No Strength of My Own

Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
for our heart shall rejoice in Him,
because we have trusted in His holy name
               (Psalm 33:21)

Lord, I need my strength to carry out
the duties of the day,
but sickness has invaded me,
and taken it away.

At first I was content to lie
and rest upon my bed;
to close my mind against the thoughts
that clamored in my head.

“Tomorrow I’ll feel better.
‘That’s soon enough to see
“to all I’ve had to leave undone
“which now is haunting me.”

But when tomorrow came and I
felt just as yesterday,
the patience that had buoyed me
dissolved and flowed away.

With eyes turned in upon myself
I lashed myself with doubt:
“Would I feel better if I’d dress,
“get up and move about?”

 Perhaps at times that therapy
may be the thing to do,
but far too often time has proven
the opposite is true.

Time and rest are what I need
to let my body heal;
not pushing, prodding, scolding,
and ignoring how I feel.

But time and rest are difficult
when life demands so much;
when every moment spent aside,
puts me more out of touch.

Lord, help me place my hand in Yours,
just like a little child,
knowing all of this will pass
if I just wait a while.

The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that
one should hope and wait quietly for the
salvation of the Lord.
              (Lamentations 3:25-26)

Glenda Collins Inman