I believed God wanted my little girl to get better. I just needed to hear it
I’m a person of faith, though there have been times I’ve felt disconnected from God. Like when injuries threatened to derail my NFL career. I’d remember what my grandma told me when she was dragging me to church as a kid back in Wilmington, Delaware. “The good Lord speaks to all of us, Devon, but you’re never going to hear him if you don’t open your ears and listen.”
I grew up and joined a church of my own, and while I felt closer to God, it still seemed as if I was doing all the talking. I tried not to take it personally— until Leah, my sweet four-year-old daughter, got sick with cancer. I really needed to hear directly from him then.
Leah had to undergo four grueling rounds of a combined radiation/chemo treatment. People around the world, moved by the story of a pro football player fighting to help his critically ill daughter, were praying for her. It wasn’t enough. The doctors said she needed surgery. Our last best hope. The night before her operation, I’d never seen her so scared. I couldn’t comfort her. I was as scared as she was.
“Are they going to cut me with a real knife?” she asked, her voice trembling.
God, what do I tell her? What do I say to ease her fear?
I didn’t expect an answer, not like my grandma used to get. To hear her tell it, the Almighty talked to her in a booming Old Testament voice, one there was no mistaking. I was never going to have that kind of relationship with God. I knew I owed everything to him. Still, was it too much to ask for some actual spoken words?
Bu hikaye Guideposts dergisinin June/July 2019 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Guideposts dergisinin June/July 2019 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
What prayer can do
POWER IN OUR DAY-TO-DAY LIVES
Rejoice in All Things
My husband and I had an annual tradition of celebrating the high points of the year. This time, he wanted to try something different
Special Delivery
A month after my wife died and my life felt so empty, the only thing I had to look forward to was Amazon
A Prayer for Cullen
Even in a family crisis, I had trouble quieting my mind enough to listen for God
Blackie & Rosebud
What would happen to my friend's cats now that she was gone?
The Kids Are Alright
My twin boys and I had always been close. I thought they needed me. Now I wasn't so sure
Kindred Spirits
I thought the nose ring gave it away—she was just another teenager. I couldn't imagine how she could help me
A Boy Named Sue
In 1969, Johnny Cash and his wife, June, threw a party at their house in Hendersonville, Tennessee, a “guitar pull,” where guests passed around a guitar and tried out new songs.
Active Duty
I'd tried everything for my knee - physical therapy, gel injections, a cumbersome brace. Everything except prayer
Living an Abundant Life
A conversation with spirituality and health researcher Harold G. Koenig, M.D., on what makes people truly happy