“But
let all who take refuge in You be glad, Let them ever sing for joy; And may You
shelter them, That those who love Your name may exult in You. For it is
You who blesses the righteous man, O Lord, You surround him with favor as with
a shield.” (Ps. 5:11-12).
Hey Gang: Anyone
out there laboring under the false assumption that to be a Christian is to have
a protective shell draped around your body and the sky falling experiences will
be no more? Some years ago there was teaching, among some circles, that
triple John two was a guarantee that, if you were a true believer in
Christ, you would have good health and be prosperous.
I had a problem with
this teaching each time I went to one of the meeting and there were people
there in wheel chairs, on crutches and showed signs of not being in the best of
health. They arrived in all types of vehicles, some I questioned would
make it back to where they came from. And it did not take long in
conversation to learn that all were dealing with the many encounters with the
alligators that pervade their lives.
No, I do not think
John meant that if we committed our lives to Christ we would be healthy and
disease free, nor do I think he was alluding to the fact that in Christ come
worldly wealth and sufficient funds to enjoy all the bangles and beads of this
world. But wait, did not Jesus say, "Ask
and you will receive". We like to drag that verse out every time
we run into a conflict in our lives. But we forget the attached part of
that promise "Ask in God's will".
As I think back over
my life I learned that God's counsel was ‘Don't
get to comfortable?’ As I look at the Lord's Hall of Fame in Hebrews
11, I find people who I would want on my team, for they were goers and doers. I
found in many cases they were people who had encounters with alligators
throughout their lives. Do you think that Noah might have had some
hecklers? How about Moses with his mega desert travelers? And then
there was Joseph, David, Samson and Gideon?
As a brawny lad I was
blessed with excellent health. As I matter of fact I do not recall seeing
the inside of a doctor's office until my late teen years. And, with the
exceptions of required physicals as an air traffic controller, I refrained from
taking up time in doctor's offices.
But, remember the ‘don't get to comfortable’ counsel.
I have now reached the eighty-year plateau and, from all outward appearances I
am one healthy dude. But how many know outward appearances can be
deceiving? Twelve years ago my bride and I were hiking in Texas and, when
two miles from the car, I was hit with a nasty ailment called polymyalsia. I
will not try and explain what that means only to say it took us several hours
to get back to the car. The doctor said it is a short term ailment and
would go by the boards in one or two years. That was twelve years ago!
In the past month, I
learned that I have pressure behind the eyes that causes glaucoma and will
require cataract surgery in the coming months, and that I have joined the
Diabetes Club. Devastating, yes, but let me share the rest of the
story. They suspected that Diabetes was in my future and placed me a
very effective medication that would slow down problem; however, my system
would not tolerate it.
Well, this could turn
out to be a long dialog so let me shorten by saying, we prayed, I tried the
medication again and it did not upset my system! On top of that neat miracle, for the first
time in twelve years I am off the steroids that kept the Polymyalsia under
control and have no signs of it since! Praise God!
Soooo, good friends,
pray for me and my bride as we prepare to go back to Voice of Martyrs and
volunteer our time and abilities to reaching out to the persecuted Christians
around the world. And let me share a piece of advice that you may need
when you get into the Golden Years - (Golden Years for the medical profession),
you can make your body do anything you feel God is leading you to do. And
with your commitment to do as He directs, He blesses your sox off!
Blessings,
Gramps
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