The Day I Cried Out
Friday, May 7, 2021
In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul. Ps. 138:3, NKJV.
We had been in the emergency room only minutes, but it seemed like hours since Carol and I had received a phone call 45 minutes earlier that our son, Jimmy, had been accidentally shot.
Our hearts pounded and we held each other tight as we waited and prayed. It was one of those times when one realizes how human and helpless we are.
The doctor came into the room and with tears in his eyes said, “I’m so sorry. We couldn’t save him.” No words can express how we felt at that moment. The pain was unlike any other a human can experience.
At the time I had 20 years’ experience in the ministry, but none of it seemed relevant. I was absolutely lost as to what to do or say. In another room a family grieved the loss of a mother. I knelt with them and prayed that God would comfort them.
How I longed for someone to come and minister to Carol and me. It was then that I remembered Psalm 138:3: “In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul.”
Since that night we have cried many times together or alone. Crying is healing! We have reached out to God for courage and strength, and He has not failed us. Had it not been for our faith in God, I know our loss would have overwhelmed us.
As a pastor and a police chaplain I witness every day the results of a godless life. I see drug addicts and alcoholics, the broken and sick. I have looked upon the dead forms of people who have died as a result of their habits. My heart has ached for survivors of loved ones who could go no further and took their own lives.
In a world filled with broken hearts, broken lives, and broken bodies, I thank God for His healing grace. His grace truly is sufficient for us. He surely will answer us when we cry out for help. He really will strengthen us so we can carry on.
Thank You, Lord, for Your healing grace, and for giving me strength to carry on when bad things happen.
We had been in the emergency room only minutes, but it seemed like hours since Carol and I had received a phone call 45 minutes earlier that our son, Jimmy, had been accidentally shot.
Our hearts pounded and we held each other tight as we waited and prayed. It was one of those times when one realizes how human and helpless we are.
The doctor came into the room and with tears in his eyes said, “I’m so sorry. We couldn’t save him.” No words can express how we felt at that moment. The pain was unlike any other a human can experience.
At the time I had 20 years’ experience in the ministry, but none of it seemed relevant. I was absolutely lost as to what to do or say. In another room a family grieved the loss of a mother. I knelt with them and prayed that God would comfort them.
How I longed for someone to come and minister to Carol and me. It was then that I remembered Psalm 138:3: “In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul.”
Since that night we have cried many times together or alone. Crying is healing! We have reached out to God for courage and strength, and He has not failed us. Had it not been for our faith in God, I know our loss would have overwhelmed us.
As a pastor and a police chaplain I witness every day the results of a godless life. I see drug addicts and alcoholics, the broken and sick. I have looked upon the dead forms of people who have died as a result of their habits. My heart has ached for survivors of loved ones who could go no further and took their own lives.
In a world filled with broken hearts, broken lives, and broken bodies, I thank God for His healing grace. His grace truly is sufficient for us. He surely will answer us when we cry out for help. He really will strengthen us so we can carry on.
Thank You, Lord, for Your healing grace, and for giving me strength to carry on when bad things happen.
Used by permission of Health Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
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