More Than a Band Aid

Abigail got her finger stuck in part of her bunk bed today. She was not very hurt but she was scared about not getting her finger out. Thomas is sure that his finger is also hurt, because Abbie's finger is. So, I put two band aides on, one on Abbie's ouchie and one on Tom's.

One of Joe's student's father has cancer. Not just skin cancer either. Liver cancer. The father had gone through radiation over the summer and is on a very strict no-grain diet, rich in organic vegetables, meats and fruits. The cancer had shrunk until it was just a shadow on the ultrasound machine. Yesterday the student's mom talked to Joe. The father's numbers are up. He will be taking more meds, and the doctors will keep a close eye on him to see what the tumor does. There is no band aid for this dear family.

I've had dinner with the family twice. They are delightful, energetic, hilarious, interesting and interested. They are strong believers. There are two boys in the family, an eight year-old third grade student of Joe's and his six year-old brother (in kindergarten). There is no band aid that will cover the possible hurt the following weeks and months may bring to their lives.

God lets us face hard things and ask hard questions. He offers hard answers and hard solutions. Life isn't always a bed of roses--we often find ourselves on more thorns than petals. Can we trust our Maker not only with our eternal well being, but also with our present mortality? What if He wants to take us down the Valley of the Shadow of Death--even when we're young? Can we answer "Not my will but Thine be done?"

Our Redeemer faced an untimely death, not of natural means. He was healthy, strong and promising. He had extreme wrestling with the prospect of separation and death. He could and did answer "Not my will, but Thine be done." He willingly was tried, condemned, and killed. He said "Yes" to the Father's will and took the cross and the curse of sin and separation from the Father in order to give us more than a band aid in hard times.

There are events that seem to push us beyond where it seems we should be pushed. Events that cause us to cry out "Help! Have mercy!" Because of Christ, being willing to surrender to the Father's will, we can have so much put on our wounded, broken hearts. Forgiveness. Mercy. Comfort. Fellowship...These do not act as just a balm that sooths, but they bring healing and health. Even in the face of death. Even when life's curtain falls sooner in our life--rather than later.