Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart to align my steps with Your path for my life.
I went to the Waffle House to meet a person who wanted to talk but they did not show up. So I sat at the bar next to a senior-aged man who is a regular at the WH. Dave shared with me that in a few months he will be married to his wife Martha for 53 years. They married right after high school. The first 13 years of their marriage was great and normal. What he thought marriage would be like, what “he signed up for.” Then Martha was impacted by a degenerative nerve disease that ran in her family. She became depressed, suicidal, emotional and moody. She has been hospitalized 70 times in the 37 years since she was effected by the disease for various periods of a week to 2 months. Dave said Martha will be one moment engaged and joyful, and then the next depressed and saying she does not want to live anymore. In this state she takes things out on Dave and says hurtful things to him because of her condition. Dave says it hurts him inside but he knows it is the disease and depression speaking, not his wife. Martha has gone through all types of different medicines and doses with only brief or sporadic help.
Dave said the 40 years of marriage since Martha’s disease changed everything has been a challenge. Sometimes a deep struggle. He has had to forgo allot of travel, and normal activities couples do together like going to a dinner and a movie because since the disease hit his wife hardly leaves the house. Yet for the past 53 years, with 40 of them being difficult, he has remained faithful to his wife. He has a strong faith in Christ, and he said he made a covenant before God and Martha that he will not break. He said, “Do I have moments and days I thinks this is not fair? Yes. That I got a raw deal of more years of the “worse” out my vow of “for better or for worse?” Yes. That I miss going out and enjoying my wife’s company? Yes. Have I had occasional thoughts of leaving my wife? Yes. But he loves Martha. Loves God. And remains faithful to both. I told him he was a good man. He said I hear that allot however I am not. Most days I do not know what I am. He told me thanks for listening. Most people can't tell the difference between listening and loving. And we listen because we love.
We prayed together at the bar before we left.
I then went to a house to repair a plumbing issue for a couple. As God would have it, while working on the issue the the man began to share with me about his wife and marriage. Larry told me that he and his wife retired 1 1/2 ago and about the same time his was diagnosed with Alzheimers disease. And it has progressively gotten worse. He said she loved to garden and landscape and he showed me all the flower beds and garden in his front and back yard. They were looking rough and he said it is because his wife now is not able to take care of them. Larry said his wife is an amazing cook, however she rarely cooks for them any more because she will begin cooking something, not be able to remember the complete recipie, and get frustrated and angry, and quit. He said his misses her cooking and meal time around the table so they order out allot now. LArry said they stopped going out because when his wife goes out she gets nervous and anxiety because she does not know where she is. Larry said he he worked all his life to save up and enjoy retirement with his wife spending time together and traveling, and now that has been taken away from him. His retirement and the rest of his years together with his wife would not be what he had planned or signed up for. After I finished the plumbing repair, I realized that had not sent me to Larry’s house to work, but to listen. I prayed with Larry before I left and told him to call me if he ever wanted to talk.
In my truck while driving away I thought I have no reason to complain about any of the struggles I have had in my marriage or my life. Any percieved bitterness in my marriage was now brought into perspective and sweetened by my morning interuption listening to Dave, Larry and God.
"Then Moses ordered Israel to set out from the Red Sea and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter. That is why it was called Marah. And the people complained against Moses, saying, 'What shall we drink?' He cried out to the Lord; and the Lord showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet" (Exodus 15:22-25).
We are all on a spiritual journey out of the bondage of Egpyt, through the wilderness, and into the promised land of our destiny. And along the way we can grow weary and worn. We can give in to the negative attitudes of murmuring and complaining and criticizing. We can let our faith waiver as we begin to forget Your faithfulness for salvation and deliverance so many times before and start to lose our vision and hope for the destiny You've set before us. We focus on the cup of bitter waters we may be drinking from in the present.
But You are the God who makes our bitter waters sweet. Just like You showed Moses a piece of wood, you remind us of a piece of wood. You remind us of Your cross. The power of Your cross and Your sacrifice of love for every one of us is the power of God for our salvation, for our healing, for our deliverance that refreshes us and renews us to continue the journey. Just as You showed the children of Israel that day, You show us every day You are "the Lord who heals you" (Exodus 15:26) In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
My family, I pray you may drink deeply from the Living Waters every day, from the One who makes your bitter waters sweet, in Jesus' name! Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friends!
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