tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13647961132892625012024-03-13T20:45:08.358-07:00Christian Medical & Dental Associations DevotionalWeekly devotional to encourage and ministerUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger358125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-75188286817207087252016-06-21T09:44:00.002-07:002016-06-21T09:44:28.777-07:00CMDA's Weekly Devotions are moving!You can now read, comment, and subscribe on the <a href="https://cmda.org/resources/publication_by_type/weekly-devotions">Weekly Devotions blog on CMDA's website</a>!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-70616914608698361082016-06-14T09:00:00.003-07:002016-06-14T09:00:32.994-07:00Go Anyway<em>“From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:16, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>It was just like any other mission trip I had committed to. I had warned her that it was coming. She understood and said, “Go anyway.” <br />Almost every mission trip I have pursued over the last 20 years has left my wonderful wife at home to deal with my absence. And during almost every trip, a major crisis had occurred at home, leaving her alone to manage. This time, I had not been gone a week when my daughter’s father-in-law died suddenly. I was 6,600 miles away and offered to come home if they needed me. I stayed and my wife was there without me to support the grief and manage the grandchildren during this terrible time of loss for those I love. And thus she has always been there, has always stepped up and is just as much a part of God’s mission as I am.</strong> <br /><br />
Too often, we who are on mission for God forget the loved ones who make it possible. We see ourselves as following God’s great call and accept with little understanding the sacrifice others are making for us to be free to serve. <br />And whether we call them Barnabas, or Martha, or Simon the Cyrene, or even Becky, we could never carry our crosses without them walking beside us, carrying their own.<br />Thank God for my wife and all the loads she has lifted so that I might serve our King---so that we might serve our King together. May God help me support her as faithfully while she lives out the mission for which she was specially and perfectly created. <br /><br />
<em>Great God,<br />Thank you for my spouse and for putting us together in your purpose for our lives.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-77795867291670839912016-05-31T09:21:00.002-07:002016-05-31T09:21:14.826-07:00Decisions<em>“When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to” (Acts 16:7, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>It was peculiar how he met his wife. He had found Christ in a country that persecuted Christians. The small established church there then wished for him to have a Christian wife who would support his ministry. They brought a number of wife-possibilities to him, but he refused them. He brought a number of others to these same church leaders and they had refused his choices.<br />One day as he was driving to his church, he spotted a young woman walking. God spoke to him to stop and talk to her, but he was in a hurry and did not. He soon saw her again and God spoke the same. He initially passed her but then turned around and parked his car. Walking up to her, he handed her a New Testament. “I know you don’t know me, but read this. I will come by here next week and, if you are waiting, I will talk with you.” The next week he passed her but she was walking. The next week he saw her standing there so he stopped. “What did you think of the book?” he asked. “ I read it,” she said and added, “I accepted Jesus.” After some difficulty convincing the church, the two were married and now live for Christ in a country that persecutes Christians.</strong><br />
<br />How do we make our decisions in life?<br />Not just the “whether I should teach Sunday School” or “whether I should go on this mission trip” decisions. How do we make the important decisions that hold us fast in the real world, like “what job should I take” and “who should I marry” and “when should I retire” decisions?<br />Do we want God’s Spirit to lead us?<br />Do we trust God’s Spirit to lead us?<br />Do we seek God’s Spirit to lead us?<br />Christians in difficult lands very often have nothing but God’s Spirit to show them a way in the darkness. And they are blessed by that dependence, for within it they see God; while we in our well resourced countries, with so many possibilities, so often see only the natural consequences of our efforts.<br />I need to learn from this God-dependent man. I need to seek more, listen harder, trust more, obey more; then perhaps I will see God more in this real world that I seek to control.<br />
<br /><em>Dear God,<br />Help me listen for your Spirit today.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-37013197198025825802016-05-24T09:34:00.001-07:002016-05-24T09:34:21.113-07:00Meek<em>“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>I was rounding with my house staff on the psych ward, standing in the hallway between rooms discussing a patient with unexplained weight loss. A small group of patients moved between us, excusing themselves as they passed through. One gray haired man with salt and pepper stubble stopped, grasped my two hands and looked directly into my eyes.<br />“You look like a minister.” <br />I was silent as he continued, “Meeeeeek.” He drew out the word with his eyes locked into mine.<br />“Are you a Christian? Where do you go to church?” he asked. <br />I answered as my residents leaned silently against the wall, watching the exchange with God knows what thoughts.<br />“Loooowly,” he added, his eyes drawing mine into his, as his friends pulled him away.</strong><br /><br />
I could not help thinking, as I was staring into the grey eyes of this patient on the psych ward, that it might be Jesus confronting me with the words “Meek” and “Lowly”---not in the person of the disturbed man I encountered, but somehow in the encounter.<br />If so, did I listen? <br />Do I understand?<br />Meekness is not a common attribute for healthcare professionals. We like to take charge, always doing it our way, always fixing things. When life attacks us, we strike back. To be meek would be to let life run over us, <em>out of our control</em>. <br />Perhaps that’s the point.<br />The meekness Jesus talks about is not a passive acceptance of life’s blows, though it does at times require us to accept such blows with silence. The meekness Jesus talks about is energy-under-control for His purpose, not mine.<br />If we are meek like Christ, we are like war horses eager for battle, waiting for our Master to loosen the reigns, steady and silent, held by His hand as the noise of battle crescendos around us, not listening to a taunting world, confident that the Master knows the battle plan far better than we. <br />The world may look upon our meekness and see us as docile, and we may have to live with that a while, for it is not about us. But, in truth, we are not weak; we are meek. As we silently take the blows of the world, we are God’s meek war horses, ready for the loosened reigns and waiting for the Master’s word, “Charge!”---into His battle, not ours.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Let me wait patiently under your hand, ready to charge when you choose.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-72051772920572843502016-05-17T07:28:00.004-07:002016-05-17T07:28:39.863-07:00A Matter of Fact<em>“But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>I made a house call today and talked of heaven. I visited the home of a wonderful woman whom, earlier this week, I had told we could no longer treat her cancer. We sat in her den, her swollen feet propped up by the reclining chair, dealing with her symptoms and ways to improve them. Then she said, “I’m a Christian; I know where I’m going. It’s okay.” After a pause, she added, “And the best thing is, I will get to see my dad.” We then talked together of heaven as it should be discussed: a matter of fact, not a matter of conjecture.</strong><br /><br />
Heaven is a fact, not a conjecture. Our eternal hope is a journey toward the truth of life, not a passive wish imagined from defeated life. <br />Heaven means: whatever the struggle in our lives, <em>it will all be okay</em>, someday.<br />But most of us are not where my patient is, one foot in heaven, where God makes His glory clear. For most of us, heaven is Christmas morning and this is June. <br />With such a distance between us and our future home, we address the truth of heaven with passivity, and even doubt, and rarely let it change our lives. We claim heaven as home, but live and think like we are citizens of this world. We grasp and control the things that matter to us now, not realizing that the purpose and value of everything <em>now</em> is totally transformed by the truth of heaven. <br />It was good today to sit with one so close to glory and talk the truth of life. <br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Thank you for the certainty of life forever. Let me take this truth and transform my life today.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-52701728256036733772016-05-10T00:00:00.000-07:002016-05-10T00:00:25.958-07:00Once Again<em>“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9, NIV 1984).</em><br /><br />
<strong>I was seeing Jason for the first time for a blood disorder and he was going to be fine. I had frankly forgotten that I had cared for his father with pancreatic cancer about 10 years prior. When we were through with Jason’s problem, he reminded me, “I will never forget that you prayed with us when my father died. You don’t know how much that bolstered my faith during that difficult time. We even had a few family members start going back to church after that.”<br />I nodded and smiled, not remembering the experience but grateful that God had been there.</strong><br /><br />
It’s time I get back to praying more with my patients. <br />I go in spurts. Some months I feel God’s presence clearly with my patients and other months seem to fly by with my hardly noticing He is near. Usually, it is a patient faithful to our Lord who wakes me up and reminds me how much God wants to enter my examining rooms.<br />How do I become consistent with my personal witness in a world that demands I focus on so many other issues in a rapid-fire manner?<br />There are some things I know I need to do:<br />I need to pray each morning that the Lord will let me <em>speak</em> when I serve.<br />I need to pray as I enter each patient’s room, “What is God doing?” (as Dr. Walt Larimore teaches us in <em><a href="http://cmda.org/resources/publication/grace-prescriptions" target="_blank">Grace Prescriptions</a></em>).<br />I need to, throughout the day, repeatedly refocus on my purpose for living: <br />“Dear God, may I rise up and meet you and empty myself for you. Fill me—that the lost may be brought home to you, the broken made whole in you and you may be glorified.”<br />How many times in this life must I leave my mission and return, leave and return, leave and return? <br />As often as necessary.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Bring me back again into the center of your mission for my life, for the sake of my patients, for the sake of your people and for your glory.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-25566234331419651092016-05-03T09:33:00.001-07:002016-05-03T09:33:23.044-07:00Different Formulas<em>“Be joyful always; pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17, NIV 1984).</em><br /><br />
<strong>I had two great disappointments this week. I had been praying desperately and long term for each outcome. One of my close friends, for whom I care as a doctor, had a recurrence of his cancer. One of my fellows who had failed his internal medicine boards on his first try found out he had failed them on his most recent try by four points. For at least a year I had been praying that God would make both things turn out differently, and He did not. This morning as I was running, I cried out, “What good are my prayers?” Sometimes it feels like a crapshoot. But I know it’s not.</strong><br /><br />
<div>
Followers of Christ pray faithfully with many different formulas: some have a steady outline—like praise, thanks, confession, petition, etc. Others pray purely spontaneously from the heart. For myself, I use a formula, beginning with spontaneous thoughts, followed by the Lord’s Prayer, requests for family, close friends, fellows, colleagues, church, etc. Then I move geographically around the world and pray for those I love. I end in surrender. There is nothing better in my way than others, and there are many things I could learn from others about how to pray more effectively. But why do it? Some of my prayers seem to get answered and others don’t, no matter what method I use. </div>
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Is God not just working out His plan, His way, unaffected by my heartfelt petitions? </div>
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I don’t think so. I think prayer really matters.</div>
<ol>
<li>I trust Jesus and Jesus told me to pray.</li>
<li>I have seen amazing, impossible events in life that have unfolded when I prayed, events that could not have happened without the intervention of God.</li>
<li>If I did not pray, I would only <em>think</em> about God, without ever really <em>knowing</em> Him.</li>
<li>If I did not pray, I would rarely hear God speak to me.</li>
<li>If I did not pray, I would much less often change my actions toward those for whom I pray.</li>
</ol>
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Of course, there is the matter of often failing to get what I want through my prayers. I probably need to trust God with that.<br /><br /></div>
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</div>
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</div>
<em>Dear God,<br />Thank you for the amazing gift of listening to me and speaking to me. Who am I that the Creator of the universe would bend an ear my way? And thank you that occasionally you change the universe when my petitions fall in line with your will.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-2103040271604214642016-04-26T07:46:00.007-07:002016-04-26T07:46:54.037-07:00Ripple Effect<em>“Abraham was the father of Isaac…Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David…and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ” (Matthew 1:2-16, NIV 1984).</em><br /><br />
<strong>A prominent pastor in our city is retiring this year. Under his leadership, his church has directly impacted thousands for Christ in deep and productive ways, touching hundreds of thousands more in their outreach.<br />I was sitting at breakfast this morning with Dr. Bill Wood, a world-renowned leader in breast cancer and past chair of surgery at Emory University. Prior to Emory, Bill had spent 28 years in Boston at Mass General Hospital. <br />When we mentioned the retiring pastor’s name, Bill’s wife told us that this pastor had come to know Christ in a Sunday morning Bible study that Bill had led in Boston, after which he left his secular job and surrendered to the ministry.</strong><br /><br />
The ripple effect of our lives is amazing, for good and for ill.<br />Thank God that He occasionally allows us brief glimpses of His work in those ripples. If we saw too much, we would likely crash and burn in either shame or pride. But a glimpse every now and again does bring us hope that God is at work in the arena He has placed us.<br />We so often think that the things we choose as important in our lives are the key factors for God’s work in the world. Often they are.<br />But I suspect God’s greatest work rides on ripples we cannot now comprehend, though someday will appreciate in glory.<br /><br />
<em>Dear God,<br />Take care of the ripples from my life and fill them with your power and purpose.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-8853486617513814672016-04-19T05:26:00.003-07:002016-04-19T05:26:28.674-07:00Not Yet<em>“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth…” (John 16:13, ESV).</em><br /><br />
<strong>He had been cured of his throat cancer, but the treatment had left him unable to swallow for the last two years. In spite of multiple procedures at a major cancer center, he could still barely swallow his saliva, much less the Christmas meal his family had recently enjoyed. As a last ditch effort, he had been referred to a surgeon in New York who specializes in reconstructing the pharynx without removing the larynx. <br />“I’m trying to decide now whether to go through with it,” he told me. “I am praying for God to show me the right way to go.”<br />“Has God spoken to you?”<br />“Not yet.”</strong><br /><br />
What is the deal in our asking God to help us in our practical decision-making?<br />Seems like most decisions should be A+B+C-D = X.<br />Do we really need to drag God into the practical issues of life?<br />Probably not, if we knew all the factors involved, if we fully understood the goals God has for our life within His redemptive plan, if we understood the eternal ripple effect of our very mundane decisions. But we don’t.<br />We are so limited in our understanding of life as it really is. Thank God, He is not.<br />You see A+B+C-D=X is missing a factor and can never add up correctly without it.<br />Oswald Chambers put it this way, “When you reckon things up, bring God in as the greatest factor in your calculations.”<br />For this reason Jesus said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth…” (John 16:13, ESV).<br />Does this mean God will always make it clear to us in miraculous ways which direction to go in our personal decisions? Not in my experience. <br />Sometimes God speaks in clear ways that cannot be denied, leaving us with a clear mandate to follow. These times are nice but sometimes frightening.<br />Other times, we are forced to follow our own reasoning after offering our will up to the Father. And that’s okay as well, if we are abiding in Christ and wish to follow Him with all of our hearts.<br />As Oswald Chambers also said, “If we are saved and sanctified, God guides us by our everyday choices. The disciple who abides in Jesus is the will of God, and what appear to be free choices are actually God’s foreordained decrees.”<br />“The disciple who abides in Jesus…”<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Let me always come to you with my decisions and offer them up to your will, and then let me follow, the best I can determine with your Spirit.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-78534815836537918762016-04-12T09:24:00.004-07:002016-04-12T09:24:36.759-07:00AK-47s<em>“…Jesus said, ‘It is finished’” (John 19:30a, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>Many years ago, Dr. Gloria Halverson and her husband were traveling down an isolated road into Burundi during the killing times of the Rwandan genocide. They were there to provide counseling and training for those who had suffered from the tragedy, and they had been told the road was safe. <br />After passing a number of Burundi checkpoints manned by Burundi in uniform they drew near their destination—one more checkpoint, soldiers waiting to inspect. Another van was traveling in front of them and was stopped ahead at the request of the soldiers. Gloria’s van was following closely but a soldier separated from the others held up his hand and told them to wait at some distance. <br />Dr. Halverson watched as the soldiers ahead opened the doors to the van and pulled the triggers on their AK-47s, killing everyone inside. The driver in Gloria’s van floored the gas pedal, accelerated around the massacre and rushed through the checkpoint, followed by a hail of bullets that shattered the glass through which Gloria was watching the tragedy. All she could say as she saw her death approaching was, “Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.”<br />Gloria and her fellow travelers survived the horror and, to a person, believe that the soldier who raised his hand to hold them back was an angel sent from God. The rest were rebels dressed in uniforms of soldiers they had killed.</strong><br /><br />
Was the man dressed as a soldier, who held up his hand and saved their lives, an angel or a bloodthirsty rebel whom God used for His purpose? I have no reason to deny the former, though God works in many ways.<br />Does God still use angels to intervene in the lives of the faithful? Dr. Halverson would say yes from her experience, as I would from mine.<br />How He works is His business. What we do know is that He works; He intervenes; He acts in our lives such that His will shall be accomplished. By angel or confused rebel, by dedicated physician on the road to Burundi or by His Word, by words from a friend or by a dedicated physician in Kansas, by a nurse or by a pastor, by you or by me, He will use whom He will, so that nothing will stop His plan—not AK-47, sickness, malpractice, financial ruin, personal betrayal, your death, my death or “anything else in all creation” will keep God from redeeming His world in the way He chooses. Praise His Name.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Help me know that the victory is won and nothing can prevent you from redeeming your creation.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-38040656009798957542016-04-05T08:49:00.003-07:002016-04-05T08:49:26.538-07:00Beyond the Curtain<em>“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br /><strong>I was standing on my tiptoes behind the sterile field on the anesthesia side of the table today, giving my calves a good workout as I peered over the curtain. As a medical student, I'd read about open-heart surgery and I'd listened to the anesthesiologist and cardiothoracic surgeon explain the procedure to me beforehand. But now I saw a chest cut open and the heart beating right before my eyes—a student witnessing a master surgeon at work replacing a heart valve.<br /><br />You can only stand there doing nothing for so long before your mind wanders, and mine wandered into prayer. God reminded me that He is our master surgeon. We hear about Him, read about Him and seek to peer over the curtain of our lives to see what He's doing. But rarely do we actually have the opportunity to see exactly what He's up to.</strong> <br /><br />Today I was reminded: If I could peer over the curtain, I would see God working meticulously on my heart. He removes things—good things, bad things, in-between things—to replace them with something better, something more life-giving, more eternal. I rarely have had the opportunity to see and understand His work while He was doing it, but I can look back at His track record in my life and rest, knowing my heart and my life have been, are and will be in good hands. He is faithful even when we're faithless. He is a God of miracles. The God who makes hearts beat, who keeps you alive while you sleep, who wakes you up each morning...that's my God! Miracle worker every day.<br /><br />So friends, if you feel the scalpel cutting you, if you feel like a part of you has been ripped out, if you feel like your past is too strong, if you feel like there's no hope for your future: TAKE HEART. Jesus is the master heart surgeon, and even if you cannot see beyond the curtain of your life, you can know that your heart is in good hands. The surgical pain is certainly real, but it is also purposeful. It's accomplishing something whether or not you see it in the moment. His scalpel is not wasted. In His OR, every operation has a 100 percent success rate. He is the master surgeon and He is also the universal donor of life-giving blood. When you heal, you will be better than before...and the scars that remain will be a blessed reminder that Jesus closed your wounds and brought you from death into LIFE. <br /><br />Roshini Isabell Selladurai, MS3, IUSM<br /><br /><em>Dear God,<br />Help me remember that you are my master surgeon, that your scalpel is working to bring me close to you and make me whole and that I can trust you in every area of my life.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-22119901889282100012016-03-29T08:29:00.003-07:002016-03-29T08:29:34.469-07:00Flying Trucks<em>“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>Jim Hines is an obstetrician and chief of staff of a practice group in Michigan. Years ago he served God as a healthcare missionary in the Central African Republic. He tells the story of a single missionary woman who was afraid to sleep in her house because there was a large tree nearby that she was afraid would fall on her in the night. She sent word to the missionaries to come and cut down her tree, but no one with such skills was available. Dr. Hines, the obstetrician with a 12-inch chain saw, heard God speak and traveled to the village to confront a 90-foot tree. Somehow he was able to convince many of the village men to help him with their small axes. Gradually the trunk was severed. When the tree began to sway, Jim realized that it might actually fall on the house they were seeking to protect. So, being a wise physician, he had someone climb 30 feet into the tree with a rope and then connected the rope to his truck. They hacked the trunk a bit further; the tree began to sway more. Jim asked his children to move away from the house, just in case. At just the right time, Jim began to accelerate his four-wheel-drive truck in the direction opposite the house. He had all things under control, just like any physician would, when the tree began to fall, lifting his truck off the ground as it fell toward the house he had come to save. Thank God it missed most of the house, though it did clip the edge of the garage where his children had been standing. The missionary woman is now sleeping fine.</strong> <br /><br />
Has God ever called you to work for Him outside your comfort zone? <br />Sometimes we hold back on God when we feel we don’t have the skills, knowledge or experience to complete His task with excellence—like we are afraid that the outcome of our efforts may cause God to shake His head in disappointment. None of us wish to screw up God’s plan, especially if we might hurt others in the process.<br /><br />
But there are times when God calls and doesn’t care a whit that we are missing the skills to proceed. There are times when, for God’s reason, He wishes us to follow Him where we are not qualified to go, where we are likely to fail if the outcome is left to our ability. Such times are no time for our fear of failure to hold us back. It is certainly fine to stare at God incredulously on such occasions and ask, “Are you sure?” But when He nods His head, it is time to follow, especially when it is highly unlikely we can accomplish it on our own.<br />Jim knew nothing about cutting down trees, but God landed the tree. Sometimes God wants to be the only one who can make the tree miss the house, for His glory.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Let me be wise, unless you lead me to follow foolishly.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-71621113815880595722016-03-22T07:55:00.002-07:002016-03-22T07:55:22.172-07:00Ransom<em>“Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>As I was about to share my own message with a small group of Christian doctors at a mountain retreat 6,600 miles from my home, our hostess made the announcement. In Syria, a man had been killed and his wife taken as a sex slave for ISIS. The woman’s brother-in-law had found her and wanted to bring her home. The kidnappers demanded $3,500 ransom, a large amount of money for anyone in Aleppo, Syria at this time. A small group of Christians in a nearby, small, central Asian country had prayed together and raised the money. There was little guarantee that the money would accomplish its task. As I stood to begin my message, our hostess shared the good news, “The ransom has been accepted; the girl is free.”</strong><br /><br />
Few of us can truly understand the violence and tragedy that so many people must endure, even this day, in our world. And few of us can truly grasp the notion that this tragedy and evil we see in many countries is only different by degrees from the tragedy and evil that exists within our own lives. We sit and wonder at the horrible actions of so many in this world and do not realize that we are only decimal points better than they, and God is infinite logs of goodness beyond us, making us much more closely related to the evil than to Him.<br />The world has caught each of us up as slaves to our natural selves and we would wallow in that slavery was it not for the ransom He paid. We who are ransomed should lie on our faces in praise and thanksgiving for such a gift. And we who are ransomed should be meeting in small groups of fellow freed slaves to pray and give so that others may be set free.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Jesus,<br />Thank you for the freedom that cost you your life.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-36009165620133080742016-03-15T05:00:00.005-07:002016-03-15T05:00:59.253-07:00The Spirit Speaks<em>“…‘Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language?’” (Acts 2:7-8, NIV 1984).<br />“…‘Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you…’” (Acts 18:9-10, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>Dr. Gene Rudd rarely shares his stories from Rwanda. They are too deep and too dark for most us to comprehend. He was serving in Kigali with Samaritan’s Purse to keep a hospital open during the genocide when he was thrown by God into an experience that has become central to my understanding of our place in God’s redemptive mission.<br />In the midst of the killing time, Gene was caring for a patient with Shigella pneumonia. Buried beneath 20-hour days, patching up the victims of untold cruelty, Gene had been focused intensely on his work of healing. One day, as he was looking into the eyes of this dying patient, God’s Spirit reawakened him to his true purpose within the tragedy.<br />Unable to speak the man's language, knowing that the man and his family understood no English, Gene searched for his interpreter but was unable to track him down.<br />Compelled by God’s Spirit, desperate to share words of life with this dying man, Gene sat down with the patient and his family and began to share the gospel in English. When he had completed sharing God’s truth from his heart, Gene held hands with the man, his wife and his daughter, and he prayed a prayer of salvation. One hour later, the man died. <br />When Gene located his interpreter, he asked him to go and comfort the woman and explain the message he had tried to convey. The interpreter did so and reported their response back to Gene: “How did the doctor know our language?”<br />They had listened to Gene’s words in English and heard God speak to them in their own language.<br />Even more vitally, the wife, the daughter and the patient had each accepted Christ as their Savior as Gene held their hands and prayed.</strong><br /><br />
It's all God's doing: His cross, His message, His power, His salvation. <br />And God will speak effectively—sometimes in ways impossible for us to comprehend, when Christians, like this physician above, passionately seek to serve Him and in that service speak the name of Jesus. <br />Serving and speaking; serving and speaking.<br />Will it take a Rwandan genocide for me to do likewise?<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Awaken me anew to your great redemptive plan. Let me pour it out in words and with loving service so that your Spirit may not be kept silent.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-28281639348841763602016-03-08T05:24:00.000-08:002016-03-08T05:24:04.131-08:00Diving In<em>“…but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26, NIV 2011).<br /></em><br />
<strong>Dr. Pete Dawson is a world-renowned dentist, both professionally and as an educator who loves the Lord. We were recently leaning over a balcony rail discussing God's work in the impossible. Pete shared with me a story of his men's Bible study that had once diminished in numbers to about four in attendance. <br />Dr. Dawson had offered the other three this challenge, “Let’s each go out and invite someone to our Bible study whom we know will not attend.” They accepted the challenge; so Pete approached a retired, unchurched Admiral he knew.<br />“I want to ask you to do something for me,” Pete said.<br />“What's that?”<br />“I want you to come to our men’s Bible study.”<br />After a moment’s thought the Admiral responded, “I can do that. Just don’t embarrass me. I don't know anything about the Bible.”<br />The Admiral came and found Jesus. Many others came as well.</strong><br /><br />
Ever want to stick it in the Devil’s eye? “Let’s go out and invite those we know won't come.”<br />When is the last time I asked God to do the impossible, or the last time I followed His will into the impossible?<br />One of the really gratifying aspects of prior missionary life was to find myself in the middle of the impossible and then watch God come through.<br />Why not here? Why not now in the normal, hardworking, family loving life of Usual City, USA? Why don't I move forward as God leads and attempt impossible things for His kingdom?<br />What might God want me to do now that would be highly unlikely for me to accomplish on my own?<br />A colleague or student who needs to know the Lord? <br />A mission trip with impossible impediments? <br />A financial offering to His service that I cannot afford? <br />A forgiveness without repentance? <br />Laying to rest a dream outside His plan?<br />A change in lifestyle or practice to accomplish His call?<br />I may need to start thinking a bit more like Pete Dawson: attempt the impossible where God leads and watch God pull it off.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Let me dive into the impossible with you.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-2129893930820778722016-03-01T10:48:00.002-08:002016-03-01T10:48:22.232-08:00Love from the Heart<br /><em>“I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy” (Psalm 116:1, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>He was an old man and lonely. The illness for which I treat him is presently not a problem, but the absence of people to spend time with him is a major burden. A sweet man. Usually he has someone from his church bring him to his appointments. Today was no exception. I’m not sure he would remember to come if they did not. After we finished his examination and I was showing him out of the room, he stopped me, “Wait a minute,” he said. He grabbed my hand and the hand of the one who had brought him, bowed his head and began to pray for me, for his health, for his friend, a prayer of thanks. And then he ended with words to God I rarely hear in open prayer, “I love you. I love you. I love you.” These words keep ringing in my ears.</strong><br /><br />
How often do I say these words to God, from my heart? <br />“I love you. I love you. I love you.”<br />Certainly I speak them in high moments of worship—but not often otherwise. I more often speak words like <em>trust</em>, <em>seek</em> and <em>obey</em> than I do to <em>love</em>. And, in truth, God wants our love to be active and not simply emotional. Trusting, seeking and obeying are certainly measures of our love for God. But this man’s deep, spontaneous love from the heart is something I long for.<br />So, how do I get there?<br />Looking at my own life, I probably should continue with trust, seek and obey, and then add more <em>walk</em>, <em>rest</em> and <em>thank</em>.<br />I think I need to continue to give of myself in service but also to receive more from Him: the magnificence of His presence, the comfort of His arms and the visceral awareness of undeserved blessings He has poured out for me. <br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />I love you. Help me love you more.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-66486181153445877672016-02-23T08:50:00.001-08:002016-02-23T08:50:12.217-08:00Facing the Fading<em>“I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go” (John 21:18, NIV 1984).</em><br /><br />
<strong>Last Friday, I did one of the hardest things I have ever done. I entered the office of my older colleague and mentor, sat down and shared.<br />“You told me to tell you if you ever reached the point you were not performing well. You are not doing well.”</strong><br /><br />
Someday it will be my turn.<br />Someday I will be unable to complete the tasks important for my sense of self worth.<br />Someday I will become more dependent on others than they are dependent on me.<br />And God will say, “This is all part of my plan. I am redeeming the world and your loss of control fits right into my plan of love. As you diminish, your failing will build character, strength, kindness, love and a focus on things that matter within those who will carry you through. In your weakness, I will be stronger than I ever would have been had you remained in your strength. Your weakness is as much a part of my plan as was your strength. Rest in my purpose. Rest in my love. Someday soon, you will be whole again.”<br />“Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter will glorify God. Then he said to him, ‘Follow me!’” (John 21:19, NIV 1984).<br /><br />
<em>Dear God,<br />When it is my turn to fade, let it bring you great glory.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-63903510309612857302016-02-16T06:48:00.002-08:002016-02-16T06:48:29.826-08:00Profound This-worldliness<em>“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Colossians 3:23, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>Sometimes this world weighs me down, just like it does everyone else. I am completing two straight months of attending the consult service in our hospital with the two to three extra hours a day it requires. The <em>margin</em> in my life has been gone so long I’ve forgotten what letter it starts with. I’ve gotten so much behind in things I need to do that I leave work early rather than starting any of them. Normal life for many of us—and God expects me to be Christian in all of this. <br />I was recently talking to one of my Christian gastroenterologist friends who has taken a sabbatical from his work to seek the Lord’s next plan for his life. He asked me how he could pray for me. I told him about my over busy life and my desire to do God’s will within it. He paused for a moment and then responded, “I am going to pray that God will give you <em>focus</em>.”</strong><br /><br />
I am not complaining about living an over-busy life, nor do I feel guilty about it. I just don’t know how to be Christian within it. I am so focused on so many important things that I only occasionally find Jesus in the midst of it all. I feel close to Him during morning devotions, evening prayers and weekends away from work, but how do I bring Him into the bulk of my day? Perhaps if I do less work or get the work done sooner, I will have more time to get to what God wants me to do. But that would be missing the boat. <br />In his<em> Letters and Papers from Prison</em>, Bonhoeffer spoke of the profound this-worldliness of Christianity: “It always seems to me that we are trying anxiously to reserve some space for God. I should like to speak of God not on the boundaries but at the center….”<br />As Christians, we often look at the bulk of our lives as something we must get through in order to do God’s work and feel God’s presence; that God’s work is on the boundary of things that must be completed in order to get to it. Not so, according to Bonhoeffer. The very center of the bulk of our lives is where God wants to be, where He wants us to “focus” on Him and bear witness through the weight and busyness of it all. Those other times of lesser stress on the boundaries of our days and boundaries of our work are necessary times of respite, creativity and devotion. But the life we can best offer to God is within the every day bulk of it all, focused on Him in the midst of the normal craziness.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />Let Jesus live through me when I am working my tail off.<br />Amen.</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-39460414717250354852016-02-09T09:20:00.005-08:002016-02-09T09:20:39.529-08:00Ziklag<em>“But David thought to himself, ‘One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul. The best thing I can do is to escape to the land of the Philistines…’” (1 Samuel 27:1, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>It’s been 30 years, but I can still recall his look of disappointment. James was a medical student who had looked up to me when I had surrendered my life to God’s call for international healthcare missions. It hadn’t worked out. We hadn’t lasted. Back after two years in Nigeria, seeking a career like other doctors who had never heard the call, I had let him down. James had envisioned me as a model of sacrifice for the Lord’s work. I can still see his face. I was no longer his model for Christian living.</strong><br /><br />
Do you know the term “hunker down?” We less educated Americans use it to mean sit on our heels to get out of sight for protection. That’s what David did when he fled to the Philistines. The king of Gath actually gave him a town of his own called Ziklag. David planned to stay awhile. God’s business had been a bit too dangerous, a bit too stressful; it took a bit too much out of him to stay in Israel.<br />In truth, I have spent much of my life running back and forth to Ziklag, and sometimes I have wanted to make my home there. <br />Sometimes Ziklag looks pretty good to me—sometimes a life dedicated to God becomes more than I bargained for. Sometimes for long stretches of my life, I have let go of God’s mission and lived my own. <br />Sometimes it’s just been too uncomfortable to endure the time pressures, the financial demands, the sacrifice of relationships and the just-plain loss of comfort that comes with living a mission-oriented life.<br />Sometimes I have wandered to Ziklag because I wanted to be self-centered rather than God-centered. <br />Sometimes God just hasn’t come through when I really needed Him, the way I knew He should have come through, so I choose to seek fulfillment in the way the rest of the world finds it. I flee like David and set up a home where people focus on themselves and care for their families without the weight of serving our Creator.<br />And other times, I have fought the fight with God and watched Him win.<br />My effort and performance and even desire for God have been inconsistent during the life He has given me. <br />But He has loved me through it all.<br />Colton Dixon sings a song I hear frequently on Christian radio, entitled <em>Through It All</em>, which speaks of a merciful love that covers all of my inconsistent living. The chorus goes like this:<br /><br />
<em>I have won and I have lost.<br />I got it right sometimes<br />But sometimes I did not.<br />Life's been a journey—<br />I've seen joy; I've seen regret.<br />Oh, and you have been my God through all of it</em><br /><br />
The ultimate success of my life rests far more on His love than on my effort. I may run away from the God who loves me and run from the mission He has for my life, but when I return, He is always there to welcome me home. All is grace.<br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />I have won; I have lost. I got it right sometimes and sometimes I did not. Life’s been a journey; I’ve seen joy; I’ve seen regret—and you have been my God through all of it.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-35125921297707709492016-02-02T09:51:00.002-08:002016-02-02T09:51:21.821-08:00Airport Nights<em>“…‘My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.’ …And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding… ‘Your daughter is dead’” (Mark 5:21-43, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br /><strong>Initially the flights had been flawless—on my way to a central Asian country on a medical education mission. I arrived in Paris two hours ahead of the flight into my destination and went to the boarding gate as directed to get my boarding pass. There I presented my electronic ticket to the woman present for such things. After a moment, she said I should sit and wait for a while. I did so, but every 30 minutes I approached the desk and inquired, each time told to be patient. I became a bit anxious when the passengers began boarding and so I approached her again. “You have to wait for the manager,” she said. As the last person boarded, the manager arrived and left. “I am sorry, your name was not on the list.” I was in awe. No other explanation was given. I spent two nights getting to Baku instead of one.</strong><br /><br />Ever had plans in your life interrupted, painfully, without life giving you a rationale, without any way to fix things? I know how my natural man handles such events. How should I be different if I am born anew by the grace of my Savior? When faced with such events, it often depends on my will, as my heart is not in it.<br /> <br />First of all, I must be <em>patient</em>. If I don’t wait on the Lord in this, I will get it wrong.<br /><br />Then I must be <em>purposeful</em>. Whether the Lord has caused this or allowed it, He is in the middle of it with me. It is now His battlefield, not mine. Whatever the interruption, it is kind of like the bleeding woman who interrupted Jesus when He had a life to save. God has something to do here and I must not push Him aside to get to my personal business.<br /><br />And then, I must seek <em>peace</em>. It may not come easy, but peace is here because Christ is here. “I have told you these things, so that <em>in me</em> you may have peace…” (John 16:33, NIV 2011).<br /><br />And finally, I must be <em>kind</em>. My nature is to strike out at others when my life plans are halted abruptly. None of that is Jesus. None of that speaks His love to the world. If I can be kind when the world strikes out at me, then my Lord’s face may be seen in the middle of it all; and that will make this present roadblock a stepping stone to His kingdom.<br /><br /><em>Dear Father,<br />Keep me patient and kind so that you may do your work on your timing.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-6636935986129607462016-01-26T07:34:00.004-08:002016-01-26T07:34:49.530-08:00Grace<em>“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8, NIV 1984).<br /></em><br />
<strong>Ken was sitting on the examining table with his wife in a nearby chair. For five years he had been dealing with multiple myeloma, responding well to treatment, becoming refractory and then responding again. This was his third approach to therapy, with a fairly new drug called carfilzomib.<br />“You are responding well, Ken,” I told him and then joked a bit, “I don’t know why, but it looks like the Lord just wants to keep you around.”<br />Ken’s face slipped into a Mona Lisa, deep and gentle smile and, with bowed head, he simply said, “Grace.”<br /></strong><br />
I used to think that grace was all about being saved from my sin. And it is.<br />But I have come to learn through the years of my life that grace covers far more than my entry into God’s kingdom.<br />God’s grace also generates undeserved blessings throughout my life. Like Ken above, I bask in undeserved blessing after blessing in spite of what I do, because of whose I am.<br />God’s grace also produces undeserved patience with my living—through all the years of my delaying His call on my life, through all my denials of His demands, through all the balls I have dropped, through all the sins that still rise up and smirk at my Lord.<br />God’s patience with me shouts grace. <br />I am His and He loves me unconditionally throughout my life, not just at the beginning of my walk with Him. <br />God’s grace is not simply a point of action in my life. <br />God‘s grace is a blanket that lays over the entire imperfection of my living.<br /><br />
<em>Dear God,<br />Thank you for the grace that covers each day this side of heaven.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-19183182981672958602016-01-19T07:18:00.005-08:002016-01-19T07:18:42.450-08:00Slow to Anger<em>“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19, NIV 1984).</em><br /><br />
<strong>My oncology fellow was amazed at my patience as Mr. Donohue’s daughter railed at me for 20 minutes over her perception of our care for her father. We had managed him very well, with compassion and according to all the best guidelines, but he was not doing well. The daughter was from out of town and not in control and felt his poor outcome was partly my fault. When the conversation ended and we left the room, I told my fellow, “There is no way to deal with that kind of anger other than to let it hit you and roll off. All you can really do is tell the facts with kindness and show you care.”</strong><br /><br />
Most of us have dealt with an angry patient or angry patient family. All of us have dealt with someone who has directed their anger at us, deserved or undeserved. How we take that anger reflects or fails to reflect the grace of the Cross.<br />What we may not have addressed and might not have managed well is our own anger. Jesus was one of the very few who could do anger well, and He let it out only in defense of others, never Himself. My anger is different. My anger has always been all about me. My anger has always reflected my nature and not Jesus. My anger has always produced hurt and not redemption. I personally have never lashed out in anger without regretting it.<br />Even if we deserve to strike out, holding our anger in for Jesus’ sake is a good way to carry our cross, to take upon ourselves an undeserved suffering so that Christ may be glorified. Sort of like our own small road to Golgotha. <br /><br />
<em>Dear Father,<br />When I am tempted to be angry, focus my vision on His cross.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-15716555793417740192016-01-12T09:06:00.004-08:002016-01-12T09:06:46.300-08:00Solace<em>“Simon, son of John, do you truly love me?”<br />He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”<br />Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” Jn 21: 16</em><br /><br />
<strong>Ben was a big, hulking man with a soft voice, recently brought through a serious illness. As his doctor I had been there with him. He had no one else, no family or friends to hold him up during his trials. Some of the past few months he had even been homeless on the streets. <br />Now he was better, at least for a while. As Ben thanked me for my help, I said to him.<br />“Now that you stable again, you need to go out there and help someone else.”<br />He grinned slightly, “I hear you, Doc.”</strong><br /><br />
Why did I ask Ben to turn his attention to helping others? He still had a pretty rough life ahead for himself. It seems only fair, as much as he had gone through, for others to take care of him, not the reverse.<br />Frankly, I wasn’t thinking much about others when I asked Ben to go out and help; I asked Ben to help others for Ben’s sake.<br />Over decades of caring for patients who suffer a lot, it has become apparent to me that suffering people gain value and joy in life when they focus on others, rather than themselves. In fact, that works for doctors as well. It sounds peculiar, but, when I’m going through rough spots in my own life, I find great joy in making house calls and not charging the patients I visit. That’s certainly strange; but somehow, in pouring out for others without an expected reward, joy peeks into my darkness and lightens things up. It works for me; it works for my patients. It’s one of those subtle messages from the Cross.<br /><br />
<em>Dear God,<br />Let me find solace in working with you to bring solace to others. Help me direct my patients toward the same source of renewal.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-66361924723130673882016-01-05T07:33:00.003-08:002016-01-05T07:33:39.383-08:00Speak the Word<em>“Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season” (2 Timothy 4:2a, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br /><strong>A second year fellow came to my clinic office on Christmas Eve to have me sign some leave papers. I asked him how he and his family would be celebrating Christmas, as he is Muslim. He spoke of his faith’s respect for Jesus as a prophet and how they celebrate His birth in that regard. He focused on the similarities of our faiths and how Muslims and Christians are worshipping the same God. He spoke of Muslim prayer and charity and respect between the faiths. I agreed with him that we Christians do, like he, worship the One God—but I knew I shouldn’t end it there. I then spoke of God Himself coming as Jesus, God Himself entering humanity. I spoke of the atonement and spoke of forgiveness and grace, clarifying that Christianity and Islam were far apart on this understanding of God’s work and presence. None of our conversation was argument; all was heart to heart.</strong><br /><br />I was recently concerned when I heard that the leaders of the Catholic Church had declared that Catholics should not evangelize Jews. As usual, my concern was based only on a partial truth. What the Pope and Cardinals truly said was different than my hearsay assumptions:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
“In concrete terms this means that the Catholic Church neither conducts nor supports any specific institutional mission work directed towards Jews. While there is a principled rejection of an institutional Jewish mission, Christians are nonetheless called to bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ also to Jews, although they should do so in a humble and sensitive manner, acknowledging that Jews are bearers of God’s Word…”<br /><em>A REFLECTION ON THEOLOGICAL QUESTIONS PERTAINING TO CATHOLIC–JEWISH RELATIONS ON THE OCCASION OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF "NOSTRA AETATE" (NO.4)</em></blockquote>
In other words, the Christian mandate to bear witness for Christ has not changed, but has been tempered with respect for God’s history with Israel, as well as with respect and dependence on the Jewish writings that are the foundation of our faith and by respect for the terrible sufferings that many, sometimes in the name of Christ, have brought upon the Jewish people. Witness mandated with sensitivity and respect and love.<br /><br />Of course, we Christians, whatever our denomination, can go so far in demonstrating our respect and love that we fail to speak the word of truth.<br /><br />As I chatted with my Muslim fellow, I was tempted to leave the conversation at the ecumenical commonalities between our faiths, to foster friendship and allow God to reach him through some other miraculous way. But in the midst of our conversation, God’s Spirit told me I must go beyond friendship and speak the truth in love. God then opened a door to work as He wills in this young man’s life. I’m glad I was listening. I needed to hear. I needed to speak.<br /><br /><em>Dear God,<br />I so often fail to speak the word of truth, the word of Christ. Mold me into a better witness for you.<br />Amen</em><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1364796113289262501.post-65369473364470995732015-12-29T09:44:00.002-08:002015-12-29T09:44:43.142-08:00The Quilt<em>“For your ways are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all your paths” (Proverbs 5:21, NIV 2011).</em><br /><br />
<strong>I received two important gifts from family this Christmas. The first was <em>Destiny and Power</em>, John Meacham’s biography of George H.W. Bush. He was the first Bush president: the one who freed Kuwait from Iraq, ended the cold war with Russia, said, “No new taxes,” then changed his mind and lost his second term because of the broken promise and Ross Perot. He was one of the Greatest Generation, like my father, who served our country during the Second World War and then led us to our peak of greatness as a nation, who chose dignity, honor, duty and service as principles to live by. It has been a pleasure to read his story and remember a day when such principles were popular in our country.<br />The second gift was from my mom. It was a quilt, a peculiar gift at first. But then I realized the quilt was made from the shirts my dad wore over the last decade of his life. My dad was not a stylish dresser and his shirts were famous in paisley, prints and stripes. He got away with it because he was a great man, made of the same dignity, duty, honor and service that the first Bush was fashioned from. Once I recognized the nature of the quilt, I could pick out the patches of each infamous shirt and remember with great fondness the great man who wore them. A special gift…my sister held it to her face and said, “It even smells like Daddy.” Only a mother could do that.</strong><br /><br />
Thank God my life is far more like a patchwork quilt made from shirts I have worn rather than a solid colored pallet.<br />As we go through life, we so often judge our value and worth based on the present circumstance. If our patient has done amazingly well, we know what good healthcare professionals we are. If the sheriff comes with a malpractice notification, we understand how far we fall short. If our children are happy and following the rules, we are great parents; if they are in trouble, we question our worth as mom or dad. We serve God sacrificially for the moment, then fail Him miserably the next.<br />As we are caught up in each circumstance, we define our lives by that circumstance and measure our worth by the moment.<br />Thank God none of us are fully defined by a moment in which we might say, “No more taxes,” followed by a broken promise. Thank God He takes all the shirts we have worn and patches them together as a beautiful quilt. The beauty is in the whole, of which our present circumstance is only a small patch. There is no place for pride as we look at one patch or despair as we look at another. Whether it be a dark patch or a light patch is important only for the moment, whether disappointing or glorious. What really matters is the finished quilt of our lives, the one that God has fashioned in His Grace, the one He can hold to his face and say, “It smells like Jesus.”<br /><br />
<em>Dear God,<br />Let me be confident in your ability to fashion beauty and purpose from this very imperfect life.<br />Amen</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0