Good morning, friends.
Our verse for today comes from Acts 9:33, “There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed.”
Several years ago, my second son was having constant back pain. Upon taking him to the doctor, we learned that he had a fractured vertebra. This diagnosis was extremely unfortunate, not in its severity or gloomy prognosis, but simply by the conditions it created. This particular son was the one who was always outside climbing, jumping, building, and crashing. And now, he was told to wear a back brace at all times and do nothing for eight weeks. It was for him, a long and trying two months. But his back did heal, and he was soon again relentless in his constant state of activity. My mother-in-law and a couple of my aunts have all survived cancer. But my grandma, relatively young in her early sixties, did not. Also, my wife began suffering from hearing loss nearly two decades ago. Fortunately, her condition could be corrected through surgery. After one surgery, and then another unsuccessful one shortly thereafter, she still struggles to hear, saddled with two hearing aids that provide nominal assistance at best. C.S. Lewis has a book called God in the Dock which he did not write per se, but is a collection of some of his speeches and essays compiled and published after his death. The title, rather than referring to God and a boating pier, alludes to the concept of man sitting in judgment of God, placing Him in the dock (where the accused sits in a courtroom), as opposed to God sitting in His rightful place as judge over us.
Infirmities, diseases, and disappointments can lead us to place God on trial. Despite our best intentions, it is a challenge to not evaluate God and the worthiness of His position based on His performance in relation to our suffering. When the healings continue to not come for us while they do for another, it chips away at our belief in an all-loving Father. God’s prerogative as Lord and King can get brushed aside as our world suffers another blow while good news echoes from someone else’s room. His record is downplayed or forgotten, His Godhead placed in a box, and His promises of eternity are dismissed when He refuses to visit our condition. But it doesn’t have to be that way. You and God can be about more than yours or someone’s physical well-being. Your soul is eternal, and so is your relationship with Him. Feed that, and let that bring healing to your weary body.
As we seek Him today, keep your mind focused on what God is doing and wants to do with the entire you.
Have a pleasant Wednesday.
#4 Rich Holt
Dad of Ripken, Koy, TrishaJean, Samantha, Kakie Holiday and Raleigh
Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them.
