The Tear Catcher: Written by Lynn Mackenzie

#7

Prayer/Crying Out

It seemed like a life time in those first few short days.  Bruce was struggling to fight his own battle and dealing with the news.  I faced a different type of battle. I needed to be strong for the kids because they were afraid to go to their Daddy and burden him daily issues.  I needed to be strong when Bruce would be struggling with the myriad effects of cancer.  I was now shouldering the heavy responsibility of keeping it all together and not knowing how I would survive. 

I looked up at the ceiling and I had a conversation with God.  I told Him that I knew in my head and in my heart that He would always be with me because he promised that in the bible.   I was afraid my eyes would become clouded with confusion and lies and I’d start to doubt and question.  Because of this fear, I prayed that God would not only give me the eyes to see His presence in every visual sense, but also in the unseen.

This brought to mind a song we often sing in church, “Open the eyes of my heart Lord, Open the eyes of my heart, I want to see you.”   There was nothing I could see before me that made any sense.  I would now have to exercise a blind trust. That was my prayer.  That was my cry.  Give me the eyes to see.  That would carry me through.

When have you been faced with an unexpected trial in your life and you felt incredibly alone?  You knew in your head that God would be there but your feelings, emotions, and heart hurt in a way that told you differently. 

Its times like that you need to be proactive.  Pre-pray for protection.  Anticipate those feelings and know that they are normal.  Expect them because they will come.  Uninvited, they’ll barge right in and settle in your mind and heart for the long haul.  Then they’ll work on your psyche and tell you lies. 

Daily we need to renew our mind and pray for the eyes to see his presence in our suffering.  He’s there.  He wants us to know that and be confident in His promise to “Never leave us nor forsake us”.

 

Heavenly Father:

 

You see and know things my eyes and heart cannot know or see.  What I see right now is scary and I feel alone.  I pray for your peace and eyes to see your presence in this trial I am now faced with.  May I see you everyday – even in the little things.  Whether visual or invisible I need to know you’re there Father.  Amen

 

 

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.   For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

                                                                                                                                                – 2 Cor. 4:18