Dark Day

Strange how one day can change the course of your entire life; March 9 of last year did just that for us. That was the day we thought we were going in for a routine test and found out I was in heart failure. I remember feeling so scared and not quite understanding how the illness would affect my life. As my mom and I proceeded to the Heart Failure Clinic, I will never forget the older nurse who just kept patting my hand and saying, "There is hope honey, there is hope." It was a horrible day.

It took Ray and I months to work through in our hearts how God could let something so horrible happen. Although we knew ultimately that He loved us, we struggled to feel that love. Learning to adjust to a terminal illness as a young couple was so very difficult for us. But I do believe that we began to accept that God was doing a work in our lives. We determined that no matter how bad it got, we would do what we could to serve Him. We learned day by day that we couldn't do anything but trust God's plan. I wish it didn't take such an awful illness to teach us that, but I am thankful for the lesson. In fact, I cannot tell you how much Ray and I have grown and how much love and empathy He has given us for others.

And how can I talk about this dark day without being reminded that it led to His miracle day on January 11?!?! There can never be victory without first going through the battle.

Therefore, I will continue to remind myself all day today that this is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Many of you also have dark days where you remember the loss of a loved one or some tragic event that happened. I wish I could take your pain away, but I can't... but I know someone and He can!!