His Righteous Right Hand

Welp. Spring break has indeed come and gone. So much for relaxing and getting caught up on school work. Neither of those two even showed up. Nevertheless, God did work in my heart over the last 9 days. Work that probably wouldn't have happened if I had stuck to my original "relax and study" plan.

What I've realized more than ever this week is how blessed I really am. My family is going through some serious stuff. Fortunately when I refer to family, I don't mean my immediate family, but I'm close enough to consider them that. Things are happening that I never imagined would ever be an issue in my family. Things that I read about or see on tv...are showing up through phone calls. It's scary. I'm scared. And the hardest part in all of this is that I can't be here. I go back to JMU tomorrow and I won't be home until the summer. That's two whole months. I think I'm in the "shock" stage of all of this. One thing happens, and then just when I think it's over or being fixed, another thing makes my phone ring. I don't know how to help. I don't know what to say. All I do is pray. Pray that God soon shows me the reason for all of this, that He will help me understand why it's happening, and to guide me through this in a way that best glorifies Him.

He's testing my faith, I know that much. Because in this situation, the family doesn't want this to be talked about (hence the really broad statements about the issues). I can't run and talk my feelings out to people and be comforted from their words. I don't have a way of physically helping the people who are hurting. He wants me to rely completely on Him for this. He doesn't want me finding contentment and encouragement from others (though that's not always bad), and He doesn't want me to use my ability to serve and do "good works" to make my pain go away. No, He wants me to come to Him, to let Him be all that I need. 

So how am I blessed from all of this? Because I look at my family members who are having to deal with this and how much it is impacting their lives, their faith, and their energy. I complain about little things, but they are the ones who have it hard. .

"'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'" -Isaiah 41:10