Relighting A Candle In The Darkness

Relighting A Candle In The Darkness

He reached down from heaven and rescued me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and were too strong for me. They attacked me at a moment when I was in distress, but the LORD supported me. He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me. 2 Samuel 22:17-20

Twelve-year-old Cami had been kicked out of the house for being pregnant. The man who had gotten her pregnant paid for an abortion and drove her to the clinic.

She’d lived on the streets ever since. When Cami came to the ER with various illnesses and injuries, I could only imagine the horror of her everyday life. Over the next few years, she had two more abortions, and I saw her in the ER after each one.

It wasn’t surprising that Cami soon found herself in the deep waters of addiction. The drugs helped to numb the pain she was living. The next time I saw her, I could see the despair in her eyes.

“Can you help me?” she asked. “I have nowhere to go. My going price on the streets isn’t even enough to feed myself.”

In my mind, this was as much of an emergency as any heart attack or stroke. “Of course, we’ll do what we can,” I said, “but it won’t be easy.”

We admitted her and started her on antidepressants. Then we began to detox her system from the other drugs. “I’m going to call social services to help you find a safe place to land when you leave here,” I said.

It wasn’t easy watching Cami go through withdrawal, but deliverance from that bondage was necessary to restore light in her dark life.

When she left the hospital, she had a clean mind and body, some resources to start a new life, and a lot of our prayer. But she also left with all the ghosts of the past, and her journey would not be easy. Only with God’s help could she make it the rest of the way.

When I saw her six months later, she was a new woman—completely clean and sober, with a job and a place to live. Best of all, she had recovered something she’d lost long ago: her self-respect

TODAY’S RX

When life is at its darkest, trust God to relight the candle.

As Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.” Thank you for your wisdom and direction, Lord. Continue lighting my path, so I may know the way to go.