Surrendering to the Reality of His Sovereignty

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Posted by Stephanie Griffin, April 3, 2024

Our son, Brock called us on the Saturday morning of the Palm Sunday weekend. He explained that our 11-month-old grandson, Cade could have possibly ingested their dog’s medicine from the dog bowl.  The prescription Clonidine lowers blood pressure, allowing blood vessels to relax and the heart to beat more slowly. It is great for a 75lb dog, who needs this, however, for a 24lb baby it could be fatal. As Cade began to get sleepy, Brock called 911. Upon arriving at the house, the paramedics didn’t want to let Cade take a nap, since his crying would help keep his blood pressure up. This would buy time for the drug to pass through his system, if he did indeed ingest it. In that phone call, fear paralyzed my heart for a few minutes…my throat started closing up as the tears accumulated.   

My son and his wife were told a counteracting agent could be administered immediately upon arrival, if his blood pressure took a dive. Since he had missed a nap and was agitated, he was kept for observation and continued to be connected to the monitors. The doctor wanted him close by in case they had to administer the shot. He explained that, as long as Cade stayed stable, giving him the shot was not warranted.

I immediately called my son at the hospital and began to pray. No small talk and no opinions from Mom were needed. I went directly to God, the one who loves my son and grandson more than I do. I prayed as if my life depended on it. Every attribute of God came to my mind and I prayed confidently to the One who knows all. He already knew the outcome of this extremely difficult situation. As I prayed, I could feel the Holy Spirit fill me and go before me.

After my son and I hung up, my tears finally fell…you know that ugly cry…I could barely swallow. I fell face forward into the shag rug in my office in surrender. Yet, strangely, an unfamiliar emotion filled me.  I felt like I had to call the prayer team, my Shoulder to Shoulder group, my sisters, my husband (who had gone to feed the horses), or a best friend. As if, their prayers would be more powerful, more heard by God. I was humbled by my frailty. I wasn’t used to this. I had just prayed with my son, I knew the Holy Spirit gave me those words. So I picked up my phone, but once again put it back down and realized that I was surrendering to the reality of God’s sovereignty.  

I felt so small, in front of a perfect, omniscient God. He knew all, and I knew nothing. I did know that I had to sit in that dark moment by myself, scared, helpless, spiritually naked. As I sat calling on Him, the Holy Spirit reminded me of scripture after scripture of who God was, who God is, and who God will always be. 

He is immutable!  He is powerful! 

 “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm.  Nothing is too hard for you!”  Jeremiah 32:17 

 The attributes of God that we had been studying at Touching Hearts, poured into my heart. I began, ”Lord, you know the number of hairs on Cade’s head. In Psalms it says, “You knew us in the womb & Cade’s name is written on your hand.” You knew the minute he would arrive, and you know the minute he would join you in heaven. You are SOVEREIGN! If Cade makes it through this ordeal, I fully trust you. And if he doesn’t make it, I fully trust you. You are sovereign regardless of the outcome. You loved him before me, before he was even born. Your breath is in Him. Make a way Lord that he will go through the fire and not even smell like smoke. I pray for that miracle!  Please make yourself known to my son and his wife, that they will draw closer to you. Please give the doctors and nurses discernment, wisdom, and gentleness in dealing with Cade. As I ended, I knew I was on sacred ground. As soon as I began to speak these words, the knot diminished from my throat, and my tears dried up. What peace came over me! I knew God was present and going before Cade. 

Did I know the outcome? No! I knew Who did and trusted His Sovereignty. This was new, holy ground.

Throughout the day, my emotions would emerge, and I would have to surrender and align them with God’s truth. Tony Evans in Victory in Spiritual Warfare, tells us, “Feelings cannot be the standard by which we measure reality. Feelings have to be brought into alignment with God’s truth to avoid the temptation to follow down an unstable path.” I experienced this. Wearing the belt of truth meant being real with God, raw, and unveiled before Him. He knew my struggle, my pain, even my helplessness. If I’m not honest with God, who already knows the truth, then Satan has stripped me of the foundational piece of armor before the battle had even begun. So, knowing God, His Word, and His attributes is the only way to function with the belt of truth. Because only then will we know Him and His truth. And as I wear the belt of truth, as you can also, we can operate our mind, will, and emotions underneath God’s view on truth. By knowing and functioning according to God’s truth, we as Christians, will be on our way to experiencing victory over everything.

Epilogue: God is sovereign! Cade has no smell of smoke, and all is well! I am thankful for this experience, in which I was able to experience God at “the burning bush.” (Exodus 3:2-5)  

Welcome Stephanie Griffin, our Deeper Still Guest Writer this week. Stephanie is one of the editors of our blog and is an active part of Touching Hearts. She has a servant’s heart and shares her many gifts with others. What a blessing to hear from her heart this week.