Vet

It was a dog day of summer. Bentley, my yellow lab got a good bath on the driveway and then had a doctors appointment later int he day, just for shots. But when we arrived at the vet, she was hesitant to get out of the car, unlike when she goes to the dog sitter when you have to catch her before she leaps. She finally acquiesced, and believe me I do need her cooperation because she is so heavy, and we headed through the doors.

We had to wait for a bit and Bentley laid down on the floor shaking the whole while. Even with me patting her, she was anxious and scared. Chris, who knows Bentley and is the vets' helper came out to help her get to the room; she is a handicapped dog with both of her hind legs crippled from an accident 6 years ago. But she stood up for him and made her way without assistance even on the slippery floor. He took her to be weighed and brought her back to the room and she began to settle down. This wasn't so bad...and then the vet came in and talked to her and scratched her back and she soon realized that she was in safe hands and had nothing to worry about. And her shaky countenance faded away. But it took a while for her to trust the folks who were helping her.

We have all been there...sitting outside a waiting room! And anxious thoughts do seem to hover within us, whether they are conscious or unconscious, and as hard as we try sometimes they seem to reign over us. Whether it is us who is the patient, or a child or a friend or a loved one. Anxiousness is born from the unknown. No one knows what will be said or discovered behind those closed doors. So we wait without knowing, trying to make the positive thoughts override the negative ones, our minds trying to brace our bodies for what is to come. Some are strangers to the experience and atmosphere and anxiousness abounds while others know the drill well and have come to accept the procedure with patience and grace.

Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

We go to our doctors' offices for check ups, for maintenance, for diagnosis, for treatments, for consultations, etc, because we have either been referred to them upon reputation or we have read of their
professional background and trust their experience in a certain medical field. But no matter how much we know of them, or how much we have read of them, we are still making a conscious decision as to wether or not to trust them with whatever problem has risen. Can they help? Do they have the expertise to help? Are they qualified to help? Do they have the experience to help?

We ask those questions of doctors, and though they are highly skilled in what they do they still are lacking in the full knowledge that God has. As I sat there in the waiting room with Bentley yesterday, I thought there is just a door between us. When that door opens we are invited in to see the one who can evaluate her needs and give her the medicine that she requires to maintain her health. He can not cure her handicapped position, but her can equip me with instruction to help her, or encourage me to just keep on loving her and look at her as a happy dog in spite of her situation. Loved she is!

There is just a door between us and God. And everyday he invites us to come through that door and solicit his help and understanding and tools to cope with whatever situation is before us. He knows our needs, and recognizes our struggles, and has the ability and knowledge to equip us with wisdom, encouragement, strength courage and grace to continue on through our journey in life.

There are some things that God will not change, as in Bentley's handicapped position, but he will help us to deal according with those obstacles. And he will send others to help us as we need that help.

We all will sit/stand anxiously waiting on one side of the door at one time or another. We do not know what to expect or what news will be handed out, what treatments are available, or what time frame we are working with. But we walk in faith through that door that God has opened, we too must believe that he will walk beside us and help us work through any and all that is before us or within us. God's ultimate good and his glory will prevail. When we reach for the hand of God in faith and trust, he will hold us and comfort us and soon, as strange as it may seem, we will find that the anxious thoughts will soon fade away and we will will be able to rest peacefully in the confidence that we are in the best of holy hands. We have solicited the greatest physician of all, and he will give us all that we need to go around our mountain, through our mountain, or over our mountain, staying by our side the whole while.

Matthew 11:28
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

God has opened his door and invited you and I to come to him. He stands waiting for each of us on the other side. When we walk through it in faith...and in trust, he will help override our anxiousness with his tender love. He is the one true, experienced and knowledgeable physician who can direct our paths from his heavens and help us to know where we can go and to whom, in this earthly realm for help. May our God above release your anxious thoughts into vapors that fade into the sky and may you hold tight to your faith in him.

Just as Bentley settled down when she was gently handled and cared for, so our God will do the same for us if we allow him the opportunity to treat us through his tender loving grace.

Dear Lord, Thank you for offering us your open door. May we have the courage to walk through it and the faith to believe in you and trust you no matter what we may be confronted with. Amen

Praise God wherever you are and whatever situation He has allowed you to be in . . . His glory will shine through!