A Lot of People

It seems that a lot of Christian people are going through real hardships these days. Hardships associated with physical ailments of one type or another. There are so many Christian brothers and sisters that come to mind. Debilitating ailments, not being able to walk or move about. And then there are those who are totally incapacitated and have been for years, who depend on others to take care of their basic needs. Mothers who can’t take care of their children, wives who can’t do their part with family responsibilities. Husbands and fathers who can’t do anything because of pain. People undergoing treatment for cancer, which in most cases is almost as debilitating as the disease itself. These are Christian brothers and sisters that I’m talking about. And I don’t have a clue why.

I can lift them up in prayer and I do. But I still don’t understand why these things happen. A while ago I had a lot of pain in my leg from a pinched sciatic nerve and I could barely walk for a while. It eventually went completely away and it was such a relief to be able to walk again without pain. Pain and I aren’t friends. I don’t deal well with pain. If I encounter pain it seems to take over everything. I’ve had my share of ailments over the years, as I recall, kidney stones were really a hoot. Sometimes with pain, all you can do is barely hang on.

I don’t understand why some brothers and sisters in the Lord have to endure these things. Undoubtedly God knows but as of this moment in time, He hasn’t taken me into His confidence. And then there are mental disabilities, which can cover a wide spectrum and can be equally debilitating. Once again, I do not understand why.

I think of Nabeel Qureshi who passed away a couple of years ago with stomach cancer and Ravi Zacharias who just recently has been diagnosed with a rare type of cancer. Obviously God is sovereign. Obvious we live in a fallen world and are susceptible to various diseases and ailments. And just to make it even more interesting, we have the coronavirus pandemic currently touching all corners of the world, reeking havoc with Christian believers who are expressing everything from complete denial that it even exists to Armageddon is literally at the door. I have no doubt that the “end times” prophecies as outlined in Revelation and Daniel will in fact unfold, but there is a sequence of events in the prophetic timeline and I am finding it indeed difficult not to scream out, “For goodness sake people, get a grip!”. But I digress.

I can’t help but think that my expectations about having continual good health is somehow unrealistic. Seemingly bad things happen to seemingly good people and seemingly good things happen to seemingly bad people. I used the word “seemingly” because in most cases I have no idea what God’s “big picture” is when it comes to His sovereign will pertaining to divine healing, sickness and disease. There is an excellent and highly detailed study on this here if you are interested. But what I do know is this:

Romans 8:28 NASB

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

All things is pretty inclusive and that would indicate to me that “all things” includes physical and mental ailments. God knows what He is doing and He is in control. Am I guaranteed continual good health? I don’t think so. Am I guaranteed that no matter what ailment I my encounter, God will work it together for good, if I love God and am called according to His purpose? Yes, I believe that is true.

Worthy is the Lamb! Blessings!