Having A Great Faith

I'm not really a boxing fan (can't understand why someone would want to make a living by getting repeatedly hit on the head) but I did develop some interest when I was growing up regarding heavyweight fighters, especially Muhammad Ali (formerly Cassius Clay).  I'm not exactly sure why I admired him except that he was heavyweight champion for a while, was on television a lot (especially on programs like "ABC's Wide World of Sports") and, of course, he seemed to be a favorite of sports announcer Howard Cosell.  He fought with a certain flair and seemed to back up his persistent bragging about his abilities with results.  He was subsequently called, "The Greatest" and was king of the boxing world in his heyday.

There is something about "greatness" which is appealing.  A restaurant may state it has the "greatest cup of coffee in the world" (I'd like to try that) or Hollywood may promote a film and state it is "the greatest movie in a decade" (Hmmm...I may want to check the reviews first before I venture out to the theater).  Speaking of Hollywood, actor Jackie Gleason was dubbed "The Great One" (he obtained this nickname a little before my time).  Nevertheless, there appears to be some merit, at least in the secular world, of being the labeled the "greatest", whether it be in sports, entertainment or even politics. Consequently, manufacturers are constantly working to provide the "greatest" product for their customers.

Jesus was also touched by the greatness of a person.  Reading in Matthew 8:5-10, 13:

"And when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him, and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented." Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."  But the centurion said, "Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it.  Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, "Truly I say to you.  I have not found such great (italics mine) faith with anyone in Israel....And Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your way; let it be done to you as you have believed." And the servant was healed that very hour."

So, when Jesus says this is the "greatest faith", it would behoove us to take notice.  What was so great about the centurion's faith?

First of all, he understood the power of Jesus.  No sickness or situation was beyond His healing ability.  Reminds me of Jeremiah 32:27 which states, "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?"

In relation to this, he was aware of the provision for Jesus to heal.  He didn't even have to come to his house, lay hands on the servant or be physically present in any way.  Simply saying the word was sufficient.

Furthermore, he was knowledgeable of Jesus's personnel.  The centurion personally had soldiers and servants who followed his commands.  He knew Jesus also had a spiritual army who was ready to accomplish His purposes.

So, perhaps, one of the "greatest" truths learned from a man who had the "greatest" faith, is to recognize Jesus's power and authority to heal cancer or any other infirmity.  Simply saying the word is more than enough for Him to remove this dreaded disease.   

Seeking Relief From The Body Of Death

Do you ever feel like there is something for which you cannot escape or lingers on? I know sometimes a cold or respiratory infection can go on for weeks and weeks requiring multiple rounds or antibiotics and several doctors' visits.  I've heard people say statements like, "I just can't seem to shake this" portraying their frustration with its persistence.

However, some ailments in life can be more intense and more destructive.  In relation to this, Paul makes an interesting statement as he describes the battle between the spirit and the flesh in Romans 7.  In verse 24 he proclaims, "Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?"  So, what exactly is a "body of this death?" which had its grip on Paul.  It possibly conveys a most gruesome meaning.  The MacArthur Study Bible says that "...an ancient tribe near Tarsus tied the corpse of a murder victim to its murderer, allowing its spreading decay to slowly infect and execute the murderer-perhaps that is the image Paul had in mind."  I cannot think of anything more hideous and grotesque.  

Yet, that is exactly how seasons and circumstances of life can linger in their destruction.  It could be a failed marriage, a job loss, financial difficulties or loss of health.

Although I have been cancer free since 2006, the effects of this disease and its treatment just never seem to go away.  I still have damage from the chemotherapy with hearing loss, peripheral neuropathy and chronic kidney disease.  Since my bladder was removed in 2004 and a neobladder created I have to stick a tube in my artificial bladder three times a day and am forever a slave to companies which sell urinary catheters.  In addition, I have to sleep with a diaper nightly due to the threat of urinary incontinence.  Furthermore, there is the concern of how to care for myself in latter years, wondering if I will have sufficient assistance when I am old and feeble.  

Hence, similar to Paul, I also feel like I am attached to a "body of death."  How will I ever escape this predicament?  The cure is listed in Romans 7:25 with the glorious news, " Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!"  Although life may be difficult in many ways, I know that "weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning." (Psalms 30:5)

Some Things Can Wait

I've been extremely busy lately so have been limited in contributing to my blog.  Nevertheless, I had an inspiration recently while running and was waiting for an opportune moment to share. 

Basically, I've been running along Deerfoot Parkway close to where I live for at least seventeen years.  Although my work schedule limits my activity some, I do try to run at least twice a week.  As I've probably mentioned previously, running is a great way to clear my mind and pray about matters with little distraction.  In addition, hopefully this strenuous exercise trumps my bad habits, e.g. loving hamburgers, hot dogs, French fries, etc. and helps me remain physically fit. 

Yet, in all of my years running on the parkway, I encountered an unusual site several weeks ago.  While I was running, I saw a duck and ducklings crossing the road at a leisurely pace.  Mind you, Deerfoot Parkway can be a relatively busy thoroughfare.  However, out of the blue, the mother duck and her young proceeded to cross the road while there was still a good amount of traffic flow.  Seeing this lovely waterfowl family, I feared for their safety as the passing cars could easily turn the ducks into pate'.  Thankfully, the cars on the road stopped for a few moments and let the ducks advance to the other side of the road.  Afterwards, the automobiles continued on their journeys. 

So, seeing the ducks, I thought surely there is some sort of lesson here.  What could these ducks represent?  I struggled for an answer and realized that the ducks could represent a concept which is much needed at times, more specifically, the need to temporarily put life on hold to sort out other issues.  In other words, let the ducks pass.

Consequently, this is applicable in any area of life.  Maybe you want to write a book but are currently struggling with illness or cancer.  It's okay to let the illness resolve or improve, then begin writing afterwards.  It's like being on a Merry-Go-Round.  Just jump back on when circumstances allow or, in keeping with the theme, allow time for the ducks to pass.

Wanting to get a college degree but also wanting to start a family?  It's okay to delay getting your degree for a year or two to have a child or vice versa.  Nothing wrong with that.  Just let the ducks pass.

Furthermore, in any situation, when confronted by a family of ducks, just give them ample time to cross the road and then continue your journey.

 

 




     

Thinking Outside The Box

As I have mentioned in several blogs, I am a runner and try to run at least twice a week as my schedule permits.  I do this for a couple of reasons.  First of all, it's a great time to clear my mind and pray over matters.  In addition, running keeps me from gaining a lot of weight.  Not that I lose weight, mind you.  I just feel like I don't gain a lot of weight when I consistently run.  Furthermore, by running, I don't feel quite as guilty when I frequent fast food restaurants as is my habit.

One place I visit on occasion is the local hot dog eatery.  I like my hot dogs "all the way" with sauerkraut, onions and special sauce.  On the other hand, my wife is much more picky about her selection in that she wants the hot dogs without onions.  So, when I order, I usually mention I want at least one of the dogs without onions.  But, when I get home, this is where the fun begins.  Sometimes the eatery marks the wrapper a special way to show that the hot dog is without onions.  On other occasions, there is no mention on the wrapper.  So, I have to sort through the dogs to find the ones without onions.  This takes time and is sometimes difficult to find the onions (or lack of them) on the hot dogs.  

Then, one day, it dawned on me, there was a simple way to rectify this problem. So what did I do?  I began ordering all the hot dogs without onions.  That way, I didn't have to search through the hot dogs plus I didn't run the risk of being fussed at by my wife if there were onions involved.  Easy solution.

Sometimes in life it is advantageous to think outside the box, that is, to look for easy solutions for problems.  For example, I read about a lady who had extreme nausea with her chemotherapy treatments in the afternoons.  So, what did she do?  She set her alarm clock to wake her up around 3AM and ate a huge breakfast so nausea wouldn't be a problem later in the day.  Great idea!  There is absolutely no law that you have to wait until 7 or 8 a.m. to eat breakfast.  Hence, she was able to eat well and not worry about nausea during the day.  She was thinking outside the box.

I also heard about a man whose doctor told him he needed to drink 8 glasses of water a day, sometimes a difficult request.  What did he do?  When he got up in the morning, he drank 8 glasses of water back to back.  Kind of unusual, but yet, there is no rule that you can't drink the beverages all at one time.  He was thinking outside the box.

So, when facing difficulties or unusual problems, don't give up.  There may be a way you can accomplish a task by thinking outside the box.  Be creative.  It may not be as hard as you think.

          

Lessons From a Preemie

My oldest daughter recently gave birth to her second son, William.  However, due to pregnancy complications, the child was delivered emergently at 31 weeks.  He remains in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and is receiving extraordinary care.  As a grandparent, I pray earnestly that my newest grandson will grow, thrive and ultimately come home to be with his older sibling.  I also pray that the health care team will have uttermost wisdom in dealing with his fragile life.  Of course, I also lift up his parents and extended family in the midst of this situation. 

Yet, dealing with my premature grandson's situation has opened my eyes to something which countless parents experience.  Perhaps the best way for me to deal with my anxiety (as I have in time's past) is by writing.  So, please bear with me as I try to gather some thoughts that might be helpful to myself and others.

In general terms, William had to be prematurely removed from his mother's womb.  That is the problem.  Pure and simple.  If he could have stayed there until his delivery date in March, life would be much, much easier. 

Hence, what are the advantages of a child being in the womb?  What specifically does the womb provide?  These thoughts may be even applicable to any situation, whether cancer or whatever difficulty in life. 

 First of all, there is protection. No matter what external extremes of heat or cold are present, the temperature in the womb remains consistent. 

In addition, there is provision.  Nourishment is provided to the fetus via the placenta.  All nutrients are provided to help the fetus grow and flourish.

Another advantage of the womb is is personal touch.  How many parents rub or talk to the kicking baby to give them sweet assurance of their presence!

In like manner, I can see how these same concepts are necessary when going through cancer or cancer treatment.  For example, when I was going through chemotherapy, I was given Neulasta injections periodically to increase my white blood cell count and "protect" me from infection.

Also, "provision" was definitely a necessity during chemotherapy.  It was a challenge to keep food down due to extreme nausea.  On the days I felt relatively well, I tried to "eat like a horse" in order to boost my strength.  Nevertheless, I still lost twenty five pounds while undergoing 3 1/2 months of my chemotherapy regimen.

Finally, "personal touch" was such a comfort.  I don't know of anyone who received more prayers while I was fighting cancer.  There were those who brought food, patted me on the back, etc.  My father even painted my porch!

Therefore, protection, provision, and personal touch are necessities.  Whether in the womb or out, no matter where we are on our life journey, it's nice to have such things to lighten our load.

 

The Father's Compassion

My Bible Study group recently studied two of the most familiar parables in the Bible.  The first is the story of the Good Samaritan as described in Luke 10:30-37.  As you may recall, this parable mentions a man who was walking from Jerusalem to Jericho and was attacked by robbers.  They "stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead" (Luke 10:30).  A Levite and later a priest walked by him in his helpless condition but opted to do nothing.  Thankfully, a Samaritan "..saw him...felt compassion, and came to him, and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  And on the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you.'" (verses 33-35).

Isn't that what sometimes happens in life?  The gentleman walking down the road to Jericho didn't do anything wrong.  He was simply viciously attacked out of the blue.  A routine journey became a fight for his life.  Gratefully, the Samaritan came to his aid in a big way.  He took care of his wounds, found him a place to stay, even provided further financial assistance to make sure he would fully recover.

We all need "Good Samaritans" in our lives at times.  These may be those seasons when we may be caught in situations due to no fault of our own and end up broken and bleeding.

Skip over to Luke 15:11-32 for the account of the prodigal son.  In this situation, the son purposefully got himself in trouble.  He asked for his father to give him his inheritance prematurely (before the father had passed away) and promptly spent all of the money.  Luke 15:13 records how he "..went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living."  Starving and penniless, he decided to return to his father, even being willing to be a servant to survive.  Yet, the father welcomed him with open arms.  Luke 15:20 states, "But while he was a still a long way off, his father saw him, and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him, and kissed him."  The father subsequently had a big party rejoicing in the return of his wayward son.

In like manner, there are times in our lives that we may purposefully go against the Heavenly Father's wishes and end up in tons of trouble.  We ultimately "come to our senses" (Luke 15:17) and come running back to God.  Gratefully, we are met with open arms as we repent.

Hence, the common denominator in both parables appears to be compassion.  The Good Samaritan felt compassion for the traveler who had been attacked whereas the father felt compassion for the son who had made extremely poor decisions.

So, whatever situation in life, whether it involves choices which have led to our demise or even times when we are guiltless, the compassionate Heavenly Father is there to bandage our wounds and welcome us back into His family.

        

Surviving An Eclipse

This year there was much excitement across the United States due to a total eclipse which occurred on August 21st. Many people travelled great distances just to see this once in a lifetime event. Residents of Franklin, Tennessee, about three hours north of me, experienced a full eclipse.  However, the area where I live (just north of Birmingham, Alabama) only had 92% coverage by the moon.  Still not too shabby.  Although there was no appreciable darkness in my area, I was happy to witness this event.   I even took a picture of the eclipse over my shoulder when it reached its maximum impact in my area.  As you can see, due to the eclipse, the sun assumed a unique oval type shape (see picture below).

In further reflections upon the eclipse, I became aware of several occurrences.  For example, even though the sun was blocked out (at least, temporarily), the grass was still growing, flowers were still blooming, rivers were unabated in their flow and birds were still flying.  In other words, in spite of the transient darkness, life in the eclipse regions continued as it was before whether the sun could be seen or not.

What a glorious picture of life.  Sometimes the sun (or should I say God's watchful presence) is blocked from our view.  These are the situations where the diagnosis from the doctor is dreadful, the balance in the checkbook is pitiful, or the chances of getting a job are limited.  As a matter of fact, we are prone to call these times "dark" days.  We are not to worry, though, because God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us.  Everything in our lives will work out according to His plan and His timing.  He is looking after us whether we are able to see Him or not.

Thus, celestial eclipses are a rare event.  Unfortunately, personal eclipses occur more regularly.  But, as Jesus reminds us in John 20:29, "blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”