For those of you who don't know Joni Eareckson Tada's story, she was a very active young woman when she broke her neck in a diving accident. She struggled with bitterness and depression, as anyone affected by quadriplegia might. She held on to the hope that God would heal her of her disability... but He didn't.
Today, Joni spoke to us on suffering and healing. She answered the questions that I have always wondered about: "If God is a Healer, why are there so many people with disabilities who have not been healed?" "Does God desire to physically heal everyone with a disability, and if so, what can I do to help?" "What can I say to nonbelievers who blame God for the chaos and suffering in the world?" I can't hit on all of these questions in one blog post, but if you have questions, feel free to ask me!
In Mark 1:32, we read that Jesus healed the sick and the demon-possessed, but in Mark 1:38, the following day, the disciples say "Everyone is looking for you!" but Jesus says instead "Let's go somewhere else- to the nearby villages- so I can preach there also. This is why I have come." We see that Jesus turns down an opportunity to physically heal a group of people affected by sickness so that he can meet the spiritual needs of people in another area. This shows that the Savior backs away when people only want to be saved from affliction. To Christ, the soul is so much more important than the physical.
When I was in high school, I must admit that I really struggled with depression. I begged God over and over to take this affliction away from me, and He never did. I couldn't understand why He would choose to let me live in pain. It wasn't until the moment that I fully surrendered my life to Christ one mid-March night last year that He finally took away my pain and filled me with unfathomable joy. My desire was to be spiritually healed in that moment, and by choosing that, God also healed me emotionally. While Joni has not been physically healed, after being spiritually and emotionally healed, she will tell you that the real disability was not her quadriplegia, but the resentment and pent up bitterness that she was holding on to.
Some of the quotes I was able to jot down from her lesson day are:
"We are hellbent on having our problems taken away, when the purpose is to awaken spiritually."
"Spiritual healing come from struggles."
"Suffering is a little reminder of the hell that we escape through the love and grace of Christ."
"A splashover of heaven is when we find Jesus in the middle of the splashover of hell."
"Suffering is the textbook that shows us who we really are."
"Cancer does not win if you die; it wins if you fail to cherish Christ." - John Piper.
I wish I was long-winded enough to share all of the profound things that I have discovered in my short time here so far, but unfortunately I do not have the time. My prayer is that if you happen to be reading this that you might find joy in suffering (as we are called to in 1 Thessalonians 5:16) and that you would come to a point where you can appreciate the sovereignty of God in the midst of trials. He is faithful, loving, omnipotent, and He has your best interest at heart- even when He causes us to face obstacles.
"Our primary reason many believers today have a hard time accepting the role of suffering in their lives or in the lives of friends and loved ones is that they have failed to understand and accept the reality of divine sovereignty. Many also fail to see adversity of God, which, when rightly understood and properly embraced, serves as the foundational lens through which Christians may see all truth in Scripture more clearly. Knowing about God's sovereignty in all things does not mean we will have comprehensive understanding, but it gives us a proper hope in midst of the more difficult and less clear aspects of His working in our lives (Gen. 18:25; Isa 55:9)."
"As Creator, God assumes responsibility for disabilities. When Moses questioned his own ability to speak for God, the Lord told him, 'Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf or blind? It is I, the Lord!' (Exodus 4:11). That is ownership!"
"However, God is still at work in the world; he is not like the watchmaker who wound the clock and then stepped away from it. God is still all-powerful and he knows the future and allows certain things, like disability, to happen. He knows how to respond, and he provides his grace and guidance in order to ultimately accomplish his purposes."
Blessings,
Bailey
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