Since Jim's passing, Lois has been continuing to write excellent reflections on this journey along with breath prayers. She has consented to allow us to share some with you. Lois is also the core author of one of our newest workbooks: Your Pathways: Strong Connection with God.
Breath Prayer: ROOTED
Lois Hoogeveen
July 8, 2012
If I had known that a walk through the neighborhood on a
beautiful November day would lead to a root canal seven months later I would
have stayed home. But I didn’t know and I went for a walk. Catching the toe of
my shoe on a ridge in the sidewalk, I took a nosedive into the concrete. The
rest is history. After a few weeks, my cut lip, bruised eye, swollen nose and
shifted front tooth looked the same -- on the outside. On the inside, however,
my tooth is forever changed. Changed but not destroyed. This week I had a root
canal. The endodontist drilled the unhealthy tissue out of the root and filled
it with a substance that will keep the root a strong anchor for my tooth.
On that same November day, my husband went to the doctor
because he had a persistent cough. The rest is history. On the outside my life
looks the same. On the inside it is forever changed. Changed but not destroyed.
The swelling and bruises on my face went away, but the pain
and discomfort lingered. There were days when I didn’t notice it so much, and
then other days the throbbing persisted. It was no longer obvious to the casual
observer that my face had been injured. But for me the dull ache was often
there.
That’s also how I experience grief. The initial trauma is
gone, but the longer term impact of loss causes episodes of swelling and
tenderness in my inner being. Antibiotics healed the infection that developed
because of the trauma to my tooth. Similar to an antibiotic, the Word of God
functions as a combatant to my feelings of sadness and disappointment that
naturally come with loss, infusing me with words of comfort, peace, joy and
hope.
I have had three different experiences with roots this
week. The root canal made me grateful for skilled professionals and
modern technology that saved my tooth by treating the root. My second
experience with roots was not to save but to destroy. I extracted prickly
thistles one by one from my back yard, working diligently to not just get the
plant but also the root, in an attempt to eradicate these obnoxious weeds from
my lawn. My third experience with roots fills me with appreciation and
gratitude for my personal roots. A family gathering reminded me of the richness
of the roots of my heritage.
My breath prayer is that God will keep me ROOTED in Him
as I recover from the distress of death and rediscover the joy of living. Many
people have been influential in helping me become rooted and established in the
Lord’s unfailing love -- my parents, teachers, friends, and my dear husband.
Deep spiritual roots provide strength that helps us endure storms of any kind –
chronic illness, terminal disease, death, unemployment, financial fallout,
betrayal, rejection to name a few. Trials of many kinds will affect us while we
live on earth. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no
bitter root grows up. (Hebrews 12:16) The impact of painful circumstances
may leave us changed, but we need not be destroyed. Not when we are rooted in
the love of Jesus, Christ dwells within us and we are filled with the fullness
of God.
ROOTED I pray that out of his glorious riches he
may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being
rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints,
to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know
this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled the measure of all
the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19
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