Power of a Praying Woman 10/17/06 9:02 AM Page 86
86
The Power of a Praying Woman
did for me, I depended on them to read the Word of God to me. When I was sent home with a nurse, I had to be isolated from all people except my immediate family members because of the risk of infection. During that time, no one was able to read the Bible to me because they were too busy. (I don’t say that as a criticism; they each had to take care of me plus do the work I usually do in addition to their own full-time work.) It was a considerable strain for everyone. So during that time I spent convalescing at home I listened to the Bible on tape. But it wasn’t the same as reading it myself. I don’t retain information as well when I hear it as I do when I read it. Also, on tape the speaker keeps talking without stopping. I found I would get caught up thinking about a verse I’d just heard and then not hear the next ten. Normally, when I read the Word myself, I go over each verse slowly and thoroughly, especially the ones speaking to me at that moment. I let it digest in my inner being, and I ask God to teach me new things that I haven’t seen before. Even after I began to recover and was able to sit up and read the Word myself, my mind was so foggy and my eyes so blurry from all the anesthetic and drugs I’d had to take every day that I had a hard time absorbing it. I knew the problem was in me, but the Bible wasn’t speaking to me like it used to, and I felt helpless as to what to do about it. Reading the Word had always been life-giving for me, but now it became more of a duty. I read because I knew I needed to. Another factor in all this was that I couldn’t go to church for ?ve months, so I wasn’t being taug ?BF?Rv?&Bg&??F?RV??B?"g&??&?&?R7GVG????B??B&VV?v?F??WBF?BG?R?bFV6???rf?"???vW"F??Gv?vVV?2BF??R6??6R??B&V6??R&V?WfW"3?V'2&Vf?&R???7FV?V@???