Christel and I have been writing steadily at TheHumfreys.Com this year especially since the beginning of the summer. We appreciate all of the support that our readers have given us through liking articles on Facebook, retweeting on Twitter, or verbally encouraging us when they see us in person.
Here are the numbers:
nearly 5000 page views this year
nearly 3000 unique visitors
Most visitors come from Canada. We are, after all, a Canadian site! The second most come from the United States, followed by readers from the UK. Our fourth-highest readership is from Italy (please invite us to visit!). After that, there is an equal number of Dutch, Brazilian, and Australian readers. To all of you who took the time to read– Thank you!
As we make plans to write through to the end of 2019 and into 2020 we want to ask our readers this important question:
What do you want us to write about?
More bible meditations from Christel?
More pastor posts from Clint?
Theology?
Lifestyle?
Practical ethics?
Our life and marriage?
Home and health?
Other topics?
Please leave your comments on our Facebook page and remember to “like” the page to get the latest updates on your media feed.
“no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison…From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.” ~ James 3:8, 10
I’ve been thinking a lot about words lately. I have often underestimated the impact of my words. I have also underestimated the longevity of my words.
Once you say them, you can never un-say them.
How often have I spoken without thinking through the implications of my words? How often have I been so short-sighted in the moment that I failed to see how my words would affect the reputation of another.
The glory of having something interesting to say overshadows my concern for others– both those with whom I am speaking and also those rarely remembered second and third-hand hearers.
Words are so easy to speak. They are such a little thing in the moment. But a few seconds worth of words can set in motion horrific consequences. Maybe that’s why the apostle James compares the tongue to a small rudder that guides a huge ship or a small spark that sets a forest ablaze.
What Our Words Say About Us
Our words are an expression of our hearts. People perceive things about us by what we say. These words divulge our pride, our prejudices, and our insecurities. They expose what we value, what we love and what we crave.
It is tempting to be duplicitous. To speak in a way that is contrary to our heart’s true feelings because we think it is what others want to hear. This is not admirable or sustainable.
But because of the indelible nature of words, a motive-searching moment before speaking is invaluable.
Words that Give Grace
“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”
Ephesians 4:29
A Christian’s words should have a purpose. They should be intentional, thoughtful and strategic. They should be words of healing, kindness, and encouragement. They should seek to “give grace to those who hear.” This may be as simple as engaging in small talk or as complex as counselling a person through a major life crisis. The intention is the same: to genuinely seek the other’s good and to draw their attention to the God who saves.
Even corrective words can be done with gentleness, respect and humility. I love this example of Winston Churchill being confronted by his wife, Clementine. It’s an excerpt from a letter found in Speaking for Themselves: The Personal Letters of Winston and Clementine Churchill. The manner of Clementine’s rebuke is so loving and respectful that you know she is doing it wholly because she cares about his well being. She says:
I hope you will forgive me if I tell you something that I feel you ought to know. One of the men in your entourage – a devoted friend – has been to me & told me that there is a danger of your being generally disliked by your colleagues and subordinates because of your rough sarcastic and overbearing manner…I was astonished and upset because in all these years I have been accustomed to all those who have worked with & under you, loving you – I said this, & I was told ‘No doubt it’s the strain.’ My darling Winston – I must confess that I have noticed a deterioration in your manner & you are not so kind as you used to be…with this terrific power [as Prime Minister] you must combine urbanity, kindness and if possible Olympic calm…Besides you won’t get the best results by irascibility and rudeness…Please forgive your loving devoted and watchful – Clemmie.
Speaking for Themselves: The Personal Letters of Winston and Clementine Churchill
Grace-giving words have the power to bring about change. How different would our conversations be if we felt that it was our responsibility to bless others?
Lately, I’ve been thinking about finishing well. I sometimes wonder whether my mind or my body will break down first. I think about the frustration of going from competency to helplessness. What will it be like to have my independence taken away from me? Someday I will no longer be able to drive or live on my own. I may not be able to dress or bath myself. I wonder if I will have the humility to laugh or if I will feel degraded. I recently saw an older person stumble and spill their coffee on their pants and someone’s floor, and feel humiliated. We will all experience this someday. I think about having loved ones die and being alone. I once heard a widow recount how she was no longer included in certain social events after her husband died because tables were set for an even number, and couples like to hang out with other couples.
The Temptation of Bitterness
I wonder how difficult it will be to journey through old age. Why do some people finish so well, and others act with such ugliness. Some are kind, joyful, and contented even though their life is far more difficult then it was in younger years. Others seem bitter, selfish, and demanding, like they are owed something and not getting their due. I imagine it is tempting to think, ‘Is this it? Is it all over? Isn’t there supposed to be some payoff for all the things I’ve accomplished in my life?’ I’m sure that the difficulties of old age will exacerbate my sinful tendencies. It’s easy to be a good person when your life is great, but it’s far harder to put sin to death when life is difficult.
Being Forgotten
The elderly are somewhat forgotten in our world. Their spotlight stolen by the young and upcoming. I am convicted that I desire far too much attention from other people. In the words of Robert Murray McCheyne, “I need to be made willing to be forgotten.” If my identity is in Christ alone, then even in my loneliest times, it will be enough. How is it possible that I am loved by the God of the universe–intimately, unconditionally–because of Jesus’ work on my behalf? This truth makes me hopeful.
The Last Chapter
As I contemplate these things, what gives me the greatest hope is this: old age is not the final chapter in life. There is eternity after that. And that is when the payoff comes for those who trust in Jesus for salvation. When our broken, decaying bodies will be made whole again. All that is crooked and wrong in the world will be gone and the beauty of our Saviour will be before our eyes night and day. “In Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).
Final Thoughts
As I contemplate further, I wonder why I assume that I will live into old age anyway? Perhaps I will see my Saviour sooner than I think. Maybe this all seems a little morbid. I do realize that there is no surer way to make good company uncomfortable than to talk about death. But I wonder if we too often live in a world where sin does not exist and death does not happen. That’s a false reality. But the hope of heaven is truer than we can imagine.
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
Entering a hospital can be like walking into a furnace of suffering. When you’re there, you know everything is painful. Any type of serious medical problem can be an open invitation to enter a furnace of affliction that is unwelcome and without easy escape.
Since the pain that people feel can only be really understood by the person experiencing it, sometimes it’s hard for others to empathize sufficiently. So going through the furnace of affliction can be very isolating.
Who is Watching You in the Furnace?
You might be in the furnace, but you never know who is watching.
I was speaking with a church member the other day and she said that the way that she and her husband were responding to medical trials made other family members puzzled. Why weren’t they freaking out? Why weren’t they having a nervous breakdown? Why weren’t they collapsing?
Know that in the furnace, people are watching. And God’s people offer a strange, other-worldly witness to the comforting care of their Lord. Onlookers can’t explain it, which is why Christians must do so.
Inviting Inspection
The witness of the believer in the furnace is so distinct that it invites inspection. The experience is similar to the curiosity which Nebuchadnezzar had when he threw the Hebrews into the furnace (Dan 3:20). When they weren’t consumed, Nebuchadnezzar was without explanation. When he saw there was “one like the son of the gods” in the furnace with them, he was compelled to come closer to the door of the furnace and inquire.
The furnace itself didn’t invite inspection. But the fact that the believers were preserved in the furnace did. Nebuchadnezzar was drawn to ask questions of the sustained sufferers. And his conclusion was that “there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way” (Dan 3:29).
Shackled But Singing
How we suffer is observed by others. When the believer is trusting in God through suffering, they are given a relative peace that passes understanding (Phil 4:7). Their mind is “stayed” on God, so God keeps that mind in “perfect peace” (Isa 26:3). This is not to say that a believer doesn’t have pain or agitation. But what happens is that the believer has a relative peace that defies explanation. People will attempt to ascribe it to medication, or personality. Yet God is able to keep a believer in a category-defying peace of mind which invites inspection.
It is like the prison scene when Paul and Silas were immobilized and shackled in the stocks (Acts 16:24-25). Yet with all of the pain, discomfort, distress and fatigue that their situation brought, they were singing! When sufferers are shackled but singing, it invites inspection.
Of course, the earthquake and the near suicide attempt of the jailer added to the drama in Philippi. But when the smoke cleared and the men were still in the prison, the jailer had to enter and inquire at the feet of Paul and Silas. It is clear that God gave peace to these men, which could not be explained naturally by the jailer. This caused the man to ask, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30).
“Shake Their Heads in Wonder”
Another member of our church has been in the hospital for the past two weeks. The situation was extremely serious and the doctors had grim prospects for her. Two weeks later she is still recovering but the urgency has passed. What looked bleak before looks hopeful today. Aspects of her recovery have defied medical explanations. Her husband wrote that the doctors, “shake their heads in wonder”.
You may be in the furnace of affliction, shackled to suffering. Yet you don’t know who is watching. Maybe the relative peace of mind you are given in your sufferings will invite inspection. Maybe God’s deliverance of you will cause others to shake their heads in wonder. Whatever the trial, we know that God is able to work through it, and draw the lost to “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor 4:6).
I’ve been thinking through my priorities. I took pen to paper and made a list. Suddenly, I had an epiphany. I was struggling to feel like I was getting things done because the top priorities on my list required invisible work. This meant that if I spent the majority of my time doing the things that were most important to me, I would not see immediate results. I was beginning to see my need to embrace delayed gratification.
Visible Work
There is something so satisfying about organizing my home, gardening, cutting my son’s hair, painting the bathroom and making a beautiful meal. This kind of work is visible. At the end of the day, there are results that are pleasing to me and to others. This is good work. Satisfying work.
But there is another kind of work that is sometimes not as immediately satisfying. This work does not always give immediate results. It requires me to be intentional and self-disciplined. The work I am speaking of is the work of relationships.
It seems like most women I know, myself included, choose to prioritize the visual kind of work. It is important for us to know that our life is a well-ordered smooth-sailing ship. Being well-organized and hard-working are good things. But here is the crunch: if our life is jam-packed full of visibly good work, what has happened to our relational work? Most likely it has been neglected.
Invisible Work
The fact is that good, healthy relationships require time, energy and effort and our visible work may have to take a backseat to it at times.
There is wisdom to leaving those crunchy Cheerios on the floor and instead spending 20 minutes of quiet, unhurried communion with my God.
There is wisdom in an afternoon spent playing, talking and hanging out with my boys instead of cleaning the storage room.
There is wisdom in dropping a project for long enough to really see my husband, to hear what he is saying and to engage him with warmth and affection.
When I lay my head down on my pillow tonight I may have a crunchy floor, a disorganized storage room and some half-finished projects, but maybe I’ve done something of worth. Maybe I can close my eyes and thank God that I’ve had an invisibly productive day.
It’s back to school for many households. For some families, it was hard to convince their kids to return to schoolwork (at a school or at home). For others, they’re starting university or for teachers, they return to their classes. Everybody is getting back on schedule whether they like it or not.
In our home, getting back on schedule meant laying out a big white calendar on the table and Christel writing in dates and events in thick red ink. Yes, a big white calendar is pretty analog. But it’s a better start for us when we can’t get all of our calendars to sync across accounts and devices!
There is wisdom in planning. It’s been said that if you don’t make the plan someone will make it for you. Since God created the world in seven days (Gen 1:1-2:3), the day and night 24 cycle has remained with us. So the order of God’s creation encourages us to make plans in keeping with that orderly pattern of time. But the fall of Adam ensures that we will always be fighting the clock, even fighting against the day of our sure death (Gen 3:17-19). As Isaac Watts wrote in his famous hymn, Our God, Our Help in Ages Past:
Time, like an ever-rolling stream, Bears all its sons away; They fly forgotten, as a dream Dies at the opening day.
Planning your schedule is wise. And the bible’s wisdom literature has some help for us in our planning. Here are three ways to commit yourself to the Lord in your planning.
Commit your schedule to God, Don’t Ignore Him.
It can be easy to let other priorities crowd out biblical ones. When it comes to child-raising it can be your good intentions that are the greatest barrier to committing your work to the Lord (Proverbs 16:3). It is good to have goals for kids, but they can become demands that crowd out everything else.
Ask yourself whether the activities your child has will take them away from attending church. Will you ever have a sit-down family meal? Can you preserve the priority of family worship and corporate worship with the schedule you are making? In your planning, commit your work to God, and “your plans will be established”(16:3). Like all proverbs, it is not a clear promise but it is wise. When God and his worship are set as non-negotiables, then that priority will make some of your decisions for you.
Guard Against People-Pleasing As You Plan
I’ve heard a few preachers make the comment that Christians in the West today will give the church their money, but not their calendar. In other words, they will not submit their calendars to the priorities of their local church. Often people de-prioritize the church because they want to please people. People-pleasing is a subtle temptation when we fill our calendars. But we need to guard against it. As the Proverb says, “All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirit” (Prov 16:2).
It happens quickly. The coach, teacher, or after-school group asks for more commitment from students and parents as if there were no other commitments in the world. The challenge in these situations is to have the courage to say no. That means that some people will not be happy with your choice. It may also mean that you count the cost before committing and you don’t sign up. Fear of your child missing out is the biggest motivator for family schedules. But that kind of default people-pleasing will lead to burned-out kids and distorted perspectives.
Make Hard Decisions in Favour of Family Harmony
In our family, we had to make a hard decision about the schedule for one of our sons. We had to decide to drop one sport and begin another. As we aimed to commit our schedule to the LORD, we realized that there was no way to preserve peace in our home if we attempted the odometer-bloating, soul-crushing schedule which our new plans would have demanded. We had to make a tough decision and drop something.
By culling some of our activities, we knew that our son would “miss out”. But instead of fearing that, we were thankful to God for the opportunities he did have and trusted God for future opportunities to come.
When you drop one of your family’s commitments, it can limit the spectre of sibling rivalry. If one child gets to do everything and another child gets the scraps in the schedule, then resentment may grow over time. But as Proverbs 16:7 says, “When a man’s ways please the LORD, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”
Maybe your child might not be the next Wayne Gretzky or Serena Williams, but your family will be saner with siblings living at peace.
As you plan, walk with humility. Don’t be afraid to quit things if it’s the right thing to do. Keep the priorities of church participation (Hebrews 10:24-25) and family worship (Deut 6:7) and trust the Lord for your children’s future.
You can be confident that God’s schedule will always be right.
Like you, we have often asked the question, “Why, Lord? What are you trying to teach us? What are we supposed to be learning from these trials?” But we know the answer.
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us…” (2 Cor. 4:7)
“Jars of clay” is a description slightly unflattering, but very true. It seems the more I long to be invincible, the brighter my frailty is put on display.
I remember a trip with my boys when we strolled through a graveyard (I know, it’s kind of morbid). We read the gravestones and patched together pieces of lives past–war heroes, children, cowboys, mothers and more–whole families buried together. Once vibrant and alive, now turned again to dust.
Ironically, I was struck by hope because the One with “surpassing power” gives life to ashes.
When the God-Man, Jesus Christ, came into our world to redeem the lost, new life broke into our dying world. My “jar of clay” is being renewed from the inside out. I feel the pain of sin and it’s consequences, but each stroke against me corresponds to a renewal inside of me. A renewal begun and sustained by the Almighty.
I know that there is glory in my future. Glory that is weighty. Glory that is eternal. Glory that is beyond comparison. With each small affliction we are being prepared for it. As the Apostle Paul says:
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Cor. 4:16-18)
The other night as Clint was drifting off to sleep, I suddenly had a very pressing theological question for him. (I seem to do this to him far too often…but then again I have to take advantage of the perks of being married to a pastor!) He graciously woke himself up and spoke with me about what it means for God’s glory to have weight. I wondered if God was resting too weightlessly on me. But if God’s glory truly has weight to it, it should press down on us. We should feel affected by it. This is a glory that demands our attention and fills us with delight. It takes effort to seek God’s face, but those who behold it agree that there is no earthly comparison. And as Pastor John Piper says, “beholding is becoming.” (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18)
I don’t enjoy difficulties or love affliction, but I have confidence in God’s promises for the future. If each affliction renews and prepares me for His glory, I cannot long for an easy life. If nothing else, this difficult year has taught me something about finding pleasure and joy not through ease of life, but in the face of Jesus Christ–the only One that completely satisfies.
Many dear friends have difficulties in their lives that don’t make for good small talk. They feel about as useful to the church as a clock without batteries. And the fact that they make it out to church at all is God’s grace.
It’s tempting to retreat from people in these times, but we must keep coming back because God warns us against quitting fellowship (Heb. 10:25). The opposite of our instinct is what we really need most, and when it comes down to it, our trials are not always about us. Sometimes we go through them for the sake of others.
The Importance of Struggling Church Members
The Apostle Paul describes the church as a living body whose head is Christ. Each individual is an essential part. Some parts of the body appear weaker or less visible and we are tempted to view them as less important. But Paul confronts this misconception in 1 Cor. 12:20-22:
…THERE ARE MANY PARTS, YET ONE BODY. THE EYE CANNOT SAY TO THE HAND, “I HAVE NO NEED OF YOU,” NOR AGAIN THE HEAD TO THE FEET, “I HAVE NO NEED OF YOU.” ON THE CONTRARY, THE PARTS OF THE BODY THAT SEEM TO BE WEAKER ARE INDISPENSABLE…
Against all logic, the weaker ones are “indispensable” to the church. When circumstances cripple you, your ministry may be smaller and less obvious to others, but your worth is not diminished. The church needs your weakness as much as you need its strength.
5 Practical Tips For Struggling Hearts
Even the most resilient church members have bad days. Some days our hearts feel so fragile that we can’t bear the thought of rubbing up against the opinions of others. Three godly women advised me of what I might do in my circumstance. Here are their suggestions:
Instead of going into all the details of your life, ask people to pray for you in specific things. For example, “Please pray that I could find contentment this week. I’m struggling to wait on God’s timing.” Or whatever is relevant to your circumstances. God works through the prayers of his people and most are happy to pray for you if you ask.
Don’t take responsibility for making others feel okay about your circumstances. People in the church will grieve with you when you grieve. It’s okay. You don’t have to comfort them on your behalf.
If you are having a particularly bad day, avoid small talk. Retreat to a quieter corner and have one or two slower, more focused conversations.
Try not to be hard on people if they are insensitive. They may be feeling guilty that they haven’t asked you about your troubles for a long time, not knowing that you just hashed through it with five other people and you are weary.
It’s okay to divert the conversation. A vague answer followed by a question can put the attention on someone else. And sometimes the best thing we can do is get out of our own head and encourage another person. Because perhaps you—in your messy, unstable life—will speak into someone else’s life the exact insight that they need to hear. God’s strength is made perfect in weakness and sometimes Christ’s power works through us when we feel our most inadequate (2 Cor. 12.9).
This advice has helped me to be part of church life even on days when I’m struggling. In my experience, the times that I wanted to fellowship the least I often benefited the most or had a surprising opportunity to speak into someone’s life. What God is teaching me in my struggles is often the exact thing that someone else needs to hear.
But it is also important to admit our limitations. Pride makes us hate to admit neediness of any kind, but the truth is, we need each other and ultimately, we need Christ. And sometimes our weakness offers the perfect vantage point to encourage those around us in the Lord.
I’m never sure how to answer when someone asks how I’m doing health-wise. I’d like to say, “I’m okay for now,” or “I’m not sure,” but those replies seem to make people uncomfortable. There is an ongoingness to my autoimmune disease that’s hard to explain. It’s like the wind. Sometimes it blows hard, and other times it stands still . . . and you never know when the next gust will come.
One author wrote this about her autoimmune disease: “A spinal cord injury can paralyze you in a moment, but the paralysis of my disease is a long story. Worse, then better, then worse, then better. For years.”
When I was first diagnosed with lupus, fear of death hit me hard. Not so much because I fear being dead, but more because of what it would do to my young family. Sometimes fear still creeps up on me.
But I’ve come to see that the corruption of my body does not undermine the fact that I am still living. Nor is it at odds with God making all things new (Rev. 21:5). Everyone is dying, but sometimes it takes a diagnosis to remember what our purpose is in the meantime.
Shadowlands
Although it’s trendy to “live in the moment,” it’s hard to make sense of our difficulties without reference to the future.
There’s a scene in the movie Shadowlands between C.S. Lewis and his wife, Joy, where she expresses this sentiment well. He is in denial about her cancer diagnosis, and she wants to be able to talk with him about it.
Lewis says, “Now I don’t want to be somewhere else anymore. Not waiting for anything new to happen. Not looking around the next corner, not the next hill. Here now. That’s enough.”
Joy replies, “That’s your kind of happy, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Yes it is.”
“It is not going to last, Jack.”
“We shouldn’t think about that now. Let’s not spoil the time we have together.”
“It doesn’t spoil it. It makes it real. Let me just say it before this rain stops, and we go back.”
“What’s there to say?”
“That I’m going to die, and I want to be with you then, too. The only way I can do that is if I’m able to talk to you about it now.”
“I’ll manage somehow. Don’t worry about me.”
“No, I think it can be better than just managing. What I am trying to say is that the pain then is part of the happiness now. That’s the deal.”
The pain then is part of the happiness now. These words hit me every time I watch this movie. She is saying that the pain of future death intensifies the joy of life today.
For the Christian especially, death causes us to appreciate God’s grace, not only in this life, but especially in the one to come.
In the “shadowlands,” the sun isn’t shining. Clouds of pain and sorrow fill your horizon, and life feels hard. But even here the Christian must acknowledge that victory has swallowed up death (1 Cor. 15:54). Darkness has not won.
The apostle Paul rejoiced “in the hope of the glory of God” (Rom. 5:2), not because his life was easy but because there was glory in his future. And because of that, joy invaded the present.
Hope of Future Glory
God’s blessings in this life are a foretaste of heaven, but without the pain we forget that blessings are merely pointers. We need the pain to remind us there is something better than this world. We wouldn’t long for divine love if human love was perfect. We wouldn’t long for feasting in heaven if there wasn’t starvation, eating disorders, and financial hardships here on earth. We would settle in our sin and take what we could get with no thought of what we are giving up.
The smell of rain, the sound of children laughing, the taste of a fresh blueberry, the pleasure of a friend’s company, and the comfort of a spouse’s arms—these blessings intermingle with pain and uncertainty and make us long for something better.
Ongoing illness is a beast to contend with. So is foster parenting, job insecurity, marriage troubles, persecution, and a host of other unnamed difficulties. But each “affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17).
Trials are those blessings in disguise that prod us out of our complacency and expose the inadequacy of our favorite worldly comforts.
Jesus invites us to find spiritual rest in Him (Matt. 11:28–29). Unlike its earthly counterparts, the rest Jesus offers transcends the shadowlands and defies our circumstances. As Augustine famously said in his Confessions, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.”
To my fellow shadowlanders: I feel your pain, but we need the hard places to remind us that we are not home yet. They wean us off of lesser hopes and push us into the arms of True Rest, where we were always meant to be.
Jesus offers you rest today. Will you trust Him with your future?
I’ve tried to find a cure for what ails me, but I’ve never found the proverbial magic bullet.
Not many of us do.
I think of the young woman I was chatting with at the doctor’s office who was fighting tooth and nail against her illness. “Have you tried BodyTalk?” she asked me.
“No, I don’t know what that is,” I told her.
“It’s kind of hard to explain…the person kind of taps your body in different places. It’s an energy thing.”
I couldn’t quite think of how to respond. But she continued and spared me the need, “My practitioner is very good. She told me how I died in a previous life.”
I will spare you all the gory details about how she died, suffice it to say, it was more than I wanted to know. But her story did make me think. Don’t we all want someone to tell us deep, life-changing secrets about ourselves?
God sees all things clearly, but we see only partially, and sometimes I long to see what God sees. For instance, how and why does autoimmunity happen? There are clues, but no answers. I don’t know. My doctor doesn’t know. The specialists don’t know.
So I look to God’s word and find that Jesus has unlimited knowledge. Not only was he involved in the creation of all things, he now holds all things together.
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together…
(Col. 1:16)
He was before disease. He was before human intelligence. He was there at the beginning of the world when everything was good. He created the forests, the oceans and the sun’s warm rays. He created love, and the angels, and every invisible process of life. And God saw that it was good. He created all things and in him they hold together (Col 1:17). Not one antibody in my system rebels outside his sovereign purposes (Rom 8:28).
