Trusting God's Heart Over Our Circumstances by Pastor Susan Fochler

When my husband, Russ, suddenly and unexpectedly became critically ill 7 years ago, every day for the next 64 days brought a storm of constant change.  He started out very sick, but then got much, much worse, and stayed that way for weeks.  Complications came like waves.  Finally one day I was told by the Intensive Care doctor that I needed a miracle…there was no more hope from a medical standpoint.  I can still clearly recall that moment; my thoughts immediately  zoomed in on how grateful I was to know the church was even then praying for Russ’s miracle.  Trusting God’s Heart, not His Hands I kept thinking, “if only I know how long this is going to last, I can do this”.  But I didn’t know, and no one could tell me,.  My medically trained brain tried so hard to figure everything out, while my heart fought to dial down and just be with Russ.  It was a journey learning how to not let the tubes and alarms and ventilator sounds distract me from simply being embraced by God’s love.  I had to stop listening to the whirlwind of each day and intentionally focus on His presence.  I needed to rest my heart in God’s heart, and not in what I believed He was doing.  It is a subtle but very real difference.   God’s Love Does Not Fail As I travelled back and forth from the hospital every day I listened to a Jesus Culture song: One Thing Remains.  The words spoke directly and specifically into my situation: No matter what is going on, no matter how tumultuous or uncertain the circumstance, Gods love will not fail.   I clung to those words.  And over time, as my heart surrendered it’s need to predict how this thing was going to go, I was able to relax and receive His love in a new way. Higher than the mountains that I face Stronger than the power of the grave Constant through the trial and the change One thing remains  This one thing remains Your love never fails, and never gives up  It never runs out on me. His Love is Always Bigger Yet If you are going through something that is bigger than you are, remember, His love is bigger yet.  Our problems look impossible when we are looking at them.  But when we look up into His eyes, we will always see Him overshadowing anything that overshadows us.   I pray that we all, no matter what we are going through, would have the grace to look up-and keep looking up as we lean back into the safe, comforting and ever-present arms of our Loving Savior.  That we would know beyond any doubt that He understands what we are going through more than we do.  We can trust His goodness and how He is going to accomplish the victory we need.  Every time.                                                                                          With much love,                                                                                                              Susan