(Previous posts from this series):
part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4 part 5 part 6 part 7 part 8 part 9 part 10 part 11 part 12
Part 13
We had friends - lots of lovely friends! I am especially thinking of one, tonight.
She was dreadfully worried, and this worry became almost a disease, plaguing the hours between waking and sleeping. No day was free of it; the worry attached itself to her like a Chain. It could bring her to tears.
She was dreadfully worried, and this worry became almost a disease, plaguing the hours between waking and sleeping. No day was free of it; the worry attached itself to her like a Chain. It could bring her to tears.
She was a new bride in a new country with a husband devoted (as they all were) to the Air Force. He loved her dearly, but her growing worries frightened her most when she was alone. One day, she came to me.
"I am so afraid I am going to die!" she cried.
"Why?! Are you ill?" I said, suddenly alarmed.
"Well - no, not really. Not yet. But I'm afraid I might be. My aunt is terribly ill."
I was sorry for the aunt (I had heard much about this aunt), but did not see quite why her illness might cause my friend personal fear.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/intherough/3253349104/
"Is what she has contagious? Are you going soon for a visit?" I asked.
But no, this was not the case. My friend was worried that she would be stricken in the same way as her aunt, because they were related.
"And my uncles have all contracted either some sort of cancer, or heart disease, or pulmonary condition, or blood disorder. And my grandparents have, as well. My mother...my father.. It's horrible!" and she cried out at these fearful thoughts.
As we talked, I could see that her fears were not something that would evaporate easily. Still, we talked. And, when she would, we prayed. These discussions happened every time I saw her; for months.
When it came right down to it, fear of death was at the core and she could not find escape.
It was a poser. We all must die, sometime. We all feel the mortality that has been a part of every human since the Beginning; even our Lord did not look forward to its process, but grasped that nettle on our behalf. Knowing this helped her briefly whenever I gently reminded; but still each meeting devolved into the same strange topic of doom.
Dear readers, have you ever faced fears such as these? We are all human, and vulnerable. For this girl, they seemed to develop when she left the familiarity of Home, and forgot for a while to cling to the Everlasting Arms.
This is not the end of the story but for now, if you, too, are fearful, consider Matthew 11:28 - 30:
More, tomorrow. Until then, give them all to Jesus.
See you along the Way!
the SconeLady
This is not the end of the story but for now, if you, too, are fearful, consider Matthew 11:28 - 30:
"Come unto me, all ye who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
See you along the Way!
the SconeLady
photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/intherough/3253349104/">...-Wink-...</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">cc</a>
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