Is there anything more special than the times when God clearly speaks to you regarding an event or trial you are facing? Only God can change your perspective of a situation and give you purpose while facing pain.

In my last blog, “When God Weeps With Us”, I briefly mentioned some of the issues we have faced in our family. One of these struggles have been with our daughter, Alisha. She had a heart transplant when she was three months old. By the time she was three years old, she had developed severe food allergies and other environmental allergies which were very hard to diagnose. It eventually became so severe that she looked like a burn victim and was extremely miserable. We went to many different doctors and specialists, trying to find help for her. Eventually, she began reacting to the many steroid creams and developed a severe rash. She couldn’t open her eyes for a few days, because of the pus that was oozing from them. She could only sip liquids from a straw, because her mouth would bleed if she opened it very far. It was both a physically and emotionally exhausting time for us. My husband and I took turns staying up throughout the night with Alisha, since she wasn’t able to sleep very much. We had a doctor who was seeing her every day.

My heart was broken when I saw my beautiful and sweet little girl going through this painful and horrible experience. I was in utter despair and began crying out to God. After my husband took Alisha into the doctor’s office one morning, I needed time alone with God. I went outside to our motorhome and fell on my face, weeping before God. In desperation, I cried out, “Oh God! I don’t understand what You are doing! Why are You allowing us to go through this? Do You even care what we’re facing? Oh God, please show me that You KNOW and CARE!”  My perspective was very limited and I was seeing it from a selfish viewpoint.  

About an hour later, I was in the doctor’s office when the receptionist summoned me and said someone was asking to talk to me. I recognized the woman who we had briefly met the week before. She asked if she could share something with me.

As I took her into the motorhome, she began sharing what God had spoken to her after we met the last time. She remarked, “I have no idea what you are facing with your children, and I don’t know if you are a Christian or not. However, after I met you, God began speaking very clearly to me. He said I needed to tell you that He KNOWS what you are going through, and He CARES! God said that He is going to receive much glory through this situation. You just need to be faithful to Him.”

This dear lady also said that God told her she needed to bless us in some way. She didn’t know how many children we had, but she had three children’s gift bags and one for my husband and I. (It was no coincidence that we had three children!) She had tears as she began praying for me and kept exclaiming how God had spoken so clearly to her. I also cried but was too overwhelmed to hardly say anything! I could not have had a more direct and obvious answer to my prayer!

From that point forward, my perspective completely changed! I knew, in a very small sense, why God was allowing me to face this heartbreaking situation. Since I knew God cared, and He was going to receive glory, it brought purpose to my pain.

The Bible says, “…You have not because you ask not.” (James 4:2) I encourage you to ask God to change your perspective and show you why He is allowing you to face your struggles. In our situation, it was a few weeks before our daughter was doing well enough to go home, and it wasn’t until years later that she was significantly better. However, I never again struggled with despair or discouragement during this situation, because God changed my perspective and gave me purpose through the pain. My prayer is that God will show you He cares, and that, in a significant way, He will speak clearly into the events of your life.   

(Our beautiful daughter, Alisha, today! We thank God for His healing touch.)