A arm to hold onto...

Last week I attended several meetings at the hospital where I am a Patient Family Advisor. I was all dressed up, in my “going to town” clothes, had my hair and makeup just right, and was feeling special and important. The meetings went well except that the whole time I was there I felt a bit light -headed...maybe I better back off of the hair color! As I came out of the hospital, with my hands full (I took a cupcake with me to nibble on the way home), I must say I had a little attitude in my step. The next thing I knew..oops...and down I went...cupcake and me! I...Trina...Miss important met the sidewalk...OMG how embarrassing! And let me tell you this, graceful I am not!

There were people entering and exiting the hospital along with a group of workmen weeding in the flower bed around the sidewalk. As if falling spread out on the sidewalk was horrifying enough, before I could pull myself together I had a group of people surrounding me. I, due to total embarrassment, was not sure whether to try to get up or just lie there pretending to be unconscious and hope the people would move on. My daddy didn’t raise a complete fool so after a quick second,ummmm...hospital, woman lying spread out on the sidewalk, appearing to be unconscious… I decided I had better get myself up. Getting myself up was not necessary…there were several men who had jumped out of the bushes literally lifting me up, one more worker who pulled out his cell phone saying he was going to get a doctor out here, and two nice women picking up my pocket book and smashed cupcake. Embarrassing, mortifying, humiliating…I was feeling them all and just wanted to shrink into the flower beds and get to my car, unnoticed! The people that were helping me up seemed genuinely caring. One man, the man on the phone, and one of the women had both my arms and were guiding me to the hospital doors. I kept trying to turn around, back toward the parking lot, the entire time trying to help them understand that I didn’t need a doctor, that I was fine, and just needed to get to my car. Of course my hand was bleeding, my knee was scraped and bleeding, and my hip was bruised so I was limping. That really didn’t help my case any. As we approached the hospital front door, I saw a friend who was a nurse in the Shock Trauma Unit and was able to use him as an excuse not to be escorted any further. I guess the big bear hug was enough to convince the nice helpers that I was in good hands and would be taken care of. I told him of my fall, talked a few short minutes, and then made a mad limping dash to the parking deck.

At home later, as I was tending to my scraped knee, I started thinking how many times in my life I have been falling and have needed to ask God to take my arm and escort me to the right door, “Whenever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for calamity, as the Lord had said and as the Lord had sworn to them.” Judges 2:15. But because of my pride, just like last week there on the sidewalk, I have preferred to handle it all myself. Even though there might be consequences, I have insisted on pulling myself up and limping through whatever trial or tribulation. Go ahead, Trina, scraped knee, bruised hip and all, push God away or ignore the fact that he is there for me waiting to take my arm. God, just like those good people, want to be there to help me down this sidewalk of life, “God broadens the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.” Psalm 18:36. He would like to spare me the skinned knees, roughed up hands and bruises. But, if some of those things are just a consequence of a fall, the least God would like to do is have my arm in his hand for me to lean on, to carry me the rest of the way down the sidewalk. “Please let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are great.” 2 Samuel 24:14.

Today was one of those teachable lessons that God uses in our life. It is not a lesson that I am unfamiliar with but is easily lost in trying to handle the day to day business of life. Thank you Father for continuing to remind me of your love and protection for me and for always being there to pick me up and escort me down my sidewalks of life!  

“You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy”. Psalms 16:11