What a beautiful welcome greeted us last night when we had dinner with our neighbours. Sue is a talented artist and painted these three angels. It was the angels who rejoiced and sang songs of jubilation on the night of Jesus' birth.
After dinner, Keith and I went to visit his Mum in hospital. Last Friday she completed five weeks of radiotherapy and was very excited. That night, in her sleep, she had a massive stroke, which has left her with very little movement down her right side and no speech. The phone awoke us at midnight - the start of a long and harrowing weekend. The specialist spoke with Keith and his father that morning and gave very little hope of her speech ever returning or that she would gain much movement on her right side as such a large part of her brain had been affected.
Many tears have been shed and we have all cast our cares into the hands of our great and loving Father and asked for mercy on May, who has had a terrible two years with health issues. On the Saturday night, there were twenty Condie's gathered in our home. It is sad that it takes a tragedy such as this to get us together. My sister-in-law Cas had spent the day cooking and we ate a feast. The Christmas tree was up and candles adorned our table, but most of our hearts were with May sitting alone in hospital and the uncertain prospect of what a new day would bring.
In the days since, we have watched a miracle take place, as May has gradually done more each day. Last night, she was moved to a bed where she has spectacular views of the harbour and together we watched the sunset. She greeted us with a smile that lit her beautiful face. She can nod and shake her head in response to questions. She is not fully comprehending what is being said, but she is trying so hard. The physios have been working her hard and she has sat and stood each day since Tuesday.
There are many Condies, but we are trying not to bombard her with visitors and just stay for short visits. Keith has been reading extracts of Psalms and praying with her each visit and she seems to delight in being reminded of God's great and marvellous love and that He is with her at this time.
Sue's angels reminded me of Psalm 91 and the angels that are referred to here, as well as Hebrews 1:14. The words of this Psalm have brought much comfort to me in these last few days. There is much sadness in our hearts, but also a deep joy in knowing that our lives are in God's hands completely. I have been reading Christopher Ash's book Bible Delight and he quotes from an old hymn which seems to capture how I am feeling:
He gives us more grace when the burdens grow greater,
he sends us more strength when the labours increase;
to greater affliction he adds his great mercy,
to multiplied trials, his multiplied peace.
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