The Mind of Russ

The other day, the amazing athletes that are participating in the Tour de France experienced "the cobblestones". On a good day this is a test of men and machine. This particular day it was wet and rainy making the cobblestones extra tricky to navigate. Some of the riders made it through without incident while others fell, bounced and slid their way over the ancient road paving. 

As I go down this road called life there have been times that I have come up on one of those curves. You know what kind of curve: A tight curve, it's raining, at night in the fog; oh, and its paved with cobblestones. It seems easy to go to God in those moments, crying out to him in a critical time of need. I hit one of those curves last week with my heart situation. There was a moment, a small moment, that I was a little scared. Actually there were a lot of little moments like that.

One of those moments was while I was waiting to be wheeled in to get my heart cath done. Two things happened that let me know that God was "on the job". The first was when I had just been parked in the waiting area.
Sensory overload:
>What's next?

>It sure is cold in here.
>Oh no, I think I may have to go to the bathroom.

>Hello, don't forget about me in here!

>Why are the curtains red in the cath lab?

>I'm cold.

>What is this going to be like?

>It sure is cold in here.

In the midst of all of that I began to hear something that quieted my mind. A familiar sound offering peace, security and hope. Some how the TV was changed to a channel that was playing contemporary Christian music that I play on the radio. What a change it made when I heard Matthew West, Third Day and I think Jeremy Camp was in there too.

The second thing that happened was that my doctor, Dr. Morris, came in to see me. He asked me a few questions and did some doctor scribble in my chart. Then he asked me if there was anything he could do for me. Without hesitation, I told him that he could pray for me. He said, "Alrighty" and stepped over to my gurney, grabbed my hand and proceeded to share one of the most special prayers that I have ever heard.

God was definitely there during my most recent wipe-out in life. But what about the everyday traffic jams of life? The everyday bumps in life's road that cause frustration, panic, pain and tears.

The same God that took time to weave together the wings of a gnat, create the Wyoming sunset and put the fish in the sea is the same God that watches over you and me. He is there in the big crashes on life's journey as well as the little

fender benders. We can find Him in the wave from a random stranger, a Facebook post from someone you haven't heard from in ages, even that "enjoy your day" from the lady behind the counter at the e-z mart. Yep, He is there in the BIG bad times and the every day bad times. This is a very good reason to trust him with everything.