“For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”
Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)
One of the residents at my son’s Nursing Home, who I have come to know well, for over a year now, is Tawana. She is the granddaughter of NFL cornerback, Bob Jeter, who played for the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears, from 1963-1973. He has since passed away, but his wife, Tawana’s grandmother, is still well and living in Chicago at the age of 102. She grew up in a close relationship with her grandmother, who was the major influence in her journey of faith.
Over thirty years ago, Tawana was married and had a three year old son, when she became pregnant with twins. She prematurely went into labor and gave birth to boy and girl twins. Despite the complications from prematurity, both babies survived and grew up healthy. The day after she brought the twins home from the hospital, her husband was shot and killed during a mass shooting in their neighborhood.
Tawana, became a widow with three children under the age of four. She certainly had more questions than answers, but she learned to trust God through her heartbreak and disappointment, living in total reliance on Him, and He helped her raise her children, with the support of family and church friends. Her children are now grown and married, with children of their own.
A few years ago, Tawana received a diagnosis of brain cancer. She underwent surgery and was admitted to the Nursing Home, for rehabilitation. It was a wilderness period in her life, but she is now in remission, and has recovered enough to live on her own. Today is Tawana’s “exodus.”
She is moving into an independent living facility, in the neighborhood of her children, grandchildren and her 102 year old grandmother. It’s a long awaited blessing, kind of like entering her promised land.
The Israelites were enslaved in Egypt for 400 years, until the day of their exodus, at that first Passover. They did what God instructed, putting the blood of the lamb on their doorposts, then sharing a special meal with their friends and relatives. They baked unleavened bread, in order to leave hastily the next morning. God parted the Red Sea for them and they headed for their promised land. There were problems on the journey and they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before finally reaching their promised land. The exodus story is remembered at every Passover Jewish holiday, celebrated yearly.
Tawana’s whole life is like a Passover story. She has had her time in the wilderness, which challenged her faith, but with the faith instilled in her by her grandmother, she kept trusting in the blood of the Lamb, who is Jesus. He finally parted the sea for her, and led her out of the Nursing Home and into her promised land. I’m sure He will keep blessing her in this new phase of her life. Many people will miss Tawana at the Nursing Home, but we are happy that her exodus has finally arrived.
(She gave me permission to share her story with all of you today.)
We go through many tribulations in a lifetime, but if we can hold on and trust in Jesus, He gives us bread from heaven, parts the sea ahead of us and leads us to the promised land. He has always been with us, and He only asks that we take His hand, and let Him walk with us through our wilderness.
He is the same God as He was at the first exodus, except now, His own blood is on the doorposts of our lives, and our joy is made full when we pursue a personal relationship with Him. In seeking the Giver, more than the gifts, we have nothing to fear, because we trust in the God, who once parted the sea, and our future is in His hands.
Lord, we trust you and thank you for loving us and holding our hand through the wilderness, and we look forward to our personal exodus and parting of the sea, which you will do for all who trust you. Amen
