“‘Teacher, what is the greatest commandment of the law?’

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Jesus replied ‘you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’. The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.’” Matthew 22:36-40 

There are approximately 300,000 emergency medical responders in the United States. Of that group, approximately 8,000 are flight nurses and paramedics. I have always felt honored and blessed to be chosen to be a flight nurse. This calling has put me around people amid absurdity. I’ve treated turkey fryer burns (be careful out there!), numerous men who’ve thrown gas on the campfire (“to get it going”), cases you can’t discuss in polite society, and one young girl who got her hand caught in the coin return of a washing machine at a laundromat (yes, we had to take the machine apart). I have spoken the words, “how did you do that again?!” so many times I have lost count.
   My job also puts me around people in the midst of tragedy, pain, and fear. It is trying to stabilize a gentleman whose wife is begging “please don’t let him die.” It is holding the hand of someone who is dying trapped in a car. It is seeing a family killed due to the actions of a drunk driver, then treating that driver. These times, I am chosen to be the one to respond and bring some order to chaos. 
   My prayer each day I go to work is this: “Lord, please help me bring the best medical care and procedures to the injured and sick, to care for others without judgment, to be strong enough to hold the hand of dying person so they are not alone in those final moments, to minister to a co-worker who has seen a horrific event that makes them question the path they have chosen and been chosen for, and to do whatever you will have me do to love my neighbor. Thank you for choosing me to do this work in your name – Amen”
   To be the one chosen to go to help the sick, hurting, or injured people, I pray that my actions will reflect the love and caring of Jesus. Jesus has chosen to be with me, and I with him.