My Hope is in the Lord

These were words that came to me yesterday as I was driving.  "My hope is in the Lord."  After years of church going, Bible reading and hymn singing - these kinds of words come to me unconsciously.

And they represent my reality of life - that there is hope and it is in the unseen workings of God who brings peace, love, healing and justice.  That is a foundational belief for me, the lens through which I live my life.

Yesterday  I got a glimpse of God's activity.  Wednesday night   I sat with Chuck in the family room and he shared his fears about the upcoming surgery.  He  described it as "frightening"  and gestured his image of the doctor (actually the robot!) cutting him open.  And I listened.  It is scary and no wonder he doesn't want to talk about it.

Thursday morning he went to the recycle center with a trunkload of brush to drop off.  There was a "black guy" (his words that I wanted to shut down - why can't he just say "guy?") who asked him as he drove in - how old are you?  And Chuck told him "82" and the man offered to help him unload his car.  As they were working together, Chuck told him about how hard this season has been, about the terrible fall in the summer and now the prospect of surgery in two weeks.

The man said, "Let me pray for you."  He started to put his arm around Chuck and Chuck said, "Let me put my arm around you too."  So, I picture these two men  - white and black - standing together in front of the car, their arms around each other in prayer.

And as I drove around and heard these words - "My Hope is in the Lord" I thought that this encounter was as much for me as for Chuck.  God provides people and situations that bring peace and show love.  It is not all up to me.  I can trust the work of the Holy One in Chuck's life and in mine.