Sid's Recovery

26-year-old Nancy’s life was fast falling apart when she approached Pastor Frank. For 3 days in a row, Nancy kept coming back and pouring out all her troubles. Despite the previous attempts of several marriage counselors, her marriage was failing. She had her baby girl with her as she pleaded for help. This baby was Nancy and her husband’s final attempt to restore their marriage, but it wasn’t working. Eventually, Pastor Frank said, “Nancy, here is something that could help. He handed her this quote:

“The Father’s presence encircled Christ, and nothing befell Him but that which infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world. Here was His source of comfort, and [so] it is for us. He who is imbued (permeated or saturated) with the Spirit of Christ, abides (dwells, rests, continues, stands firm) in Christ. The blow that is aimed at him falls upon the Savior, who surrounds him with His presence (hugged by Jesus). Whatever comes to him comes from Christ. He has no need to resist evil, for Christ is his defense. Nothing can touch him except by our Lord’s permission, and ‘all things’ that are permitted ‘work together for good to them that love God.’ (Romans 8:28).” (Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing p71)

The following day, Nancy returned to see the pastor, along with her non-Christian husband. Pastor Frank told them that if just one of them would follow these principal’s their marriage could be saved and if both of them would do it they could have a relationship beyond what they thought was possible. Then he had prayer with them.

Nancy left with a firm commitment to accept everything that touched her life as coming from Christ. Her husband did not. In fact, he did everything he could to make her life a living hell. But Nancy remained committed to accept everything he dished out in a Christ-like manner. It took 3 months for his heart to soften then they began to enjoy a relationship that they previously thought was impossible. It was as if heaven had opened up in their lives.

One day Nancy and her husband decided to go sightseeing in the mountains and left the baby with her in-laws. Grandma laid the baby on the couch then sat down to read a book. Before long, they both fell asleep. When Grandma woke up, her granddaughter was eating the last of the pills that she had accidently left beside the couch. Grandma was paralyzed with fear – unable to do anything to help. When Nancy and her husband returned from their trip and entered the home, they quickly realized what had happened, picked up the pill bottle and the baby, who was now comatose, and rushed her to the emergency room. Within an hour the baby was dead.

The news spread quickly. Members of Nancy’s church started coming to her home, offering their sympathies – which Nancy accepted. As a result, Nancy began to experience the same type of bitterness and resentment in her heart that she had experienced prior to meeting with Pastor Frank. It occurred to her that she had accepted everything that touched her life as coming from Christ – but not this. She went into her bedroom, fell to her knees, and confessed to God her lack of trust in Him. She was totally honest with God about her pain. She said, “I don’t like or understand why this happened, but I do trust You, Father. You know what you are doing. Please help my lack of trust.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang – more church members coming to offer their sympathies. Nancy raised her hand and said I don’t want to be rude or insensitive but I do not want your sympathies. I want you to understand that a year ago I gave my life and the life of my daughter to God. Please pray with me and praise God for working in our lives. Well, this same scenario played out a few more times, until word finally got out that Nancy did not want sympathy.

When Nancy’s in-laws came for a visit, they told Nancy that they had been watching her over the last year and had witnessed an incredible change in her life. They had seen no resentment in her over the death of her baby – which they did not understand. They said, “If God can work a transformation in your life like this, we believe He can do it in us too, can we come to church with you?” A short time later they took their stand in baptism.

Not long after that, when Nancy’s husband got home from work one day, he told Nancy that she was not the same girl that he had married. The change he had seen in her and his parents brought him conviction. He wanted the same experience. He too was later baptized as he began a born-again relationship with God.

Just as the sun of the daytime melts butter and hardens clay, so does the Spirit of the Son of God use the trials of this world to strengthen our character, as we let Him. The question is, “Do we have the kind of trust in God that melts us to surrender all to Him?”

I wonder what difference it would have made if Nancy had made different choices……….? I wonder what difference it would make if I were to always show extreme trust in God?

"Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power, both now and forever. Amen." (Jude 1:24-25)

"Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity." (Step 2)