Rock of Refuge

“Be my rock of refuge, a stronghold to give me safety…” Psalm 71:3

When Josh was a little boy, we built a sand castle too close to the water, and so we had to watch it erode with every wave until it was back to a pitiful mound of sand. We are always building something, a family, a career, a business, a relationship, a life. What is the foundation we are building it on? 

One thing we can be sure of, there will always be something to test the foundation. 

In December 2019, I had a Pulmonary Embolism, which according to my doctor, was like a heart attack of the lungs. So I had to go through a battery of tests to find out why and how to heal me. The smallest exertion sent me into coughing fits and left me breathless. I eventually had to undergo a coronary bypass and a pulmonary artery embolectomy under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. The surgeon had to use His extraordinary skills to extract the calcified clots from my heart.

Where is God in all this? Right beside me, reminding me that as long as I keep my hope and trust in Him, I will be all right. The world may shake and tremble all about me, but I will be standing on firm ground. Isaiah 26:4 says, “Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal.” No one who trusts in God will ever be disappointed! 

“The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” (Psalm 18:2) 

Whatever I undergo, I remind myself that it is an adventure with the Lord. Adventures always have cliffhangers. I’m still in need of oxygen 24/7 but I am always busy and productive. I have Luigi, family and friends to help me and surround me with prayers. God is good and He always, always keeps His Word.