Truth Seekers Newsletter
October 21, 2006 (Part One): Is There Really Any Purpose to Disease?
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If someone asked us what the word, "disease" means, we might think of illness or sickness. Let's look a little closer at the word itself. Disease is a lack of ease or comfort. Can lack of ease or comfort ever be a good thing?
Prodded to Make a Change!
I can think of many times in my life that I was not completely happy with my situation, but I didn't want to change. I had become somewhat comfortable doing what I was doing and being where I was being and I had begun to justify the discomfort by saying, "Well, nothing is ever perfect."
However, as I began to tolerate more and more discomfort, I changed or circumstances caused a change. God desired more for me than I did for myself.
But I Don't Want to Go!
Babies get pretty comfortable in the womb. Even as they grow and things become more cramped, it appears that most babies choose to stay inside instead of going to an unknown outside. But since they seem not to be scratching and clawing to get out, God designed things in such a way that they are pushed out to a bigger place, where they will enjoy many more things than they ever could have enjoyed within the womb.
There is a common expression that "everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die." Even amid much pain and suffering, many people fight diligently to stay right here until death prods them into what I'm sure is a much greater destiny.
How Can I Be Sure That God is the One Doing the Prodding?
Romans 8:28 tells us "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His Purpose." Take a moment and think of what that verse means.
Many people believe it means if you are a Christian, then everything is good. They are upset when the first bad thing happens after they become a Christian. They feel deceived. Hey, I'm a Christian! Doesn't that mean that all things will be good? But that is not what the verse says.
There are two important points in that one verse. Everything works together FOR good, meaning that the individual events of our lives may not be good on the surface, but God has a Plan. In Jeremiah 29:11, He has assured us that it is a Good Plan. God can take what we see as terrible things and He can weave it all together for good for us. Our part? Surrendering each piece to Him and trusting Him to put it all together, so we can see the Good there.
The second point to note is that this promise is not just for anyone. Who is it for? It is for those who love God and those who are called according to His Purpose.
God's Criteria for Love
If asked, "do you love the Lord?", most of us would say, "Of course." But when God looks at whether we fit the criteria of being one who loves Him, He does not look at just what we said. As recorded in John 14:15, Jesus said, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." If we obey what He commands, we are called according to His Purpose. His Purpose means letting Him take the individual parts of our lives and put them together for His Good, Our Good and the Good of the Body of Christ.
Disease What's Going On in the Body?
Remember that we have learned, sometimes when we are in a desert, bad things start to look good and good things start to look bad. Many times what we call disease looks bad, but it is actually a physical indication that all the Powers of God within our body are fighting for us!
Let's look at the miserable person, who has come down with what is called the "common cold." He is sneezing, his eyes are watering, he is coughing and spitting, he is blowing his nose repeatedly. He is so tired, all he wants to do is sleep. This sounds bad, right?
But what is really happening is the awesome body created by God has detected an invasion of cold virus bugs and it is fighting for us. Every symptom is designed to subdue the intruder, wrap it in mucous, if necessary, and exit it from the body quickly. And the body needs all its energy to attend to this task, so it puts on the brakes and that person is "made to lie down in green pastures." (Psalm 23:2)
Who's In Charge Here?
Most of us love living the illusion that we control everything, especially something as important as our bodies. Disease is an "in our face" reminder that we are not in charge of our bodies. God is the Creator and Sustainer of our Bodies. He loves to work in partnership with us. To maintain that partnership, we have to obey the CEO and stay true to the mission of the body.
Hey, I'm Smart Enough to Take Care of Some Things All By Myself, Thank You Very Much!
I confess to a great desire to fix things. When things happen to me or those I love, I go into high gear with internet searches, or any other avenue I can use to try to fix things. I fall on a regular basis to the myth that knowledge is power. (Remember that is what did Eve in she thought getting knowledge would equal getting power!) God can share His Unlimited Knowledge and release His Awesome Power to make things happen, but in itself, knowledge is not always power. In fact, sometimes, knowledge can lead to confusion.
God Says, "Lie Down In Those Green Pastures and Let Me Handle This!"
When disease or other problems come, the best thing we can do is stop and follow the advice of Psalms 46:10. "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." When we KNOW that He is God and we are not, then He can work. Exodus 14:14 tells us "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."
Disease as Orders to the Mission Field
Many of us have sincerely sung hymns that reflect, "I'll go where you want me to go. I'll do what you want me to do." We boldly proclaim that we would go anywhere and do anything for Jesus, but is that true?
Read the Bible from front to back and you will find an amazing assortment of interesting assignments God gave His People. Some of those assignments by God don't make sense to us. Indeed, some of them seem a little cruel. We wonder how God could ask His Own Children to do such things. But the important thing to remember is that any difficulty is only a piece of the whole picture and that whole picture is more than just about our individual lives ... it is about how God is working together for good in the whole Body of Christ.
I Was Very Sick But God Delivered Me! (My Brief Testimony)
In 2003, I was struck suddenly by a mysterious illness that affected my breathing, eating, digestion, and energy. The illness itself created panic attacks. Normally a low key person, I suddenly felt phenomenally nervous about everything. The fact that I didn't know what was happening to me made it worse.
This strange malady came out of no where and lasted approximately nine months, during which time I lost massive amounts of weight and it appeared that I would die. I saw many, many doctors and had many, many diagnostic tests done. No one could determine what was wrong. (After those many months, it was finally attributed to a viral attack that triggered an inflammation of the thyroid gland.)
I went through many stages from shock and disbelief to anger to depression. I confessed every sin I thought I might have ever committed. I forgave those I felt I had not forgiven fully. I prayed nearly constantly and waited expectantly for the Lord's answer. While I was filling journal after journal of conversations with God, including His Answers, no physical healing appeared. With each new internet search and each trip to yet another doctor, I looked to them for healing but it didn't happen.
Family and friends, who were very supportive in the initial stages of this illness, soon grew more than uncomfortable in their helplessness and they began to back off. It was just God and me most of the time. After my attempts to bargain with God after the anger that came, when He wouldn't deal after the total despair that He could heal me, but would not I was finally ready to listen.
As in Job, God spoke, not after the storm, but from the very center of the storm. I came out of those straight talk interactions with God, realizing more than ever before, I was His and He was Mine and all that mattered was that we be together forever, wherever that might be.
Ambassador in Chains
I did not cancel the doctor's appointments, but I ceased to put any great importance on what the doctors would say. I went to each appointment, understanding that God and I were going together and that I would be praying for whoever He put in my path. I sat in waiting rooms and silently prayed for people in the room. I offered words of encouragement to others. I prayed for the doctors and nurses. I praised God for His Mercies in allowing me to be there to stand in the gap for them. Bit by bit, a true miracle happened.
All the negative feelings and fears that I had directed toward myself were gradually being turned around into God's Mercy to others around me. I had nothing to give to the process other than being willing to let Him use my very empty vessel. And He did! The Living Waters He poured out on others through my prayers were restorers of Life to my body. I was healed!
There is a Season and a Purpose to Everything!
Ecclesiastes reminds us that to everything, there is a time and a purpose. So disease does fulfill a purpose. A brief recap:
- Disease can be the revelation of the power of the God inside of us fighting off invaders. Not all diseases are "bad." Some are God's Forces at work within us!
- Disease helps us realize anew that God is God and we are not. He is the Creator of this body and He is the Sustainer of it.
- God loves to partner with us. Disease is sometimes a call to us to line up with what He wants for the best health for His Body, so we can follow His Mission.
- Disease allows our faith to grow, by letting us learn whose report we will believe God or our circumstances
- Disease strengthens us, as we are forced to lie down in green pastures with our Savior. He feeds us and bandages our wounds Himself. He readies us to go back out on the mission field.
- Disease may be our ticket to the mission field God has selected for us. Mother Teresa spoke of "Jesus in His distressing disguises." Sometimes the Word of God proclaimed through a person who is very ill will be a stronger sermon that one they would have heard somewhere else in better times! As a nurse, I can confirm that I have received ministry from very ill patients, who refused to let illness stop their testimony of God's Mercy and Grace. I looked at them and realized at some point that I had stopped seeing their "distressing disguise" of illness. I was seeing and hearing Jesus!
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