Infusion in the Body, Spirit, and Soul

Infusion -- To fill or cause to be filled with something. That word has resonated within me several times in the past couple of months when I heard about dear friends who were having to have PICC lines or ports put in because they need frequent intravenous medicines which are so much more comfortable for the patient than multiple needle sticks. I know from experience. Infusion is a word that my Sweetheart and I became all too familiar with during the course of his battle against cancer. He had his share of IV infusions for hydration, nutrition, medication, blood transfusions, antibiotics, and chemo. My childhood dream of being a nurse was somewhat fulfilled as I became well versed in giving him many infusions from the comfort of our home. Thankfully, no more infusions, of that sort, needed. He’s healed, whole and cheering us all on from heaven’s grandstands.

During that season, so many people asked me, "How do you cope with the ups and downs of your faith journey?" I'll tell you how we continued to believe we were "winning" no matter what we faced. When Ron and I first talked about that word, infusion, we looked at it two-fold: one, in the medical sense, but then we started saying….."We are also being 'infused' by God's Word as we continue to trust in His many promises." Psalms 119:130 says "The entrance (infusion) of Your words gives light." When we meditated on God's Word, it brought light and life. As everyone knew, that was the source of our strength, as we meditated, trusted in, and placed our hope upon the infallible Word of God. We believed it was crucial for our success.

Today, in my own journey of faith, I continue with daily “infusions” of God’s Word. Here’s a verse that explains my quest. "If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction" Psalm 119:92. That is so true. It has been my lifeline. It has been my strength. Many times during the faith journey with my husband, and now as a widow, I’ve been literally squeezed, but that's why I want to be so filled with the Word of God that when I AM squeezed – when I am facing a challenge, or when I am at a loss for human understanding, or when I am faced with situations in life over which I have no control, I know that I MUST be so filled with the Word of God that I pour out faith and hope and trust in the midst of the storms. That was our mainstay and continues to be my "shelter in the time of storm" today.

In the Catholic Church, when scriptures from one of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are about to be read, we do the sign of the cross on our foreheads (indicating "May this Word be in my mind"), on our lips (indicating "May this Word be in my mouth") and in my heart (indicating "May the Word be in my heart"). How do we actually get those words into our minds, our mouths and our spirits? By meditating on those words, reading them and speaking them consistently. Being as intentional with believing, trusting and speaking -- taking in God's words, as much as we would take prescribed medications.

So whatever the “issue” is that we may be facing today and whatever the outcome, we know God’s Word that says "with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26)! We are INFUSED with those words. That Word alone is in my mind, my mouth and in my heart. How did it get there? By daily “infusions”.