Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. – Genesis 2:7
Breath. It is essential for human life. And it is something most never really think much about. We don’t have to consider it. Our bodies are designed in such a way that, for the most part, our breathing is on autopilot. For some, however, it consumes their thoughts.
In another lifetime, I was a young respiratory therapy student. This is how I met Wanda. Wanda was admitted to the hospital with a variety of age-related health concerns. Over the three weeks she spent inpatient, I would discover that she was kind and caring, she had loved others well and was loved well by others, and she was a woman of deep faith.
Wanda had one wish – to take her last breath at home. Arrangements were made and the time had come to transport Wanda. I arrived with my supervising therapist to administer a treatment to assist with the transport home. I began my pre-treatment assessment as I had done numerous times over the previous weeks, chatting briefly with Wanda, getting a pulse, and prepping supplies. And just as she had done before, Wanda would hold my hand as I listened to her breathing. Little did I know that as she took my hand in hers, this time would be different. I was being invited into a thin space, a sacred place of divine presence.
A couple normal breaths. Then a pause. A deep inhalation. A loving squeeze of my hand. I looked into Wanda’s eyes. She looked back. A peace came upon her. For a moment, we communed with one another and with God. Contentment. Peace. Shalom.
The presence of God in our lives happens all around. In the first inhalation of a newborn. In the ordinary breath of everyday life. And, in the last exhalation – nestled in a hospital bed or nailed upon a cross.
Breathe. Give thanks. And bask in the glory of God’s love.
-Pastor Ken