Becky Crenshaw

My dentist doesn’t play games with me.  Through experiential knowledge,   he has learned that this girl needs to be placed in a room with a tank of nitrous.

He knows me and my issues with long needles.  And he knows not to believe me when I tell him that, “I am going to be a big girl this time and not cry. Or flinch.  Today, Dr. Chesney, I can do it.”

Nope, he doesn’t play my games.

But Tuesday morning he put me in the chair with a nitrous tank, only to find out they were clean out of oxygen.  I had no choice.  It was time for me to put my money where my cavity was and face my anxieties head on.  Me and the needle. No nitrous.

So I begin to pray and think of Jesus on the Cross.  Ok, so I know that comparing one numbing shot at the dentist is quite shy of cruxifiction, but in that moment I couldn’t be convinced otherwise.

{Note to self:  Do not tell your dentist that you are bearing with the sufferings of Christ by being there.  He won’t know what to do with that.  Just hypothetically. Ahem.}

I lay back and brace myself for that needle – reminding myself to breathe.  OK, he we go.  Eek!

“A little stick” he says.  Oh, my foot ” a little stick”  — but we are in this now.  Needle in.

I begin to go places in my mind.  “Happy thoughts” so they’re called.  Breathe and think. Breathe and think.

After twenty minutes of injection (not really – maybe thirty seconds) my dentist was finished.

“You did great!  What a great patient!  See, you can do this!  No nitrous!”

Patting myself on the back, I confessed my stroll down memory lane.  Quickly flashing through some of the happiest moments of life — The day each of my boys were born.  My wedding day.  The first day I met Brent.

These memories helped absorb the thirty seconds I had dreaded.  I didn’t require nitrous, after all.  God had already equipped me with everything I needed (2 Peter 1:7) .  Memories of His faithfulness.

When was the last time you reflected on key moments of your life?  The happiest times?  My little date with a needle pushed me to them, but I didn’t realize how long it had been since I had reflected on those special moments and the faithfulness of God throughout the span of my life.  Namely my marriage.

When marriage is on pins and needles, this is a good place to go … a quiet walk down the country roads of memory lane.  Skip rocks on the waters of wedding memories.  Pick flowers from the bouquet on that first date.  

I thank my God every time I remember you. Philippians 1:3

God was good then.  And He is good now.  Both when marriage is easy.  And when marriage is painful.

Take a minute and reflect. Thanking the Lord for that first date.  Thanking Him for the moment you “knew.”

Go back to the beginning.  And remember.

Father God, thank you for your unmerited favor and goodness to me over the years.  Thank you for (spouse’s name)!  Thank you for your Sovereignty in bringing us together.  Thank you for the feeling I had when I first saw him/her.  Thank you for that first glance.  Our first date.  The first time that we held hands.  Thank you for the joy of our wedding day.  Thank you, Father, for your faithfulness.  Lord, you know where my heart is today.  You know where my marriage is today.  We have so much more up against us now than we did day one.  So today, I remember and I thank you for my marriage.  I know that you were good then and you are good now.  And you are good until the end of the age.  Make my spouse and me look more like You through the mystery of marriage.  In Jesus Name, Amen.