SO THANKFUL

As I begin my fourth and final academic semester of medical school and prepare for the next two years of hospital rotations that lie ahead, I'm starting to get my feet wet. Part of my schedule now involves one afternoon a week of spending time in the hospital talking to patients, helping here and there but mainly doing alot of watching.

Yesterday I had the privilege to talk with a woman in her fifties who had been in the hospital for several weeks with some mysterious swelling. The cause of her swelling remained unknown despite a barrage of testing until yesterday, when they told her she had cancer. My visit came less than an hour after her talk with the surgical oncologist had told her the news, that her mass was inoperable and that they would have to get back to her on the best course of treatment going forward. As I sat there and listened to this patient recount the events of her recent days, I found myself at a loss of for how to respond.

Last and night and again this morning my mind has wandered several times to the hospital room of that sweet lady. I can't help but wonder what is going through her head and sometimes it feels that I can almost taste a fraction of the hurt she must be feeling. These things are sad and never easy but they make me ever more thankful for the hope that we have in Christ. Every time I think about my new friend, I am thankful that she doesn't lie alone in her hospital bed because the God of all peace is right there with her and I am comforted knowing that she spoke of the Lord and the strength he has brought to her soul.

In her eyes yesterday, there was hurt, but there was also hope. So today I am extra thankful. Thankful not for my health of for that fact that it's not me sitting on the side of that hospital bed, but thankful for the hope that we always have in Christ. Whether in the darkest valley or on the highest of heights we have a God who loves us, is with us always, and who gives us great hope.

"What is man that you are mindful of him, or his children that you care about them? You made him ruler over the works of your hands, you put everything under his feet...O Lord our Lord, how majestic is your name!" - Psalms 8:4,6 and 9