The Gift The World Cannot Give

The Gift The World Cannot Give

I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. John 14:27

Susan sat in my office in a bundle of nerves and tears. I’d known her for a number of years and was aware that she struggled with anxiety. She was normally able to handle her fears with medication and counseling, but her husband had recently been diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, and it had caught her off guard. Though Marcus had undergone successful surgery to remove the cancer, Susan’s anxiety hadn’t abated.

“Is Marcus going to be okay?” she asked with a quivering lip.

“All indications are that he’s going to be fine,” I said.

“Are you sure?”

“From the report the surgeon sent me, he thinks he got it all.”

“I know that’s what he said, but I’m still worried. What about the sepsis?”

Marcus had twice come to the ER with postoperative fevers. Each time, to be cautious, they had admitted him, completed a sepsis workup, and sent him home with medications.

“The antibiotics should take care of that,” I reassured her.

“But could he die from the sepsis, even though the cancer surgery was successful?”

“What are you truly afraid of?” I asked.

Susan chewed her fingernails and stared off into space for a moment. With fresh tears running down her cheeks, she whispered, “I don’t want him to die.”

“God is the only one who knows all the details, Susan. He’s in charge of every breath we take. At some point, we’re all going to die. But when he calls us home, we will live with him forever in heaven.”

“I know,” she said as she tried to stop the tears.

“I spoke with Marcus right after his surgery, before we got the pathology report back.” I said. “He expressed some of the same fears that you’re describing now. But he told me he was totally at peace with whatever God chose to happen.”

Susan looked at me, surprised. “He said that?” I nodded, and she wiped her eyes. “Well then, so am I.”

God calmed her heart and gave her peace of mind—which only he can truly provide.

TODAY’S RX

Be open to God’s will for your life. He will calm your fears and allow you to live in peace.

God, only the peace that you supply is sufficient to calm my fears. Please remove any anxious thoughts from my mind, and replace them with promises of your provision and love.