“I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” – Psalm 121:1-2
I had never heard of Casting Crowns before that Spring of 2005. We had just come from our first of many visit’s to the University of Iowa Pediatric Neurosurgery unit with many questions and uncertainties. My daughter, Samantha, had been diagnosed with spinal stenosis. Her spinal column was too narrow for her spinal cord which was putting pressure on the spinal cord and obstructing blood flow. By looking at her, you would never know that anything was wrong. She was a very typical 2 year old, full of energy and non-stop questions to which I had no answers. I was at the wheel late at night as we were driving home from Iowa City back to Houston. All of the kids were sound asleep and my wife, Lisa, had just started to fade in the passenger seat.
I was outside of St. Louis, Missouri and the snow was falling. We needed a hotel for the night, but there was this part inside of me that just wanted to keep going, to get home and pretend that life would be normal again. We had been told that she would need surgery on her spine, but to wait a few years and observe what would happen as she grew. As a father of this beautiful 2 year old, I couldn’t help but feel helpless on this one. There was nothing I could do to fix this, and it truly bothered me. I was scanning the radio dial looking for some Christian music and was only getting static or hard rock. Then out of nowhere the radio locked in on a station, which came through crystal clear, just as the Casting Crowns song, “Praise You in the Storm” came on. Tears were plentiful as the words filled my mind as I came to realize that during the storms of our life we are to praise God for His blessings and miracles. He hears every word of our struggle and cries for help.
This immediately became my song of strength for the next 2 years of visits to and from Iowa. I fought with God, argued with Him and praised Him for this situation in my life. Why couldn’t He reach down and miraculously heal her? I saw this as a great opportunity to show the world His healing power, but why wouldn’t He do it? Looking back, I have come to realize that God used this situation for many purposes in my life and the lives of others, rather than just healing her. In my quiet times over that 2 year span of time, I consistently heard God telling me – “Will you still praise Me if I don’t heal her?”
Sam’s surgery took place in April 2007, and by October 2007 the doctors in Iowa were amazed by her recovery and deemed her situation an unbelievable success, never seen before. God’s plan for Samantha reached so much farther than my short-sighted miracle request. Over a two year period God had performed multiple miracles through this little girl’s experience. From finding the right doctor, to financial provisions for flights to / from Iowa, to amazing the doctors with her quick recovery, to helping another little girl at the hospital gain confidence as she was just beginning her experience. Over that two years, God used Samantha’s situation to impact the lives of many other individuals. In the end, her surgery went flawless, her recovery was miraculously short and she is living a perfectly normal life 4 years later.
We don’t always see how God is going to use a situation, but we must have faith and trust that He will use it for His Kingdom. The hardest part is not being able to understand during the trials and storms, but knowing that God is in control.
Heavenly Father,
You have made all things work for the good of Your kingdom. We are here to serve and to love, so that through us others might come to a deeper relationship with You. Thank You for the miracles of Sam’s life, trials and amazing recovery. You have demonstrated Your love in countless ways throughout this experience and I know that You have it all under control. Help me to get out of the way and to trust You and Your plan for my life. In Your name I pray – Amen.
I was outside of St. Louis, Missouri and the snow was falling. We needed a hotel for the night, but there was this part inside of me that just wanted to keep going, to get home and pretend that life would be normal again. We had been told that she would need surgery on her spine, but to wait a few years and observe what would happen as she grew. As a father of this beautiful 2 year old, I couldn’t help but feel helpless on this one. There was nothing I could do to fix this, and it truly bothered me. I was scanning the radio dial looking for some Christian music and was only getting static or hard rock. Then out of nowhere the radio locked in on a station, which came through crystal clear, just as the Casting Crowns song, “Praise You in the Storm” came on. Tears were plentiful as the words filled my mind as I came to realize that during the storms of our life we are to praise God for His blessings and miracles. He hears every word of our struggle and cries for help.
This immediately became my song of strength for the next 2 years of visits to and from Iowa. I fought with God, argued with Him and praised Him for this situation in my life. Why couldn’t He reach down and miraculously heal her? I saw this as a great opportunity to show the world His healing power, but why wouldn’t He do it? Looking back, I have come to realize that God used this situation for many purposes in my life and the lives of others, rather than just healing her. In my quiet times over that 2 year span of time, I consistently heard God telling me – “Will you still praise Me if I don’t heal her?”
Sam’s surgery took place in April 2007, and by October 2007 the doctors in Iowa were amazed by her recovery and deemed her situation an unbelievable success, never seen before. God’s plan for Samantha reached so much farther than my short-sighted miracle request. Over a two year period God had performed multiple miracles through this little girl’s experience. From finding the right doctor, to financial provisions for flights to / from Iowa, to amazing the doctors with her quick recovery, to helping another little girl at the hospital gain confidence as she was just beginning her experience. Over that two years, God used Samantha’s situation to impact the lives of many other individuals. In the end, her surgery went flawless, her recovery was miraculously short and she is living a perfectly normal life 4 years later.
We don’t always see how God is going to use a situation, but we must have faith and trust that He will use it for His Kingdom. The hardest part is not being able to understand during the trials and storms, but knowing that God is in control.
Heavenly Father,
You have made all things work for the good of Your kingdom. We are here to serve and to love, so that through us others might come to a deeper relationship with You. Thank You for the miracles of Sam’s life, trials and amazing recovery. You have demonstrated Your love in countless ways throughout this experience and I know that You have it all under control. Help me to get out of the way and to trust You and Your plan for my life. In Your name I pray – Amen.
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