Walk and not Faint

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isa 40:31(KJV)

"She will need a liver transplant in order to survive!" The words lingered in my ears, arrangements are being made to transfer her to MCV in Richmond,Virginia. "Your daughter is too sick for us to care for her at this hospital".

My day had started as usual. I was at work when an urgent call came through from my husband. He informed me our twenty two year-old daughter, had over medicated herself and the meds were in her system over twelve hours. Enough time to cause serious insult to her liver.

I rushed to the emergency room to be with them. Our daughter, a beautiful--young newlywed did not realize the dose of medication she took could potentially take her life. This was not a suicide attempt, only immaturity and a desperate cry for attention. Now a race was on to get rescue drugs in her to reverse any damage. The doctors had nothing positive to say and painted a gloomy picture of what was ahead.

The next several hours were a whirlwind. In the midst of the busyness a spirit of fear took up residence in me. I was a Christian but had never faced this type of challenge. My husband was full of faith, and spoke encouraging words words of life. I however, dismissed his voice and listened to the voice of doctors; after all they are educated individuals who spoke with authority and experience.

We were not allowed to ride in the medical transport with her, so we followed behind. Several hours after our arrival and with all medical testing complete, her room was quiet.

I opened my bible, the Lord directed me to Isa 40:31. The text was familiar but lacked comfort at this moment. All the negative words spoken to us this day had taken up residence within me. I felt spiritually bankrupt. I had no physical strength and very little spiritual strength. However, I knew my church family was praying.

The scripture spoke about mounting up, running, walking and not fainting. I was far from running and I barely had will power or desire to walk. Then the words "and not faint" caught my spiritual eye. I was intrigued. The scripture started with strength and went to complete fatigue. I realized I had not fainted (given-up).

Since I had not fainted maybe I could walk (trust Him), but how? He gently reminded me just like a baby, one step at a time. Walk and talk at the same time. It is natural for us we do it all the time, yet the concept is the same spiritually. Our words bring life and our walk is the action of faith.

My daughter was resting comfortably so I took a faith walk. In the end I was on the roof of the hospital. Dawn was breaking and the sun's rays were coming through a broken cloud cover. The rays encompassed the hospital complex with the appearance of the Lords glory all around.

Faced with a life and death situation as a Christian for over twenty years, I am embarrassed to say that I caved spiritually. This experience refined my walk. We were in a battle for my daughter's life. I'm blessed to say it ended in victory. My daughter left the hospital three days later.

Our God is faithful even in our weakness. Our words are powerful, so speak words of life my sisters, walk in your authority in Christ. When life gets difficult take baby steps, but keep forward movement in the spirit. You will one day mount up and soar like an eagle.

Lord, teach us to trust Your Word, as we trust You. Amen

Geri Hoggard