Monday, January 7, 2008

On being carried: He's big enough!

The Lord has, time and again, brought to my attention passages of Scripture that are uncannily applicable to our circumstances. The most recent example was my running across Deuteronomy 1:31-33 yesterday morning. The New International Version reads: "The LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son.... The LORD your God...went ahead of you on your journey...to search out places for you to camp."

What an apt description of the Lord's care for us! He "went ahead of us" to Klosterneuburg (a place I had never heard of just a few weeks ago) to "search out a place for us to camp" (a house just five minutes drive from the rehab center!).

Most special of all is the phrase "as a father carries his son." I gained a new appreciation of that phrase Sunday afternoon. The house in which we are staying has more than two dozen stairs from the street to the front door. Those stairs become frighteningly slippery when they are icy; and there is no handrail. So Nathan and I had quite a struggle getting him down the stairs in order to get him back to the rehab center Sunday afternoon. It was all we could do to pull it off. A bit scary, in fact. We managed to pull it off. But only barely. It would have been easier had I been big enough to carry him. But I'm not that big or strong. :( It is good to know that our Heavenly Father is able and willing to carry us!

It was great to have, not just Hannah, but Andrew and Stacey and Sarah here for the holidays. And it was wonderful that Nathan's long-time buddy Boram was able to fly in from Oxford for the weekend, beginning the very day Hannah and the Stacey and Andrew and Sarah flew back to Manila and Portland, respectively. (Not only did those family and special friends lift our spirits, but Andrew and Boram were able to help me lift Nathan up those stairs!) But now that they are gone, I have to count on the Lord to "carry" Nathan and me. It is good to be reminded that that's what He's both able and willing!

2 comments:

The journey from mom to grandmother said...

Greg and Nathan,

Know that we are following your every word, praying for you everyday and our thoughts and prayers always include you. This is probably a very tough time, the holidays over, the work still ahead, and the family clan gone home.

We are still with you, clinging to every word of recovery and praying for continued strength both emotionally and physically for Nathan.

We will not forget your journey. We are all still reading.....and so are many others....

Anonymous said...

I bet you had to look up the word on how to spell K-l-o-s-t-e-r-n-e-u-b-u-r-g! How fast can you say it now without stumbling? Hahaha!