HAMSTER SURGERY

OK, yes, this has a backstory.

Years ago, my sons had hamsters.  Cute and cuddly little guys. 

We (I) enjoyed taking care of them – cleaning out the cage, changing the water, making sure they were fed.

But, there came a day when we faced a dilemma – vacation.

Obviously we couldn't take the critters with us – even though this decision was vociferously opposed. 

So, what to do?

Well, I decided to do what I always did when I needed some extra help – I asked Mom.

My mom is the best.  She was the only babysitter that I ever had for my kids.  I was lucky.  She lived close by – and I actually think she just might have sat by the phone all the time waiting for the opportunity to *watch the boys!*

I called her.

"Mom, would you be willing to watch the hamsters for us while we're gone on vacation?"

"Of course."

Then I shared with her how one of the hamsters had some sort of skin thing growing on his back.  It was making me nervous, and I didn't know what to do.

Mom, precious Mom, had an immediate answer:

"Don't worry.  I'll take care of it."

So, cages and food and sawdust and bedding fluff was dropped off at Mom's house – oh, and also two little furry bundles of fun.

And we left on vacation.

When we came back home, I called my mom to make arrangements to pick up the hamsters.  And to see how the "skin thing" was doing…

And then I found out what my mom had done.

In our absence, she had found and called a local vet by her house.  She had taken the hamster in for a visit.  And then, she had decided to have the vet perform surgery on the hamster to remove the growth.

Yes, surgery.

On a hamster.

Surgery that cost her (way back then) over $300!!

I couldn't believe it.

Mom had done an incredible thing.  I was amazed, though I shouldn't really have been.  My mom is just that sort of person.

I write about this story because I was thinking about it the other day.  I can still vividly remember the sense of relief I had handing over those hamsters to Mom.  Total peace of mind, no worries – calm thoughts and calm heart.

The reason I was thinking about this is because of the struggles that I've had lately letting go of stuff.

I pray – oh boy, do I ever pray!  But I just can't seem to let go.

I want so desperately to have that same peace of mind that I had with my mom.  I want to know that serenity.

So, I started thinking about WHY I was able to have peace about the hamsters.  Here's what I came up with:

1.  I completely trusted my mom.  I knew that I could count on her, that I could leave something in her care, and not give it a second thought.  I was well-acquainted with her character, and she had always proven trust-worthy. 

2.  Mom knew me in-and-out.  I knew that she wouldn't do anything to hurt me.  She would handle the situation just like I would.  She would do the right thing.

3.  Mom understood my heart.  She always cared about what I cared about.  The things that were precious to me were precious to her.  My concerns were hers, and my heartaches were borne in her heart, too.

4.  Mom was willing to take on the responsibility of taking care of things.  She shouldered the burden instead of me.

5.  Whatever it took, whatever the cost, Mom would do it out of love for me.  Her deepest desire was to bring me joy.

OK, that's a good list.

So, I'm asking myself – do I feel the same way about God?

The most honest answer I can give to this question is – yes and no.

I agree that all the things I said above about Mom also apply to God, too.

But, here's the rub.

Sometimes God lets things happen that are terribly difficult, painfully sad, achingly confusing…

In other words, not everything that God lets happen in my life is good.

(At least not by my definition).

Yes, He is trust-worthy.  Yes, He knows me in-and-out.  Yes, He understands my heart and cares about what I care about.  Yes, He has promised to bear my burdens.  And yes, He did what it took, paid the cost, just to bring me joy.

But I am not always joy-full.

So I have to admit that in the way that I live out my life, I do not trust God to guard me from suffering.

O.U.C.H.  

(Honesty hurts…)

A few years ago in Bible Study, I heard this thought (my paraphrase):

Whether God will or will not do something is up to Him.  Our part of the bargain is to decide whether we believe He is ABLE.

And, my friends, that is the crux of my problem.

I do believe with my whole heart that God is able to do anything – even the impossible.

But, when He doesn't do something that I think He should or could, what then?

Is He still good and worthy to be trusted?

Life, and the enemy of my soul, work very hard to convince me otherwise.

But, unless I'm willing to give up on Truth, I have to believe that God is trustworthy.  I cannot tolerate any inkling that He is a cruel despot or uncaring observer.

So what to do?

Here's some thoughts that I've come up with:

1.  Trust really isn't trust when things are going good.

2.  Trust becomes true trust when it is tested.

3.  Trust continues to believe in something or someone even when things go wrong.

4.  Trust is relying on someone’s character and not on the outcome of circumstances.

5.  Trust is believing something contrary to our feelings.

6.  Trust refuses to be side-tracked by lies.

7.  Trust should be based on what God has done in the past, and what He will do in the future – (think *the cross* and *eternal life*) – not on the current struggles.

And finally, trust must go beyond my own understanding of things.  If God is God, and I believe He is, He WILL do the best and good and perfect thing in my life...

EVEN. IF. IT. HURTS.

That is Truth, and that is Trust.

I'm asking the Lord to grant me the same peace of mind that I so remember from that episode with hamster surgery.  I am craving the same release from fear and worrying.

For I do know that He loves me – actually way more than even my mom does.

He died for me.

Oh, I can picture myself sitting at the foot of the cross, looking up at the broken body of a Savior, desperately searching His swollen and pain-filled eyes for some sense of peace.

And then, if I am quiet in my soul, I can hear Him whisper, inaudible to anyone else but me:

"Don't worry.  I'll take care of it."

And in tears, I know it's true.

He is the Great Physician.
The Master Healer.
The One who restores
the crushed in spirit,
and mends
the broken heart. 

"When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.  The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.  Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all." (Psalm 34:17-19, ESV)

"He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds." (Psalm 147:3, NLT)

"'The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free...'" (Luke 4:18, NLT)

"'Healthy people don't need a doctor - sick people do.  I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.'" (Mark 2:17, NLT)

"...he healed all the sick.  This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said, 'He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases.'" (Matthew 8:16-17, NLT)

"And [Jesus] went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people." (Matthew 4:23, ESV)

"When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick." (Matthew 14:14, NIV)

"'Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?'  And Jesus answered them, 'Go and tell...what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.  And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.'" (Matthew 11:3-6, ESV)

"By his wounds you have been healed." (1 Peter 2:24, ESV)

"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." (James 5:16, ESV)

"He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces...for the LORD has spoken.  It will be said on that day, 'Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.  This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.'' 
(Isaiah 25:8-9, ESV)

"I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, 'Look, God's home is now among his people!  He will live with them, and they will be his people.  God himself will be with them.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain.  All these things are gone forever.'  And the one sitting on the throne said, 'Look, I am making everything new!'...And he also said, 'It is finished!  I am the Alpha and the Omega - the Beginning and the End.'" (Revelation 21:3-6, NLT)

Amen and amen!



In what ways do you struggle with trusting God completely?



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