Thinkin' 'bout "hinken"...

As we drove the 20 miles to Yeddo Baptist Church yesterday morning it was truly a "winter wonderland" of frost-covered trees and we marveled again at the handiwork of God in creation and preservation. And, since Mom/Mamaw/Mary K. and I strive this year in our private morning "quiet time" to read through the Bible, we each came to Genesis chapter 32 yesterday and discussed it together on the road. It's the record of Jacob returning with his family and possessions from Uncle Laban in Syria, and anticipating meeting his brother Esau. You will recall that Esau had threatened 20 years before to kill Jacob the next time they met! No doubt Jacob had other problems, but the fear of the approaching confrontation with Esau loomed large in his mindl Alone (verses 24-32), Jacob spent the night wrestling with the Lord and emerged victorious with a new name -- "Israel" (prince with God) -- a new glimpse of the Lord ("I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved" ) -- and a new walk! In wrestling with the Lord, "Jacob's thigh was out of joint" and, as a result, "he halted upon his thigh"! In the German Bible it reads: "er hinkte an seiner Huefte!" "Hinken" means "to hobble, halt, limp." Dear readers, I totally emphasize and sympathize with ol' Jacob. Due to spinal stenosis and the degeneration of my right hip, especially the last year, I have been doing a lot of "hinken"! And, as this goes to press, I am scheduled for a visit with my cardiologist to seek clearance for hip replacement surgery, as I have a heart issue, then I see our orthopedic doctor on February 1 to make some definite plans. We need and ask the prayers of God's people, that the doctors may have wisdom and that the outcome will be greater (hopefully pain-free) mobility. Meantime, I get cranky with the discomfort and inconvenience of "hinken" on a cane or walker (pray for Mary K., too), but I'm trusting the Lord to do for me what he did for Jacob -- give me a fresh glimpse of His grace and goodness. Jacob concluded in v. 30: "...and my life is preserved!" In my old German Bible that reads "my soul is mended, or recovered!" Surely, we often enjoy physical healing, but in all our trials as believers we need the spiritual mending and healing, above all! Praise the Lord for Romans 8:28, but let's not forget His goal in all our testings, shown in verse 29, that we might be "conformed to the image of His Son"!