The Ferocious Forerunner

(𝙏𝙬𝙤 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨. 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣. 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚) -- 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗛𝗢𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗢𝗢𝗠.

I lay on the hospital bed, not wanting to be bothered, not even by doctors and nurses. But Lister Hospital won’t spare you that luxury. Every now and then, a nurse or doctor would find a reason to check up on me, as if to say, “You can’t die on us.”

There’s something about being sick that makes you want to be left alone. No matter how you’re feeling, you reach a point where silence becomes a comfort. That was my “leave me alone” moment. But it wasn’t just the medical staff who were bothering me, it was Millicent, my hospital roommate.

Millicent would groan and cry in pain, but somehow still found the strength to ask me how I was doing and in such a genuinely caring way. I would often hesitate before responding, as if to say, “Madam, concentrate on your pain and let me deal with mine.” But that didn’t stop her. She kept checking on me. We both had a similar medical condition and were in excruciating pain.

One morning, after being wheeled downstairs to see my doctor for about an hour, I returned to an empty room. Her bed was gone. Millicent had been discharged.

The silence in the room that night revealed who Millicent truly was. She had been living out Galatians 6:2:
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfil the law of Christ.”

Meanwhile, I hadn’t even been receptive to her kindness. I was too focused on myself.

Another way to look at the story of Ruth is through this same lens: a young woman who, amid her loss, refused to wallow in sorrow. Instead, she chose to share Naomi’s grief by standing beside her.

We are all tired. That’s the reality. But if we keep focusing solely on our own pain and weariness, we may miss the blessing of drawing strength from one another.

Can we, like Millicent, in spite of our own pain, still lend a hand? Still look someone in the eye and ask, “How are you really doing?” Can we still offer a cup of water, even when our own jar is almost empty?
Can we, like Ruth, choose to walk with the Naomis in our lives, no matter what?

sometimes, the greatest healing doesn’t come from medicine—
But from shared compassion.