[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Sunday, October 20, 2013

[Paul]

Well folks, I trust that, when you get around to reading this, that I hope you had a good day of corporately fellowshipping with the Lord and with the congregations at your local Christian houses of worship.  I surely did, but unfortunately I didn't get much of Pastor Green's sermon as I got back from that social bonfire and singing relatively late.  Thankfully, if he saw me nodding off, he didn't say a thing.  Oh well, these things sometimes happen to all of us.  At any rate I hope that your day is going well, whether that be morning, afternoon or evening.

The article I have for you today was written by Mary Rathbun Blair of Alpine, Arizona.  I wonder if she is the daughter of Pastor Robert Rathbun, as that last name isn't exactly a common one.  Her contribution today is entitled "Peace Rain," rendered as follows:

Vertigo.  Nausea.  Dizzy spell.  These were the first symptoms of my illness, the illness that baffled our family doctor and then specialists, too.  We were living in Lubbock, Texas, in those days.  My husband, Charles, was a good, hard-working man.  Our children were 11 and 13.  I was a kindergarten teacher and taught piano and Sunday school, too.  I also played for services at our church, but when the dizziness affected my hearing, I had to stop.  My eyesight diminished until I couldn't focus at all.  I grew more and more incapacitated.  I couldn't work, go to church, take care of my family, but the worst part of all was not knowing.  What was wrong with me?

I went into the hospital for more tests.  The best the doctors could come up with was a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, but they couldn't be 100% sure.

I went home with medication that helped slightly.  My family and my church friends prayed we'd find an answer soon.  Over the next six months, my eyesight and balance improved.  One morning I walked to the front porch and picked up our mail.  I had not been outside by myself in weeks.  I stood on the porch, exhilarated, thanking God that my doctors were on the right track.

My eyes fell on our lawn, brown and dry.  I knew we'd been in a terrible drought, but I hadn't noticed the effect until now.  Still, that lawn looked beautiful to me.  It was so good to be out in the fresh air.  As I took a deep breath, something tickled my nose.  I swear, it smells like rain.  I looked up.  No clouds.  Just sky.  Clear blue sky.  I couldn't take my eyes off it.

As I watched, a few raindrops fell.  The drops came faster and heavier until we had a real downpour.  It soaked our lawn and pounded our driveway.  I'd never seen a rain like this--or felt one quite like it.  I was transfixed by its power.  My fear, my doubts, my worries about my health and my future seemed so small in comparison.  God, I give it all over to you.  As the water seeped into the lawn, I let go of all of those feelings of helplessness.  God was all-powerful, more powerful than this rain, and He was watching over me--I knew it.  He was with me in my ordeal.  I wasn't alone.  Peace washed over me, from head to toe.  I looked over at our neighbor's lawn.  It was bone dry.  Same on the other side and beyond.  It had rained only at our house.

When Charles came home that night, I told him what happened.  About the rain that was meant for me.  "Oh sure!" he said.  "It rained just on our yard and nowhere else?"

"Charles," I said, "you know I don't tell whoppers.  Why would I make something like this up?"

"Honey, maybe you had another spell or something," Charles said.  "It just seems a little farfetched is all."

It did seem impossible.  Still, I couldn't deny the deep sens of peace the rain left me with.  And I had seen it with my own eyes.

My health steadily improved.  I had spells here and there, but nowhere near as intense as they had been.  I was determined not to get so frustrated by my doctor's puzzlement over my case and started living my life again.  What difference did it make what they called it? It didn't have to mean the end of my doing the things I loved.

People commented on the difference in my approach.  Charles even started to believe me about the rain.  One night as we were getting ready for bed, we heard a few drops fall on the roof.

"Listen, Mary.  I think maybe the drought's over," Charles said.

"Yep," I answered, brushing my hair.  "Sounds like rain."

"But not like your rain," Charles said.  "I'm sorry I was so hard on you about that.  Something surely happened to you that day.  I wonder if maybe ..."

"Never mind, Honey," I said, kissing him goodnight.  No maybe.  I knew.

Soon I knew even more.  I finally got an accurate, 100% diagnosis.  I have Meniere's syndrome, a progressive and debilitating disease that's extremely difficult to diagnose.  There's no cure, but it's not fatal.  Around 18 months later, I was able to go back to teaching and playing the piano for church.

They say into every life a little rain must fall, but the rain that fell into mine was no ordinary rain.  It was peace that rained down on me, from heaven.

Afterglow

After two surgeries, many more tests and changing to a low-salt diet, Mary Rathbun Blair is doing just fine despite Meniere's syndrome.  Meniere's is an abnormality of the inner ear, which often causes hearing loss.  Mary's symptoms of dizziness and vertigo are also common among sufferers.  "I have a shunt in my ear now, which helps a lot," Mary says.  Even though hearing can become worse over the years, hers hasn't.  She still loves music and delights in hearing the singing of her grandchildren.

And there you have Mary's article, which I hope was an inspiration to you.  Which only goes to show that, in the old Gospel song by Stewart Hamblin, "What He's done for others, He'll do for you" (It Is No Secret)".  However, He'll do for you in His own way, will and time.

And now until tomorrow when, Lord willing another daily thought message will be presented, may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul