His Glory My Joy, a blog of Author Luana Ehrlich

I thought of the expression,“get a grip,” the other day when I had to face the reality of a serious medical condition that I’ve been dealing with for the past several months, a medical condition that’s going to require surgery to fix it—brain surgery.

The medical condition I’ve been having is Trigeminal Neuralgia, and the neurosurgeon at OU Medical Center told me that he would perform a Microvascular Decompression on my brain to correct it.

However, when I thought of the phrase, “get a grip,” I wasn’t thinking in terms of its usual usage, that is, I wasn’t telling myself to control my emotions so I wouldn’t have a breakdown when I heard what the surgeon said he needed to do.

This surgery requires him to remove a portion of my skull near my ear and separate the superior cerebellar artery in my brain from the trigeminal nerve that controls the feeling in my face. (This artery sits so close to the trigeminal nerve that it has worn it down on the right side of my brain, which is why it’s continually sending painful electrical shocks to the right side of my face, and unfortunately, I’m allergic to the medicines that are usually able to control this condition.)

When I heard what the surgeon said he needed to do, instead of thinking about the usual meaning of “get a grip,” I thought about all the Scriptures that assure me that God will give me strength and uphold me during the difficult times I face in my life—a promise He’s given to all believers.

Isaiah 41:10 is one of those verses: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Not only does God uphold me—that is, He grips me tight—He also tells me to hold onto Him—yes, He’s told me to get a grip on Him.

A verse that says this very thing is Proverbs 4:13: “Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go. Guard them, for they are the key to life.”

As I undergo this procedure and the recovery period that follows—which could be several weeks—I’m  going to “get a grip”by holding on to everything God has promised me in His Word, all those verses that assure me that whatever He allows to come into my life has first passed through His hands and will ultimately bring Him glory and be for my good and benefit.

These are the same promises you can lean on to “get a grip” during the trials you’re facing. I’ve listed a few of those promises below, but there are many more in His Word.

Joshua 1:9—“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  

Psalm 73:26—“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Philippians 4:13—“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”