Rescue Me

Post below explains relevance of this song in relation to the experience detailed below

Swallowed Up in Christ

Last week I was at work. I was assisting the sweetest little boy with a fairly minor procedure. I was asking basic questions about their family. I was suddenly VERY overcome with emotion. I have no idea why, but I suddenly thought of the scripture that teaches that the sting of death is swallowed up in Christ.
I looked forward to coming home and looking up exactly where this scripture is located. I found it in Mormon chapter 7. Verse 5 reads 5 "Know ye that ye must come to the knowledge of your fathers, and repent of all your sins and iniquities, and believe in Jesus Christ, that he is the Son of God, and that he was slain by the Jews, and by the power of the Father he hath risen again, whereby he hath gained the victory over the grave; and also in him is the sting of death swallowed up". It was the part about the sting of death that really touched me. However, I was rather confused by this. The child that I was assisting was not terribly ill, nor were there any issues of death discussed in the conversations with his parents. I had NO IDEA why this popped into my head at this particular time. Despite all of this, I came home that evening and found this scripture. I also looked up some cross references to this scripture.
Fast forward to 6 days later at work (which was the very last day of the month). I worked what I would consider to be a fairly normal shift, and then stopped at Mc.Donald's on the way home from work. It had been a rather busy day, and I was starving. Unfortunately, right after eating, I remembered that the next day was Fast Sunday. I contemplated still opening my fast at that time, but, I decided against it, knowing that I needed to work the next day. I didn't want to fast for a shorter amount of time that what I was accustomed to. I decided that due to my lack of judgement in this situation, that I would fast on Tuesday, which was a day that I was already planning on going to the Temple. I was mad at myself because I couldn't remember the last time I had forgotten it was Fast Sunday. I was kind of frustrated that I couldn't join in with Josh in what we were planning on fasting for.
The next day was busy, as most of the Sundays are on the Sundays when I have to work. We got out of church at 2:00, and I had to be there at 3:00. This would be the last Sunday at my job (future blog post on this). Although I would still have to work some Sundays, I knew I would hardly ever have to rush out of church and hurriedly rush to work. I was looking forward to that, although it was definitely bitter sweet that this would be my last shift at a location that I had grown to love.
Within moments of arriving to work, a tragic course of events that occurred prior to a patient arriving at our facility led to a death taking place at our work. While I feel details related to this are very pertinent to the beautiful spiritual lessons I learned through this experience, I do not want to divulge anything that could be even remotely related to a HIPPA violation, and so I have intentionally left these details vague and sparse.
Because of some details related to the situation, we ended up having some family members in our facility for some time afterwards. This whole situation was heart breaking and difficult for all of us involved. A few minuted later, I had to go in the back area to retrieve something else for one of our other patients. Upon heading into the back area, I saw some family members sitting in the back area. At first, I just glanced over. I was kind of uncomfortable, and I wondered what I should do. My heart was broken in 2 for them, but I did not know what to say. There was also a language barrier between us. I didn't know what was deemed as "appropriate" by someone in my professional situation. I determined that I did not care what was professional. I felt SO BAD for this family,  and I was going to do what I could to lend comfort to them.
I walked over to 2 men and 1 women, gave each of them a hug, and told them that I was so sorry for what they had experienced. Although there was a language between me and them, I felt like they were thankful for the gesture.
As I later contemplated on this experience with the family members, I realized that this had taken place in the EXACT location that the scripture relevant to death had came to my mind just a few days prior to this experience.
I became intrigued as to how this scripture even popped into my head. As I studied, I found a cross reference that I loved even more than the original scripture. It is found in Isaiah 25:8. It reads: "He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it".
Obviously, this family has been on my mind A LOT since this happened. I have wondered about them, prayed for them, put them on the temple prayer role,and hoped for their best. About a week after, I asked Josh to give me a blessing to help me sort out the feelings I was having in regards to all of this. It was unfortunate for me that I was leaving my job the very next day, as I never really got a chance to sort through the experiences we had on that day all together. I also heard a song in a sacrament meeting the next week that really helped me put some of my feelings related to this situation into perspective. That song is a post just above this post.
Between the experience, the scriptures, the blessing Josh gave me,and the beautiful lyrics to this song, I have learned so much:
1. Heavenly Father truly is SO MINDFUL of all of us. I think of the fact that he clothes the Lillies of the field. A loving Heavenly Father who is mindful of every detail on the earth, surely does not let one of his most precious children slip away without his comfort, nor would he allow this to happen were it not part of his eternal plan.
2. I needed to learn something from this experience. Timing was so important with this new job I have started. There are SO MANY reasons that I did not get this job the first time I applied. I feel very strongly in my heart that being there and experiencing this allowed me to feel the power and love of my Savior and Father. I believe that I was spared more time at this job to learn some valuable lessons from this sacred experience.
3. Tender mercies are all around each of us. Sometimes they are masked, but when peeling off a layer or two, we see ways in which something that may look like an unfortunate situation is actually Heavenly Father's way of picking us up, carrying us, and protecting us from disastrous outcomes that are not part of his plan for us.
4. We are all precious children (gifts) sent to one another from a perfect Father. He truly has a wonderful plan for each of his children.
5. When we are weak in mortality, it is our Savior that rescues us. Sometimes, all we can do is hold on, and allow him to lead us. Even in times when our lives cannot be spared to be continued in mortality, our Savior rescues us spiritually, and welcomes our spirit home to him and our Father.
6. I ended up changing the reasons I was fasting after this happened. I decided to fast for the family. I was touched when I realized that the primary reason I chose to fast was not a scenario that existed on Saturday night when I forgot it was Fast Sunday. This was a testimony builder to me that Heavenly Father is in charge, that he knows what is coming for us and all of his children, and that he will lead us in his will if we will submit ourselves to him.
7. The Savior of us all whispers safety to our soul. even in times when our mortal bodies appear to be in jeopardy or even danger of death, our spirits are ALWAYS safe as we entrust them to our Father and our Savior and Brother.
8. Those who pass away from this mortal earth life worthily have already won. They have conquered what we all have to continue to deal with on a daily constant basis. We are sad for us, but really, we should rejoice for those who have made it. They truly have already won. What a comfort.
9. When our story here on Earth ends, it will end with the Savior. Ironically, this is the same deliverer that will allow our story and sense of being to continue on the other side of the veil.So, even when our story ends here, if ended through the cornerstone of the Savior, our story has really just begun.
10. Regardless of our physical limitations here on Earth, The Savior will restore us and make us new.
11. That merely through our actions and examples, we can stand as missionaries, and that there is no sweeter work than bringing souls to their delieverer. Whether it be through a quiet example, through comforting words, or through active missionary work, nothing knows the sweetness of this Earth's experiences like bringing souls to Christ.