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A Simple Prayer In A Time Of
Need The announcement that visiting hours would soon be ending came over the intercom at Tucson Medical Center. Sis. Elisa Gutierrez had been sitting by my bedside in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and got up to make her way out. I had just been through three back surgeries within the last week, and, with all the complications that I was having, I pondered if I would get out of there alive. Fear continually overwhelmed me every time I heard the words "code blue" and saw the nurses racing down the corridor in hopes of sustaining the life of a patient battling death. At moments I thought surely I would be next. I was no stranger to the hospital or to complications. I was only twenty-one and had already been through nine surgeries during the course of my life. At age three I had been hit by a car on Christmas Eve, paralyzing me from the waist down, confining me to a wheelchair. Despite all the opposition I faced, these three surgeries were in a class of their own. Still, God had been good to me. I had no complaints. I had an Apostolic family that loved me, I was blessed with a singing voice, I taught Sunday School, I went to college, I drove my very own sports car, but, more importantly, I had the Holy Ghost! I knew that ultimately Jesus was in control, and there was a purpose in the midst of my trial. In the back of my mind, the scriptural promise kept coming to me "…I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5), but still I longed to feel the assurance of God that everything would be okay. Something in my heart impressed me to ask Sis. Gutierrez if she would pray for me before she left. She looked back at me lying in the hospital bed with machines and tubes looming over me and replied, “Of course I will pray for you.” I don’t recall the exact words she used; all I know is that she touched the throne of grace on my behalf. She started out praying in a sweet soft voice. Her words were not eloquent, but they were sincere. I closed my eyes and, as her voice grew more intense, I felt the power of God invade that hospital room. I had been prayed for many times during my hospital stay, but never had I felt this way. Tears exploded from my eyes as her words turned into a heavenly language, and soon I began to speak in tongues as well. The anointing and peace of God swept over me giving me new strength to press on. I understood what was transpiring at this moment. God was giving me the assurance everything was going to be okay, and I praised Him for it. To some, this event might have been insignificant, but to me it meant everything. This was the driving force that got me through the rest of my hospital stay and through the next four months of recovery. Almost two years later, my soul is still moved when I think back to the prayer in the ICU. It reminds me of what a caring and merciful God we serve. He can take a broken body and broken spirit and restore it so that He might be glorified.
ninetyandnine.com © 2003, Lorraine Orozco --------- Lorraine Orozco attends Faith Tabernacle church in Tucson, Arizona, pastored by Rev. Paul Conner. She sings on the praise team and teaches Sunday School. She is also in the process of writing an autobiography that she hopes will be finished soon. |
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