” He affirmed that the children died as good kids.
God’s promise in Isaiah 49: 25 states…“But this is what the LORD says: “… I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.” God is talking here about saving our children for Eternal Life in heaven after the short life on this earth is over. But we still need to pray for daily protection of our families and friends. We can still pray for miracles because our all-knowing God is loving and merciful.
Last week I received an inspiring letter from our sponsor, Liz, in Arizona:
“Our granddaughter was born last April and three months later, we received bad news. The baby is not able to see. My son and his wife took the baby to an ophthalmologist, very worried that her retinas are not connecting to her brain and the brain was not showing signs of development. They thought she would be blind and possibly be a vegetable, and that would be very devastating! Of course, we were in shock from the news. But when you know that God is the Source of Strength, He is the first One you turn to. We prayed. Everyone we knew prayed and asked for a miracle. And that is what God, our Great and Glorious God has given us! When they went in for the MRI, they were amazed at what they were seeing. And when they went back to the ophthalmologist, she said everything is normal. The shocked but grateful parents asked what could be the reason. The doctor said, ‘It’s a miracle!’ I am so thrilled to know God and how good He is to us. I can’t wait for Jesus to come back for us all.”
So many horrible things are happening in this world. There is no guaranteed safety anymore, except in God’s protection. He has promised to give us peace and comfort in times of troubles. Let us claim His promises every day.
Isaiah 26:3…“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You.”