Helen closed her troubled green eyes and ran her fingers through her tousled hair. She was so scared. She tried to pray,
"Oh Lord, help me deal with this. Help me to be strong." Tears ran freely down her cheeks.
Helen was having a mastectomy today. Both of her breasts had to be removed. Could she handle that? Could her husband handle that? Would he still love her? Her mind was running in every direction. The devil was playing havoc with her and she was letting him. As a Christian she knew that God would never give her more than she could handle. This was close, very close, to more than she could handle. The whole scene terrified her. Nurses coming in and checking her temperature and pulse. The anesthetist telling her how long the surgery would take and what she should expect. Helen knew what to expect: after the surgery she would have no breasts. She prayed once more.
"Oh Lord, you know me better than I know myself. Help me! Grant me your peace.
If only they would let Dick in there. If only there were someone, anyone, to pray with her. She felt so alone. Not only alone, but so scared. Was she being weak? Was she lacking faith? It seemed as if she had been in this holding room for hours. Helen closed her eyes and tried to calm herself down. She was close to panic. Even the shot they had given her did not relax her. Why was this happening to her? She didn’t want to question the Lord, but she was. Helen heard the curtain open again and she opened her eyes. An elderly lady with gray-brown hair approached her. She had a sweet smile and her eyes seemed to twinkle. With a soft voice she asked,
"Would you like me to pray with you?" Helen could only nod. The lady took her hand and started to pray. Immediately a peace came over Helen. The fear was replaced with the peace of God. The lady asked the Lord to wrap His arms around Helen and to comfort her. She asked Him to grant her His peace. Helen could feel the presence of the Lord. She could feel His peace. She had never felt a peace like this before. She just let the peace envelop her. She was not even aware that the lady had left. The nurses then came to transport her to the operating room. Helen quickly thanked the nurses for letting the lady come to pray with her. The head nurse looked at her strangely.
"What lady?" she asked. "There is no one allowed back here but hospital staff. Was she a nurse?" Helen shook her head.
"No, she was not a nurse. She was a sweet lady who came to pray with me." The nurse smiled and said,
"That is impossible, dear. Only staff is allowed back here." Helen lay back and said no more. She closed her eyes and whispered,
"Thank You, Lord. Thank you for sending someone to pray with me. Thank you for my peace." After several hours in surgery, Helen woke up in recovery. When the nurses asked how she felt, she just smiled. She felt fine. She knew that the Lord was with her. She knew that she would make it through this with Him by her side. He had promised never to leave her nor forsake her--and He had kept that promise.