TEXT:

‘Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you’ (1 Peter 5:6-7).

I am recovering from major surgery on May 31^st, which was successful. The events surrounding that experience and the road to recovery forms the theme for Today’s Teaching. There are three main points I want us to consider.

1. The Care – ‘Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you’.

Right from the first investigation, to the surgery and after-care, I have nothing but praise for the way the NHS has handled everything. This was especially true after the operation, where the nursing staff’s main goal was to make me as comfortable as possible. They even asked permission to do certain tasks and were ready to respond to my requests for cups of tea, jelly and ice-cream during the night hours as I couldn’t sleep due to half-hourly observations. Nothing seemed to be too much trouble, even for nurses at the end of their shift.

God is like that too. He can’t be anything less. He waits for us to ask, so He can respond. Jesus said, ‘And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full’ (John 16:23-24).

We can ask God for a little or a lot! I am sure we could have asked for more at times if our faith levels were a little higher.

2. The Control – ‘Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time’.

At my pre-op with the surgeon to determine what he was going to do, I had to submit to his plan and procedure. He was in charge! No consent by me to his plan, no operation. It was as simple as that. The surgeon was very forthright and clear about the plusses and minuses of such surgery, something which Jenny appreciated. Secretly I wanted him to be a little more caring, but care was for the nurses and he needed to be in control for a successful operation.

Of course, during the actual operation, I was under a general anaesthetic and had no control whatsoever. I was completely in their hands for my total wellbeing, and they knew what they were doing!

The song says, “I did it my way!” For much of the time God is happy to work with us when our way does not conflict with His plans and purposes. But when it’s time for His way, it’s then we must submit and humble ourselves under His mighty hand.

3. The Concern – ‘Casting all your care’.

There were two things that concerned me and created the feeling I had been forgotten. Firstly, no one really explained what I could or could not do on the morning after the operation. I was lying in a bed with the safety sides up to stop me from getting out and I was in pain. I didn’t know what I was allowed to do and would have appreciated someone telling me. When an auxiliary asked if I wanted a wash or even a shower, I was not sure if that was permitted, and the information was not forthcoming. It transpired later I could have got out of bed and moved around. How much better it would have been to know that. After all, if it hurts, we don’t want to move it!

The second feeling of being forgotten was the length of time it took for my discharge. Having been told by the surgeon at 8.30am I could go home; I eventually left the hospital at 4.15pm. The delay was caused because paperwork was not completed, a follow-up appointment had to be arranged, and medicines had to be sent from the hospital pharmacy. My painkillers had been issued at 5.45am, and no one offered me anymore. Eventually I asked someone for some tablets around 2.30pm. I was left in a room on my own and it seemed to make the hospital experience a little harder to cope with.

Sometimes we feel God has forgotten us. Who can forget Jesus’ prayer on the cross, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ (Matthew 27:46).

Isaiah reminds us, ‘Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely, they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands’ (Isaiah 49:15-16). God states, your own mother may forsake you, but I won’t, I cannot.

God cares for you! In your good days and your bad. In your successes and failures. In your acts of righteousness and when you sin and disobey.

Never run from that care but always to it. Learn to cast all your care on Him. He really does care for you!