by Marcie Bridges, @Marcie_Bridges
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Psalm 16:8 (NIV)
“Nothing. Don’t worry about it.” my husband replied.
A little bit later he reached over and messed with my hair again.
“Is there something wrong with my hair? Am I getting a bald spot?”
“Nope. Don’t worry about it. Everything’s fine.” he said again.
Over the course of the next hour he did this several times and I became a bit more agitated with him. He was acting weird and I did not hesitate to tell him so.
We were at the hospital so I could get an infusion of IV medications for a migraine which had lasted about 2 weeks. Hopefully this would break it. Finally the nurse came in and began preparations. Again, my husband messed with my hair and once again I prodded him for answers.
“What ARE you doing?”
“Nothing. Really.”
“You’re acting sooo weird! Tell me! Please!”
“All right. I didn’t want to have to talk about this right here, right now though.”
My eyes rounded into saucers as I looked at him like he was growing Froot Loops out of his ears and nose. This didn’t sound good.
Then he said in all the seriousness of a man, “Have I ever told you how sexy your gray hair is? You have this one little white hair here that is sticking up like an antenna.”
I burst out laughing hysterically while on the other side of the bed I barely heard the nurse say, “One, two, three, I’m sorry…” and the needle pierced a vein in my arm.
This is how my husband distracts me when I’m getting any type of needle work done whether it is blood work, shots or IV’s. He’s the master of distraction for me. And for that few seconds as the nurse was doing her thing, he was making sure I was focusing all on him. He made sure I kept my eyes right on his as he cracked a joke so I would not feel the prick of the needle and pass out.
Jesus Christ does the same thing for us. When we focus our eyes solely on Him, He distracts us from all of the cares of this life and the circumstances we are in. He brings our minds and hearts to a place of peace so that no matter what we are facing, we can know that He is working it all out for our good. Just like I have to keep my eyes focused on my husband’s face during my times of distress so I don’t faint, keeping my eyes focused on Jesus keeps me from fainting and being weary in my walk with Him.
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You.
Isaiah 26:3
As an eagle swooping down to claim her prize
the cheetah sprinting toward its prey
a snake primed ready to strike
I focus my eyes to the sky
keeping my gaze fastened secure
my heart and soul surrendered to Your word.
Distractions no longer claim my mind
Circumstances diminish through Your sight
peace fills my veins like ocean’s high tide
keeping my eyes on You steadies my stride.
~Marcell Warner Bridges
©26, June 2016
All Rights Reserved.
Are you focusing all of your heart, soul, mind and strength on Jesus?
This is TOTALLY awesome Marcie girl!! What a lesson you learned. I love how you wove this experience into a story and then wrote a poem that beautifully illustrates focusing on the One who loves us. Thank you for sharing this with us. I love it! I'm still laughing 🙂
Thank you Nan! I'm so glad it tickled your funny bone and encouraged you at the same time. 🙂
Marcie, This post made me smile:) I love the way your husband loves you. That is so special. But more importantly, I love the way the Lord uses everyday things and painful things to draw us closer and show us if we fix our eyes on Him, we can soar!
I'm so glad Beckie. I still laugh when I think of it. I'm grateful too of how God uses us and our lives to help others. 🙂