Chaplain provided spiritual care.

Recently, I charted a visit with a patient with the simple phrase, “Chaplain provided spiritual care.” It took 20 seconds to type. It summarized a 25-minute conversation.

The highlight of our conversation for me was when I asked the patient what she would like me to ask God and she said, “I’m trying to understand the words ‘the glory of God.’ I’m not sure whether it’s something we do or it’s something that God is, or what.” I’ve wondered about that phrase as well. So we talked about it for awhile.

And then I summarized the conversation in four words.

We do that all the time, you and I. We have conversations. We do activities. We rescue hearts from despair, we rescue minds from boredom.

And then, when we have to summarize what we did, it’s summarized three or four words.

Raised some kids. Cared for parents. Retired from teaching. Had a job. Had a garden.

I understand the summary. But I invite us to reflect with God on what was actually going on. What if we said, at the end of a day, “God, could you help me remember what happened in that conversation? How I heard something I never had heard before? How I asked a question that unlocked something new?”

“God, I remember all the things I did that I thought were stupid or I think everything was useless. Would you help me remember the things that were helpful, and help me see the use of what I did?”

I think that our week might be different. We might understand more of the glory of God.