Hi Friends,
It’s so good to be with you again. Many of you know that I had a recent family emergency and spent a week at The Cleveland Clinic with my Aunt Mary Jo. I’m happy to report that she was released on Friday. Yesterday, I drove across my state to visit her, and she’s so glad to be back home. Please keep praying, since she has quite a long recovery ahead of her.
Mary Jo, whom I call Mary, had been in and out of the hospital for the past month with significant cardiac and lung issues. On Sunday, February 9, my mom and I were in Mary’s ICU room when the doctor was unable to wake her. She'd been declining all day and now, we were terrified. For the next few hours, we prepared ourselves for the worst.
While the medical team worked, my mom and I video-conferenced with my kids to tell them that their beloved aunt might not make it. That was hard. Then I prepared to make another tough call to my brother. For years, he's been estranged from everyone in my family except me. Aunt Mary is his godmother. I found a quiet back hallway between two ICU units to catch my breath before dialing his number.
Except I couldn’t calm down. Understandably, I was a mess. My mind kept jumping to worst case scenarios. My body felt like a live wire. In one moment, I wanted to run or scream. In the next moment, I longed shut down and not feel anything. I was overwhelmed and there was nothing I could do. Feeling so helpless in the face of Mary's life-or-death crisis crushed me.
As I wept in that quiet hallway, a familiar voice began speak to my spirit:
The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his
bringing honor to his name.
Even when I walk through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me.
If you've ever been in a space where you sensed the atmosphere shift, that's exactly what I felt in that hallway. The heaviness of fear around me and instead of me began to break apart.
As Psalm 23 traveled from my head down, my shoulders begin to drop. Then, my chest stopped feeling tight and I could fill my lungs with a full breath. My arms felt less heavy, like the imaginary weight of everything going on was lifted.
As my mental chaos quieted, my body calmed, too. Yet, I knew that I only had precious seconds before the next wave of catastrophizing would hit. My positive thoughts weren't strong enough to hold the next wave, but God's Word is mighty! So, I used the words from Psalm 23 to create this simple breath prayer:
I inhaled and whispered, “God is my helper.”
Then I exhaled, “He will give me everything that I need.”
I forced myself to repeat inhale and exhale those phrases a few more times. With each repetition, something supernatural happened. Instead of feeling like fear was closing in, I knew God's presence was all around me, even though I couldn't always feel it. His Word anchored me so I didn't re-spin out of emotional control.
In crisis moments, stress is normal. In fact, we’re supposed to be stressed. That’s how God created our bodies. But stress doesn’t mean that we allow our minds or emotions to spin out of control. Nor did God design us to live in a constant state of stress, also known as chronic stress. When we lose emotional control or we're living in chronic stress, that's not normal. It's a spiritual issue called the spirit of fear. For those of use who follow Jesus, we should be living by the Holy Spirit, not by a spirit of fear. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but He has given us His power, love, and self-control (2 Timothy 1:7).
If you recognize that a spirit of fear has gripped you, God's Word is the mighty weapon you need to combat the spirit of fear with His freeing truth. Perhaps today is a good day for you to read Psalms 23. You'll be reminded that God is never far from you, especially when you're afraid. As you meditate on this psalm, you're assured of the kind of presence God offers you: He supplies. He leads. He protects. He gives rest.
Do you need to do this Psalm 23 breath prayer? Just try it!
It will only take five seconds, Ready? Here we go:
INHALE: God is my helper.
EXHALE: He will give me everything that I need.
Repeat this throughout today, especially if you tend to worry or you overthink.
Thank you for praying for Aunt Mary. At the end of this devotion, I’ve included the message she shared on her Facebook page a few days after coming off her ventilator and breathing on her own again.
I pray that today’s devotion on Psalm 23 ministered to your heart and reminded you that God is near in whatever you’re facing this week. He is your helper, and He will provide everything you need.
