Our Tuesday devotional was prepared by Liz Bady, a member of our faith community.
Scripture Isaiah 40:31 (NIV)
But those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
They will walk and not be faint.
Reflection
Last week I listened to a podcast where the host interviewed a woman who was a nurse. The two knew each other, and the nurse was being interviewed about her experiences nursing Covid-19 patients.
I have been thinking about this interview ever since last week. The nurse talked about her patients and how much she cared about them and wanted to help them in their time of need. She spoke about how she was the only one with some of them, when they died. She spoke with such love, compassion and empathy for her patients and for their families.
She also shared the fact that she had to live apart from her family during this time because her husband and child both had compromising issues. She had just a room she had to stay in, and so she decided to make it as lovely, welcoming and comfortable as possible. She purchased beautiful bedding, bought pretty things to have around, and she also bought a light that reflected the word HOPE on the wall. She said that HOPE was very important to her life as a human and a nurse.
Because she, her fellow nurses, and medical colleagues had HOPE, in spite of all the awfulness that was going on, they were able to come up with ways to help save many of their patients. She said that when they first started getting Covid patients, they lost many of them. But, as the weeks progressed, even though they had no medical treatments to give them, they learned that how they cared for their patients made differences in their outcomes. They started saving more people. In one example, they learned that having their patients lie on their stomachs led to better outcomes. These front line workers used their HOPE in life, in God, in themselves, and in their patients to have more strength as well as becoming more creative and inventive.
Just hearing this nurse being open and willing to share her thoughts, experiences, and her HOPE has given me much to praise and thank God for. And, it has given me strength.
Prayer
Dear loving, caring and compassionate God. Thank you for giving us love, strength and hope. Thank you for giving us people who are willing to work on the front lines, never give up, and always have hope. We pray this in your Son’s name. Amen