Meeting the LORD in Psalm 18
Psalm 18 has special meaning to me because 26 years ago, on the night I gave birth to our third child, who'd died in labor to a"cord accident" which cut off her oxygen as she moved down the birth canal, I surrendered. From my hospital bed I cried out to God in agony: “I can’t do this! I need You! Please help me!” We’d been going to church as a family for about nine months, and I’d been “a Christian” since I was 7 and gave my heart to Jesus, but I needed Him now more than ever in this tragedy- I needed Him for every breath and step!
The Holy Spirit woke me later that night with unmistakable words in my heart: “Get a Bible in memory of her.”
"Oh, yeah, that's good," I thought, as I dozed back into a miserable, swollen-eyed, fitful sleep.
Then I heard a forceful but encouraging, “Write it down!” I did.
After leaving the hospital -was the empty car seat still strapped in the back? I can’t remember anymore- we went to the local Bible bookstore and bought a Bible in memory of our baby girl. I remember the lady at the store speaking kind words and cutting off my hospital wristband for me. She put "In Loving Memory of Rhian Hallie Caywood, 12-12-96" in gold on the Bible. Then we went to Champion Funeral Home and made arrangements, my Bible in hand. On the way home, I randomly opened the new, green “The Quest” ‘94 NIV Study Bible to Psalm 18 and verses 4-6 hit me:
“The cords of death entangled me, the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me; the cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice…”
(PS 18:4-6, '94NIV)
"Mic drop" wasn't a term back then, but whoa.
That was the first time God used Scripture to speak directly to my situation and circumstances. I’d had neat experiences in knowing the nearness and love of God, but never before in His Word like this (BECAUSE I HARDLY EVER OPENED HIS WORD). I knew He saw me; He was there, because out of over 31,100 verses, I read three that spoke directly to what I was going through. The clerk had recommended this Bible. Had I gotten another translation, it likely wouldn’t have used “cord” & it wouldn’t have had as big an impact as this one did on a mama whose baby girl’d had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck four or five times.
Sorry, I just felt like sharing how I got started reading the Bible. That experience hooked me. In a home where the crib had to be taken down, and diapers and baby clothes stored away, my Bible became a lifeline and I got to know Him through His word and prayer. And sure, I went through seasons of slipping into a few verses a day, and weeks of not picking it up, but circumstances always brought me back where I needed Him above all, and the Word is a daily part of my life now, no matter the circumstances, praise the LORD!
Please know that I’m in NO way advocating random Bible verse reading as a practice. (We were just talking about that in Bible Study the other day). We should open our Bibles with purpose and with prayer, seeking to know Him better.