Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
    With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
    my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
    nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
    you will fill me with joy in your presence,
    with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

• Psalm 16:8-11

You have made known to me the paths of life;
    you will fill me with joy in your presence.’

• Acts 2:28

The Boilerplate

My wife started to write her thoughts down at one point in her life.  Some hints point to 2018 and 2019, after she had her open-heart surgery.  In spite of her trials and the atrial fibrillation (A-Fib) that required her to take blood thinners, this was before her major health decline.

Sometimes, she wrote a thought.  Other times, she wrote a Bible verse, and maybe her idea on that day.  Other times, it is a prayer, but I am going to take one entry at a time and try to write about it

Her comment

“Where is it?”

• My wife’s next comment in this notebook

The Discussion

My wife asked a question that we often ask.  David claimed that God has made known the path we should take.  So, where is it?

But God speaks throughout the Bible about obedience.  If we walk in the Light, we are following His commandments.  We must keep our eyes on Jesus.

But that last paragraph was a series of clichés.  What my wife was wondering was what she should be doing for the glory of God.  I had started writing these blog posts, and probably by this time, she had quit reviewing them.  She said it was far too stressful.  I missed her doing that.  She told me to not ever let a couple of the things I wrote ever be seen in public.  She told me to basically rewrite a couple of posts.  I miss the “I would not do that if I were you” type comments.

But, even though neither of us knew it at the time, her final days would be starting.

I recently watched a television show where someone who had miraculously been healed questioned why she was healed.  Why not others?  She praised and glorified God, but she did so humbly, knowing that so many others did not get that type of healing.  Then the host of the show came on screen and contradicted this beautiful praise of God by saying something like “You may not know what God wanted to do for you, but I do!  God wants everyone to be healed.”

I was so hurt by his comment that I may never watch that television show again.  How dare someone dictate to God what God desires to do or will do!  Maybe only one in a thousand gets a miraculous healing.  Why not the other 999?  Is the response that they need to give more money to your organization?  How much are you worth, Mr. talking head?

Or maybe I am missing my wife who passed away over two years ago.  We are all going to die, including a certain “talking head.”  That is the ultimate in healing.  We cannot claim no pain, no suffering in this life. Only in the next.

But when you are losing your mental faculties because the rest of your body is falling apart, you have to look at Acts 2:28 and ask, “Where is it?  Where is this path that I should be on?”

In obedience to God, my wife was on that path, but she wanted a path that was outwardly productive.  She loved cooking for the homeless, but with failing health, she had to stop.

But, in her bewilderment as to why she was still on this mortal coil, she kept a positive attitude.  She never showed when she was in pain.  She always had a kind word and a smile on her face.

She understood the macroscopic will of God – to love Him, love one another, and obey His commands.

But the microscopic, the details, were the things that came naturally to her: Love people, do not burden them with your problems, and greet people with a smile, even when it hurts.

Are you still asking, “Where is it?”  You find out by listening to God, and in the meantime, showing love to those around you.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory