Freedom

By Joy Le Page Smith, MA, BCC

Last March when the Mount Olive Lutheran Church Men’s Workmen Team said “yes” to building an altar for the chapel of Havasu Regional Medical Center, I was overjoyed. Through the years of serving as a volunteer duty chaplain at the hospital I longed for the chapel to be more than a quiet room. I am sure many came to pray and many were helped in the little room through all the years prior. But the time came when I became the Director of Pastoral Care and could perhaps bring a change . . . if only I could get that help.

How wonderful it was when I asked Jim Day, an Elder at Mount Olive if his team could bring a dream to fruition and received his OK. When Tom Moore, a winter visitor at the shop, came to take measurements I asked him to take as much room as was needed in order for the altar to have a kneeler and enough space so a family of four could bend together before God in prayer. And, that is exactly what the Mount Olive workmen prepared for the chapel.

Months went by and at times I saw copious tear marks on the leather kneeler. How touching that was as I recall the time during my internship as a studying chaplain at a teaching hospital in Phoenix (then called Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, now Banner University). It was my turn among the nine of us chaplains to take 24-hr. duty. A call came for me to be at the bedside of a dying baby. Nothing could prepare me for what I saw upon arriving in the room of the child.  No parents were present. I stood looking into the deformed face of a girl child. Her head had no bones and I could see every vein through thin, pale skin. I was rocked back. My job was to pray for the child. I had no idea how to pray for her at the moment, but rather fled to the chapel on the first floor. There I fell on my knees before the altar. “Why? Why? Why—Why! These were the only words I could say. I bawled my eyes out. (Close too literally.) I was there until a family came into the hospital chapel pulling a child in a little red wagon. I arose and left so they could pray together over whatever need that was tugging their hearts.

Much of chaplaincy strikes the heart in a way that can bring us to our knees. Yet, God has empowered me, just as He has for chaplains throughout history, to stay the course . . . keep coming to the side of those who are facing the hardest events of life. How? For Christian chaplains, we know Christ has called us. At one point when I needed a break in service I was called back in a notable way. I heard His call solidly within a quiet moment of quandary. In my heart. I knew what the words meant when they came, “I am acquainted with suffering.”

Back to that wonderful event early in the year when churchmen as workers freely built an altar for our hospital. A few months back I came to work to find the chapel and several areas of HRMC’s first floor sealed off—having no entrance. A fire had taken place. The greatest of all damage came through the built-in sprinkling system drenching all these areas leaving a considerable amount of flooding. Strangely enough I had total peace about this. I remarkably knew from the start all would be restored. And, that is what took place.  And, for a fact not the altar, nor even one other accoutrement of the chapel was damaged by fire or water. Once returned from storage, not a single touch of harm had come to it. All is back in place.

The words of Job come to mind. After all, Job was tried in ways humans have a hard time imagining. He came to terms, in the end, saying “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

That is surely true of each of us.  Clearly, Job’s life was restored many times over.) What matters, through it all, is the fact we can trust. For all is well with our souls when we do. The entire Bible is about staying on the side of “faith in Father God.” Clearly, this sees us arriving at life’s end—safe and sound.

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Last Friday morning as thirty-some balloons filled the sky on my drive to work I was awestruck. I felt my heart arise with them. Then while on the job with a grieving family, I asked, “Have you gone outside to see the balloons. Immediately, the “yes” of this family showed clearly that they had felt what I had felt in seeing many balloons fill the sky that early morning. Changes in their words, tone of voices and their eyes said it all. They, too, had felt their hearts uplifted at the sight of the seemingly motionless, splendor of the balloons.

Last Friday morning as thirty-some balloons filled the sky on my drive to work I was awestruck. I felt my heart arise with them. Then while on the job with a grieving family, I asked, “Have you gone outside to see the balloons. Immediately, the “yes” of this family showed clearly that they had felt what I had felt in seeing many balloons fill the sky that early morning. Changes in their words, tone of voices and their eyes said it all. They, too, had felt their hearts uplifted at the sight of the seemingly motionless, splendor of the balloons.

For many of us, prayer lifts our hearts above the fears, dreads and deficits–the disappointments–that come as we do our days within the COVID experience. Shortages remind us “it is real.” We can’t deny it. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 55:6, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.”

Then, in verse 16, the tone changes as David exclaims,” As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice.”

His prayer of lament continues, then David arises in his spirit as he writes for others what he has found to be true for himself, “Cast your burden on the Lord, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”

No matter what happens in our bodies—and no matter how many changes we must endure, we were created to transcend. Our spirits are meant to arise above it all as we realize that meaning and purpose hold a hiding place for our souls.

We are loving beings. As we love we transcend. We “go up” in our hearts like the balloons. Even a few minutes of counting our blessings and thanking God for each of them sees us arise in our spirits. Seeing a new born baby does it for us, too. We are reminded of the gift of life and how precious it is.

Life is such a mystery! We come into this earth experience not knowing how long we will have, here. So, we set our minds on living long, into old age. Then when it doesn’t work that way for a loved one—or when we are told by our doctor “it could end soon” the bottom falls out for our hopes, our dreams. Reality hits like a sucker-punch in the gut.

Sometimes we are like the Psalmist. When times get hard we want to “fly away”. . . somehow, we want to “get high”—above it all. There is only one good way. And, that is through prayer.

Andrew Newberg, a medical scientist, wrote, Why God Won’t Go Away along with two other scientists. Through using SPECT MRI within their research, the results of their efforts revealed what happens physically when we pray or meditate for 12 minutes. (Yes, of course. Scientists measure everything!) These medical researchers demonstrate how there is a specific place within the brain that lights up “like fireworks” while the subjects they study are praying.

 A front page newspaper headline recently read, “Piloting a balloon is an ‘art.’” Prayer is also an art form. It takes setting a time and preparing a place to be alone with God—expecting to quiet our minds, talk to God—and listen. Then, when we do hear words in our hearts from Him, it is important to write them down.

Prayer helps us learn how to give our burdens to God so we can let go our fears and take on His peace. Reading Scripture tells us a lot about God and what His hopes are for us. When we make a practice of this, worshiping God comes natural as we learn of God’s great love for us. God’s presence in our lives enriches us. Though prayer, we learn to trust His guidance—and, much joy comes into our lives. We were made to transcend. Joy and transcendence go together.

The beauty of the balloons reminds me of the meaning and purpose God held for us while creating us. As, we were intended to be in relationship with Him. Adam and Eve walked and talked with God, as shown in the Book of Genesis. Within our days on earth, we can do so, as well.

We are made to love: God, self and others. As we embrace His purpose for us, we live meaningfully. While praying our way through our difficulties—we live ABOVE IT ALL.

Gabriel Faure’s Requiem Opus 48, bespeaks of rest and consolation that comes to us in death. Thanks be to God, we can also have it as we live out this life!

By Joy Le page Smith, MA, BCC

By Chaplain Joy Le Page Smith, M.A.

Some of the most impressive words once heard in a sermon involved the uniqueness of each living person: “Each of us has love to give to God—that no one else can give.”

As exquisite as this blue planet appears, there is something even more beautiful. The giftedness, talents and abilities plus the endurance and determination that is instilled in us by God and that flows from us daily. Herein lies the earth’s richest resource. And, the greatest of all is love.

At times, it may be hard to believe there is any great, innate specialness about ourselves. We might even buy into the lie that the gist of life lies in accumulating money and things, getting the degrees “we need” . . . achieving—while knowing the right people—and being “beautiful.” This is the “word” of the world but should not become our all-consuming drive. Watch out, though, because environmental conditioning is strong. The media is pervasive, telling us continually that we need this or that to be “enough” or, so we can be happy. Refuting such deceiving falsehood means we invest ourselves in finding what is true. And, the truth is a good life is all about how we identify and relate in love!

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).

Love shines, especially in families. The following letter of a son to his parents portrays the power family has in finding faith:

“Today, I wanted to reach out to my mother and dad and thank you for loving and supporting me. Your support and love has allowed me to understand how to love and support others and to believe in myself. I am not perfect, by nature I am very aggressive and seek challenges from all comers yet your loving kind spirits taught me to pick my battles and to love my family. MOM-you gave me life, love, support, strength and desire to follow Jesus. DAD-you loved my mother, calmed her fears and provided a road map for how a man should work, support and care for his family. When I was a teenager I trembled with fear God would take my mother (then with a long term, major illness). And, through it all, I have learned to not focus on my fears but to focus on giving things beyond my control to God. Today, as I continue my journey of wisdom, I reflect on the examples of your lives and want you to know I am thankful for you.”

Perhaps you know those who have suffered horrendous wounds—or, losses causing great upheaval. You have seen how these experiences changed much about how life is for them, or for your own family. Arising from that and living past it is what makes us like the proverbial Phoenix that finds us coming out of the ashes of pain, arising to make as much good happen as possible while here on planet earth. Moving past great difficulties—or helping another live past what has happened to them—includes acceptance of the mix we have in this life, both good and bad. In the end, life can become transformed through this “resurrection,” which resonates with the Christian story.

Sometimes this happens while carrying another (or others) within a life of prayer. Having an ailing child, parent or spouse, may bring out in us some of the greatest of all virtues: perseverance, humility, patience and generosity of heart. These are not things we seek or want but they can truly become “riches,” making us more able to be compassionate, accepting and forgiving of others. When all is said and done, we learn that love is the greatest entity in the universe.

A question I hear, at points, within my work as a chaplain is, “What does God expect of me?” I know the answer to the question is something that each individual has to discover for herself or himself. Yet, I am able to read or recite the Twenty-third Psalm to them and to ask, “How hard would it be to just put your trust in a loving God and let Him lead you through life, then on into eternity when it is time for life on earth to end?”

In truth, letting the great, loving Shepherd lead us through all the ups and “down-unders” of life tenderizes the heart and softens us through our simply letting love lead. It is the fact of finding ourselves so very loved by God that brings tenderness to our hearts . . . making us exceedingly able to give that love to others.

Joy Le Page Smith, MA, is a Board Certified Clinical Chaplain. Visit her home page for many more helpful articles addressing life’s difficulties and Quick Aids. Meanwhile, Joy’s blog and her books are read in up to 32 countries. Her second site is at Healingwithjoy.blogspot.com