“For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” – Psalm 91:11 (NIV)
I recently spent a few days in the hospital. When you’re in a strange place and no one visits, the experience can be hard. Not only was I worried about what was wrong with me but I was lonely and had too much time to worry about things.
On my last night in the hospital, in the middle of the night, a male nurse came into the room to check my vitals. I was asleep earlier and hadn’t met him yet. I asked his name, and he said, Christian. I said, “I’m a Christian too.” That started a conversation in which I felt God had a hand in. He talked of being in the Air Force, of a motorcycle accident, and different key moments in his life. As he was talking, I felt that here was a young man, who had been through many things, had a wife and five children with one on the way, and had such strength that I could almost see and feel it.
As he talked, the conversation turned surreal. He mentioned a company he had once worked for and it was there that he had met his future wife. In the dark, my eyes got super big because my future husband and I had worked for the same company, in another place, and we married also. For whatever reason, it seemed our lives ran parallel, yet in different ways.
What Christian didn’t know was the night we talked was the anniversary of my husband becoming ill. I was a young widow, and although it has been many years since his passing, this is always a difficult time of year for me. Not only was I spending it in the hospital, but I was scared, worried, and having a hard time dealing with the anniversary date. That visit and talk with Christian soothed my hurts and reminded me that sometimes people come into our lives for only a short amount of time, but they often leave a considerable long-lasting impression. That was Christian. He didn’t know that what he shared about his life, helped me that night when I so greatly needed someone to talk to.
I remember a Bible study teacher years ago saying that some of the most compassionate people in the world are the ones who have been through difficult times. I believe this is true. Because until one has walked in another’s shoes or has been through a similar situation, no one can truly know what it is like. When I think of a compassionate person, I think of someone “with a heart.” “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.” Luke 6:36 (NLT)
I felt like God sent Christian to be my nurse that night for a reason. I felt blessed beyond belief.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Christian, and all the others who show up as angels when we need them most. Sometimes, we often question why we suffer and have hardships, but maybe it’s so we can understand and share our stories and compassion with others.
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