May 20: Galatians 2:20
I’m glad when I can wake up before my helper—my “get-up girl”—arrives to get me ready. I use that time to pray. I know myself too well—how easily my quadriplegia and morning stiffness can turn me into a sour, peevish person who lacks a smile for the day. My get-up-girl deserves a “better” me, and I’m always thankful that God pours out His abundant grace before she walks into my bedroom at 7:30 a.m. After I’m up in my chair, we’ll read from a daily devotional. This morning, this prayer gave me a smile the entire day:
Oh, give Thy servant patience to be still,
And bear Thy will;
Courage to venture wholly on the arm
That will not harm;
The wisdom that will never let me stray
Out of my way;
The love that, now afflicting, knoweth best
When I should rest.1
Lord, the people in my life—my husband, coworkers, friends, and even strangers—need to see the best me I can be with Your help. Fill me with Yourself, so people who encounter me will see glimpses of You; hear Your kind, grace-filled words; and even catch Your fragrance.
1. L. B. Cowman, Streams in the Desert (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006), 314.