Author: kezha1

I can still remember the conversation with a friend who’s husband had been battling a debilitating disease for years. It had come to the point that he was no longer able to carry out his job and was forced to retire from a very lucrative position. And besides that, his physical ability to care for himself was slowly dwindling…and the job of caregiving was now on her shoulders. I remember the conversation because of her candidness…she was angry. Angry at the disease that was taking the love of her life away from her…and angry at the prospects of the burden she would be bearing on her own to care for him. But what had her so very upset wasn’t her anger, but the shame she felt because of it. Her rational was, “How can I dare be angry when it’s him that’s suffering?” When we become caregivers for a loved one we’re not immune to suffering right along with them…but then we also suffer privately in completely different ways. But the good news is that God looks inward, not outward…or as Psalm 139:23 says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.” God sees our heart, not the troubled, worried, and stressed ideas that roll around in our head. And He knew this woman’s heart and the deep love & commitment she had for her husband.

The gist of the verse is this…because of God, not me, I am able to endure, sustain, and effectively handle what life throws at me daily. And this notion really comes into focus when you become a caregiver. I thought I had learned much a few years ago when I became my mother’s caregiver until she passed…but it didn’t hold a candle to suddenly becoming my husband’s full-time, twenty-four hour a day caregiver. It’s not like I wasn’t prepared for the job…I had spent 36 years as a Nurse working with families caring for loved ones at home, constantly preaching to them the importance of “caring for the caregiver”. But yet, here I was doing the exact opposite of what I advocated for. I was relying on myself, my expertise & nursing skills, and my pride rather than relying on God and God’s people to help me. My mantra had become, “I can do it all.”…but this only left me exhausted, stressed, and so very weary. This verse makes it very plain…it’s only through Him that we can do anything, and it’s only with His dependable strength we can persevere.

The chorus of this famous old Hymn goes like this – “Count your blessings; name them one by one. Count your blessings; see what God has done.” This speaks of the very goodness of the Lord experienced in the many gifts & favor He blesses us with on a daily basis… but many times they escape our attention. It’s not that we’re ungrateful for God’s grace & mercy, it’s just we are so taken up in the chaos & turmoil of caring for a very sick loved one that we don’t even realize what God is doing… until we stop, and very consciously thank Him for what we’ve failed to see. And as we sit quietly for a moment and recall the day, God is faithful, and all those blessings will come flooding back into our mind…all the good things we didn’t deserve, and all the things God spared us from. And then again we can praise Him for what He has done.

I Timothy 1:13 tells us that we are shown mercy by God. The Greek word here for mercy has been many times inadequately defined merely as clemency or forgiveness…a holding back of deserved punishment or affliction. But actually, this word means to relieve affliction, alleviate suffering or distress, and ease misery. In other words, it’s a concrete expression of pity and compassion for the destitute & afflicted. God’s mercy is more than anything you’re going through today. His mercy is more than illness & debilitation…more than weariness & fatigue…more than hopelessness & despair. The Writer of Hebrews puts it well, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) God’s mercy is more…

God chooses people for a relationship with Himself…this is the doctrine of Election or Predestination…but then think about this quote from Charles Spurgeon, “I am quite certain that, if God had not chosen me, I should never have chosen Him.” I would admit for me, that is a very true statement. In my broken and worldly condition, I was rebellious and selfish…concerned only for my own comfort & welfare, without regard for others. I self-indulged in things I only liked and was stubborn & hardheaded towards anyone who suggested otherwise. In other words, my last choice would have been to regret, repent, resolve, and reform my ways. But God had other ideas…

Think about this for a moment, instead of praying, “Lord, help me to live my life for You.” Rather pray, “Lord Jesus, live out Your life through me.” Can you see the stark difference in the two prayers? One is full of “me” with all its self-centeredness, self-promotion, and selfishness…while the other is a humble request for God’s Divine Will in my life. One is full of prideful self-will, while the other is a submissive desire to life in the middle of God’s plan & purpose. Throughout the New Testament the Apostle Paul admonished us to live a godly life worthy of the Lord’s calling… (Ephesians 4:1, Colossians 1:10, II Timothy 3:12) and that calling is His alone & not what I think it should be.

I had a Pastor once tell me that his most cherished funeral services were ones when he had the opportunity to preach out of the worn out, dog-eared, and marked up Bible of a dearly departed saint. He said it was like a treasure trove of inspiration, encouragement, and insight into that person’s walk with the Lord…with his memorial sermon many times coming directly from those tattered pages. Charles Spurgeon once penned this…”The Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” And this is so true. If your Bible has a place of honor on the coffee table, but the only time you touch it is to dust, know that God’s Word will not flow into you by osmosis. Or when you try everything on your own first before going to God’s Word, know that you could save yourself much heartache by digging into the Bible first, not as a last ditch effort. We need to hide God’s Word in our heart and allow it to dwell there… and that means regular & daily Bible reading/study. For we’ll find that just like God, His Word is true, upright, faithful, righteous, just, and steadfast…and exactly what we need for the day.

The two things that Jesus emphasizes here are – The whole of mankind’s sinfulness is presupposed, but that even as fallen human parents, we still know instinctively & by natural love how to give good gifts not harmful ones to our children. The other is, as Christians we have been given the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit ( Who teaches, enlightens, and guides us in respect to faith & practice) in response to our faith-filled prayers by a loving & good Heavenly Father. So for those who call on Father God…have come to know Him and are reconciled to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ…we can confidently trust that our good God will only give good gifts.

The great Puritan Preacher, Charles Spurgeon, once penned, “Although we may not always be healthy or prosperous, yet God is always good, and therefore, there is always a sufficient argument for giving thanks.” No one is immune to poor health, financial needs, or other trauma in their lives…but this doesn’t mean God has somehow fallen down on His job, or has changed His mind. God promises to always remember His people, and He gives special attention to the cries of the oppressed, down-trodden, weak, and infirmed. The phrase, “poor & needy” is a fixed expression in the Old Testament where it can literally mean abject poverty…but these words are also used figuratively to express total dependance on God in whatever critical situation we find ourselves. Giving thanks to God then becomes the “even though” type of praise. It’s “Even though I’m going through this serious health problem right now, I will glorify & thank You, Father.” or “Even though I’m facing this huge financial problem today, I know You are there & working on my behalf, so I will praise Your Name. ” So remember, even though life can be very difficult at times…God is always good.

If you are a Believer in Christ Jesus…you know that He lives in you. For we read in John 14:20, “I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.” And so by having Christ in you…you are therefore Christ’s ambassador. (II Corinthians 5:20) So it shouldn’t be odd for the Lord to expect you to represent and serve others in His Name on a daily basis. Or as it’s been said, “Life is ministry and ministry is life.” Which if you think about it has been the Lord’s intention from the beginning…a total involvement model… of all of His people, ministering all the time, to everyone God brings across their path. What does that look like? It may be engaging the cashier at the check-out in pleasant conversation rather than burying your face in your phone….or thanking the waitress personally for her good service…or showing the love of Jesus to the harried young mom waiting in line with you. Just look around, I guarantee God is placing people around you right now that need a word of encouragement, praise, thanks, comfort & hope…and by having Christ in you, you have the words of life.