Marian

‘Put my tears into your bottle’

 

It was a Monday when my dear husband Tony died. He was buried that Friday. The following

Tuesday was Christmas Day. We had been given the devastating news of terminal illness only

13 days prior to his death. That Christmas was one of absolute despair. The whole family was in emotional turmoil. How would I cope without the loved one who over many years had shared all my ups and downs, joy and sadness? I had lost a faithful friend.

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For many years I’ve had in my Bible a scrap of paper with some words from Psalm 56: ‘You know my wanderings. Put my tears into your bottle’. I’ve read them many times, and recently they have become more relevant and personal. They remind me that God is aware of every moment of my days, with all their fears and joys. King David, writing whilst hiding from his enemies, was praying that God would preserve those tears - tears shed for sins committed, and tears of sorrow. God remembers them all, and I know him to be a tender and forgiving Father.

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When Tony received the news at the hospital that he had such a short time to live, he told the puzzled consultant that he had been preparing for this day for thirty years. He was taking up the promise God made to him personally when he became a Christian: because he had accepted the Lord Jesus as his only Saviour, a place was awaiting him in heaven. What a comfort to know that is where he is now.

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There are still days when sadness overtakes me but in the Bible God says:

‘I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’