I checked in at the hospital at 7:15 this morning only to be told that I had missed it. Their records had my scan scheduled yesterday. “I’m sorry,” the man at the desk said, “But you’ll have to call scheduling and reschedule.”
“No way!” I calmly (not really) replied. “No way do I have the day wrong. I am sure the scheduler told me Thursday. I have it right here in my phone notes and on my calendar. Look right here! I have it right and it says THURSDAY! And NO WAY am I leaving without these bones getting scanned today. No way, do you hear me?”
Startled, but firm, he explained it was out of his control. There was nothing he could do.
I walked out of his waiting room and down the hallway and found a quiet corner to make some quick phone calls. Realizing my oncologist office would not even open for another 30 minutes yet, I felt paralyzed. There was no one to call. No one who could immediately fix this. The tears came. And then so did the realization that I needed to reach out for prayer. I texted a small group of praying friends. I explained the situation and asked them to pray. Right now. Pray that someone will fix this. Pray that this happens today. I can’t go back to scheduling and delay this. Every day of waiting is excruciating.
They agreed to pray!
When I finally did reach the oncologist office on the phone, they assured me my appointment had been scheduled for today, Thursday. That was what all the paperwork stated.
Something was very wrong. “Let us work on it,” they said.
And, shaky as shaky can be, I waited some more. Meanwhile my phone blew up with prayers and texts and bible verses and all manner of encouragement. All of which reminded me that I was not alone. That God was in this. That it would be okay.
Within an hour I got the message to head directly to a specific office and they were going to make this happen. Today. Praise God.
And just within this last hour as I sat in nuclear medicine, the nurse putting in my IV, explained the only reason they were able to get me in today was that someone else called within this very hour and canceled their scan. (I mean, who cancels a bone scan)??? He explained that it wasn’t going to be a matter of “fitting me into the schedule.” They actually have to have a specific dose of (something) that is injected in me day of scan. And the only reason they had it on hand was because someone else was scheduled for today but canceled.
“Well, you got lucky,” the nurse said to me. “No,” I said to him, “I’ve got prayers answered.” Focused on my IV, he kind of looked at me sideways … and I smiled at him and shook my head, Yes. Prayers. Answered.
In the middle of this morning’s great scheduling debacle, a friend had texted me, “You are not alone.” And I had to smile because that has been the song at the top of my playlist this week.
Friend, I don’t know what you have on your plate right now. I don’t know what has come crashing down in your world. I don’t know what disaster or diagnosis or disappointment or just messed up detail has happened to you recently, but I want you to hear the message of these words: You Are Not Alone. Please take a minute and listen to Kari Jobe’s song. Listen for me. Worship to it. Wonder about it. Ask God to show you His wisdom in it. You are not alone because WE have a God who goes before us. Who is in every detail — even the ones which don’t make sense. We have a God who created every cell of us. Who knows every hair on our head. Who knew our steps before we had even set foot in this world.
We will feel alone. We will look like we are alone. We will listen to the lies of the devil who wants us to believe we are alone.
But, dear ones, we are not alone.
