I’ve just been discharged from hospital. I enjoyed watching my youngest son play violin and electric guitar in pantomime on Christmas Eve and had a lovely Christmas Day with my family. However two days after I collapsed and was rushed to hospital with what turned out to be a deep vein thrombosis which turned into a pulmonary embolism.
I was extremely unwell for two days with really frightening levels of pain and I lay in my hospital bed wondering if I was going to be alright. The staff were amazing. I have heard that they are overwhelmed by the numbers they are treating for Covid, but they certainly gave me great care and attention when I needed it even though they are short staffed and under a lot of pressure.
Feeling a bit better, I started to think about what had happened and why. I had been perfectly well right up until Monday night and couldn’t understand how everything had changed so abruptly. One thing that hit me was that if I had collapsed anywhere else I wouldn’t be here writing about it. My oxygen levels were so low that every second counted and being in the right place at the right time meant I have come through (so far so good, still lots of recovery to go through!)
When I felt really low I thought about this miracle and decided that God still wants me around for a while. It did however make me realise that we keep pushing things away when we are well and busy – such as spending more time with God, thinking and praying about others and giving our time and efforts to make others’ lives better. Maybe God is giving me a wake up call and it is one I had better listen to.
I think it is a good idea to evaluate our lives, especially at this time of year, and see whether we are more focused on the world than on God; on charging through life and worrying about worldly things rather than the state of our faith and life in Christ.
Don’t wait for a wake-up call – who knows if it really is your time?
God bless you,
Matthew 24:42
Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming
Widows Mote 