I Hate My Life

I was having a slow and quiet morning. Bible and prayer time, worked-out with hubby, ate breakfast, spent some time with my son. As I was kicking into gear to get some work done, I sent a text to my friend Eva asking if she could assist me with something. She happily said yes, and after a few texts back and forth, she informed me she was at the hospital. What?! Eva’s 28-year-old daughter, Casey, had broken her leg in the middle of the night and needed surgery to fix it.

Casey has McCune Albright Syndrome, which is a non-genetic mutation and brings on early puberty with fibrous dysplasia bone tumors. She has had two previous surgeries.

It went from a slow morning to zooming into hyper-speed headed to the hospital.

I had no idea what to expect. I imagined Casey would be at the very least a little grouchy (wouldn’t you be?) as she lay in a hospital bed with a broken leg.

Are you interested in how she broke her leg? I sure was.

This is how it happened:

She had gotten up at about 1:30 a.m. to get a drink of water, and on the way back to bed her femur bone snapped. (That’s the thighbone! Ouch!) She called yelled for her mom, who at first went to her other daughter’s room and turned on the light. Realizing she had the wrong daughter, Eva went to Casey’s room.

Eva found Casey lying on the floor in horrible pain. They called 911.

Get this, instead of talking about how horrible the situation was, they talked about how wonderful the paramedics were.

Showing me her leg, bruised and with the bone sticking out from under her skin, my stomach took a rumble. I think I would have been chanting Somebody shoot me! But Casey calmly waited for her surgery—at the end of the day—while her broken leg was propped up on a pillow.

How could she be so calm? I know you’re thinking, Morphine. But the Morphine did not eliminate all of her pain.

Okay now, this is the part I really want you to get! This blew me away.

SHE NEVER COMPLAINED. Ever. All day. Not once. She never said, “I hate my life.” She never asked, “Why me?” She never said, “I hate this!” OR “I don’t want to do this!” Even when it was so hot in the hospital that she had sweat dripping from her face, she didn’t complain then either. Casey was in that hospital bed all day WITH A BROKEN LEG and in pain, and not one negative word came out of her mouth!

Not one!

I went to the hospital to offer support and help, and instead I was blessed with one of the most valuable lessons I have ever received.

This verse keeps rolling around in my head: Philippians 2:14, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.”

Can we really do this? Even with a broken leg? Even while we are in pain? Even when everything seems to be falling apart?

Yes. Yes! Yes we can!

Casey proved this to me.

As Casey’s surgery approached and they were prepping her, the pastor wife in me said, You need to pray over her. So, I asked if I could pray for her. Truthfully, I felt kind of silly. She was so calm. Peaceful. Casey knew whose hands she was in. Casey knew God was in control. Casey knew we could have peace in all things. She had displayed this all day.

We prayed, but somehow I knew she already had the peace I was asking God to give her.

How often do we complain about

… the traffic?

… a pound gained?

… not getting a good seat?

… long lines?

… a headache?

… having nothing to wear?

… a challenge at work?

How many times in your life have you asked God… WHY?

The next time I am gearing up to complain, I am going to think of Casey and think twice.

The above picture was taken after Casey’s surgery with a long road of recovery ahead of her, and yet she is smiling.

What do you have to smile about today?

Smile. Show love. Look for the good. Blessings are there, we only need to look for them.

Say it with me: Thank you God, I LOVE MY LIFE!