I didn’t know what to write. I sat at my computer on the verge of tears. My hands hovered over the keyboard, throbbing in pain. My diary was a happy place, a file I opened up only to type in cheerful thoughts and small miracles I’d witnessed – but I didn’t have any of those now.
I had a migraine and my fibromyalgia was acting up. The pain was so bad I hadn’t been able to eat more than a few bites of breakfast before I felt nauseous. Days like this, there just wasn’t much I could do, the aches were so paralyzing. Even combing Bebe, my little shih-tzu, hadn’t made me feel any better. That’s when I was overcome with the sudden urge to write.
Why? What could possibly be joyful or miraculous about today? I read my latest entry, about a bright, clear morning and a beautiful butterfly I’d seen in my garden. It felt like I’d written it years ago—it certainly didn’t cheer me up. Sometimes I knew how to find happiness in the small things. But not now.
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I wrote out, as quickly as I could, a description of the pain I was in, how unhappy I was feeling. There. So much for staying positive. I let out a long sigh, hoping for relief, but not getting any. Maybe there was something else I was supposed to write? The blankness of the bottom half of the page screamed at me.
But it wasn’t completely blank… Near the bottom of the screen, there seemed to be some text. But why would I have typed anything there? I scrolled down.
Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
I recognized it instantly. Isaiah 41:10 from the Bible. Sometimes I included scripture in my diary entries, but I hadn’t added any verses that day. And this was a whole new page of my diary. I didn’t remember pasting anything there.
But there it was, all the same. I read the words again and again. I felt calm. My pain eased. I knew it was just the message I needed to see.
