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Archive for the ‘Quotes’ Category

Suffering reveals even more about God, and that’s a good thing.

Posted in Quotes on June 9, 2012| Leave a Comment »

From an interview Joni Eareckson Tada gave to Christianity Today in October 2010, shortly after receiving a diagnosis of breast cancer (paragraph formatting is mine):

How has your perspective on suffering and healing changed since your breast cancer diagnosis?

Thankfully, it hasn’t changed at all.

You examine Scripture again and follow every passage regarding healing. I did that with my quadriplegia, and I did that again 10 years ago, when I embarked on a whole new life of chronic pain. Just a month ago, getting diagnosed with breast cancer, I looked at those same Scriptures, and God’s words do not change.

Even though it seems like a lot is being piled on, I keep thinking about 1 Peter 2:21: “To these hardships you were called because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps.”

Those steps most often lead Christians not to miraculous, divine interventions but directly into the fellowship of suffering. In a way, I’ve been drawn closer to the Savior, even with this breast cancer.

There are things about his character that I wasn’t seeing a year ago or even six months ago. That tells me that I’m still growing and being transformed. First Peter 2:21 is a good rule of thumb for any Christian struggling to understand God’s purposes in hardship.

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Knowing and enjoying the glory of God – we were made for this. All of us, of every ability!

Posted in Quotes, Scripture on June 6, 2012| 1 Comment »

For devotions on Tuesday, Jon Bloom read the entire first chapter of Pastor John’s Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ.

My heart leapt when I heard this (again)!

The deepest longing of the human heart is to know and enjoy the glory of God. We were made for this. “Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth. . . whom I created for my glory,” says the Lord (Isaiah 43:6-7). To see it, to savor it, and to show it—that is why we exist.

John Piper, Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ, p. 14.

Part of why this brought me joy was remembering another place in the Bible where God is specific that when he gathers, it includes those who live with disabilities:

Behold, I will bring them from the north country and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, the pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together; a great company, they shall return here.  (Jeremiah 31:8 ESV)

None of God’s elect will be forgotten, and all will gather because GOD WILL DO IT!

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“Our lives count.” Joni Eareckson Tada

Posted in Quotes on May 31, 2012| 1 Comment »

Life worth living is not found in a set of circumstances – whether pleasant or painful. Life worth living is found in a person, the Prince of Life. The Resurrection and the Life. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He has the words of life. And Christ the Savior is the One who will desires to be Lord of your days, as well as your Wisdom for living. When you look to him each day, each minute and hour, your life will count… and it will count for all of eternity.

Joni Eareckson Tada, Making Your Days Count!

The link above will take you to an incredible reflection on a conversation Joni had with a young woman who was dying, and who is now with Jesus.  Take a few minutes and be blessed.

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Seeing reality through pain and pleasure

Posted in commentary, Quotes on May 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »

The characteristic of Pains and Pleasures is that they are unmistakably real, and therefore, as far as they go, give the man who feels them a touchstone of reality. . . How can you have failed to see that a real pleasure was the last thing you ought to have let him meet?

The Devil Screwtape writing to his nephew Wormword in C. S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, p. 67.

How relevant this is to unborn children with disabilities!

Parents are presented possible scenarios for their unborn child with whatever disability has been discovered.  Lists of facts about the disability feel very real and often overwhelming and frightening.

Yet that is not their child! That list is NOT reality! Their child is so much more than his or her disability.

Best of all, that little one is God’s own, created to exist for eternity.

Even after 16 years I only know my son in part (1 Corinthians 13:12).  But one thing I do know: he is a real boy and not a list of medical terms.

The pain of dealing with his disabilities has been sharper than I thought I could stand, and the pleasure of knowing him in light of his creator has been sweeter than I ever would have expected.  Paul has been a touchstone of reality in my life.

The enemy of our faith and of the indispensable weaker members, of course, would rather see them destroyed. They are dangerous to his plans of keeping us in a fog of little pains and little pleasures that deny the reality of hell and the joy of eternity with Jesus. Cleverly, before these little ones can be known as people, he attempts to turn them into something less than human and therefore easily cast away.

Let us continually invite people to experience real pleasure and real pain by inviting them to know real little people.  And may God use that taste to introduce them to the reality of ‘as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing’ (2 Corinthians 6:10).

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God will change our agony into joy

Posted in Quotes on May 28, 2012| Leave a Comment »

They say of some temporal suffering, “No future bliss can make up for it,” not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into a glory. . . The good man’s past begins to change so that his forgiven sins and remembered sorrows take on the quality of Heaven. . .

The character of George Macdonald to the dreamer in C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce, p. 67.

An innocent question from my daughter about other fiction that C.S. Lewis has written (she has read That Hideous Strength four times) brought me to read The Great Divorce for the first time.  Though I question some of his imagery in this story, we know that God will, indeed, change sorrow into something else entirely:

Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy; I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
(Jeremiah 31:13 ESV)

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Not so to God!

Posted in Quotes on May 26, 2012| Leave a Comment »

A friend forwarded me this Christianity Today blog posting on the Facebook controversy related to a mother posting pictures of her son born with anencephaly.

This quote from the blog blew me away:

Those that we call monsters are not so to God, who sees in the immensity of His work the infinite forms that He has comprehended therein. . .

It was made by a 16th century philosopher by the name of Michel de Montaigne, of whom I know almost nothing.  But I know that was not an enlightened time with regards to people with disabilities!

May we be so wise today and trust God in all he determines to do.

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God made us and will help us. We should not grumble.

Posted in Quotes, Scripture on May 24, 2012| 1 Comment »

The world is ready to feed all kinds of destructive behavior wrapped in sweet words and kind sentiment.

The Anglicans who were quoted yesterday would say they were being kind in letting ‘defective’ children die.

The mothers who wrote articles on why they aborted or wish they had aborted their children point to the significant suffering those babies would have or are experiencing.  Many are ready to support them, even encourage them, in their feelings and behavior towards their children.

Most of us who parent a child who is different because of his or her disabilities hear over and over again about what we or our children rightly deserved, but didn’t receive.

The opportunity and even the sanction to grumble is constantly with us.  We must fight that wicked temptation.

Especially when God invites us to run to him for comfort and help in our deepest suffering!

I have recently found these helpful in battling discontent and re-orienting toward’s God purposes:

From Paul Tripp:

You were not created to live an autonomous or self-sufficient life. To try to do so never leads anywhere good.

From Pastor John:

3 reasons why you were made:

1. God made you for his glory. Isaiah 43:7, 1 Corinthians 10:31, 1 Corinthians 6:19, Philippians 1:19

2. God made you for joy.

3. He made you to love other people.

From the Apostle Paul:

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.  (Philippians 4:11-12 ESV)

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32 ESV)

From Isaiah:

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
“I dwell in the high and holy place,
and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,
to revive the spirit of the lowly,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.”
(Isaiah 57:15 ESV)

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“So take Jesus at his word.”

Posted in Quotes on May 17, 2012| 1 Comment »

Paul Miller gave a fantastic message at the 2011 Desiring God Conference for Pastors: Helping Your People Discover the Praying Life.

He understands what it is like to love a child with a disability.

He was invited to speak because he wrote a great book on prayer, A Praying Life.

It is full of reminders and pleas like this:

Prayer is asking God to incarnate, to get dirty in your life. Yes, the eternal God scrubs floors. For sure we know he washes feet. So take Jesus at his word. Ask him. Tell him what you want. Get dirty. Write out your prayer requests; don’t mindlessly drift through life on the American narcotic of busyness. If you try to seize the day, the day will eventually break you. Seize the corner of his garment and don’t let go until he blesses you. He will reshape the day.

Paul Miller, A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World, Kindle Locations 2959-2962

We can absolutely trust him!  God even has it covered when we don’t know how to pray, or simply can’t pray, because our sorrows are too deep:

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:26-28 ESV)

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“They are gifts, no matter how or when they come.”

Posted in News, Quotes on May 15, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Like many churches, Bethlehem celebrated Mothers Day with a special dedication of children.  It is a serious and joyous occasion where parents and members dedicate themselves to the raising of these children.

And, similar to last week when Dr. Meyer (hopefully soon to be Pastor Jason!) inserted references to disability naturally into his sermon, Pastor Kenny reminded everyone that all children are gifts:

Pastor Kenny – Excerpt from introductory remarks for Children Dedication May 13, 2012 (My apologies for the quality of the recording)

I find this so helpful and encouraging when my leaders do this!  My child with disabilities is welcome in this place, and everyone is reminded that families like ours are gifts to be celebrated.

But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. (1 Corinthians 12:18-20 ESV)

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What a week of God’s handiwork!

Posted in News, Quotes on May 12, 2012| Leave a Comment »

As I write this, Ian and Larissa’s video has been viewed almost 500,000 times!  Please pray that saints all over the world would be encouraged to persevere and that those who are currently blind would be given eyes to see, through the testimony of a disabled life, that God is more glorious than anything this world has to offer.

Please also pray for this young couple.  Satan hates them for this testimony and how he can’t use the things this culture fears to shake their faith.  They, like our loved ones with disabilities, are very dangerous to his evil cause because of how God’s strength is magnified in weakness.

If you haven’t seen Larissa’s three blogs, all are worth reading.  I’ve included a brief excerpt from each.

Why We Got Married:

And even though we chose marriage, we chose it sadly. Sorrow has been a permanent resident in our 20s. It feels like the rest of the world uses these years for really fun things. But in our 20s, we have watched our future crash with him in that white station wagon and we now live with two versions of Ian. Weʼve watched all of our friends get married and have health. Iʼve watched as my girlfriends and sisters found husbands who could dance with them at their weddings and drive them to church on Sunday morning. Weʼve watched our dad fight and be taken by brain cancer, only to see life keep marching on.

Fortunately, our hope is that weʼve also watched all of these alongside Jesus, who is our own man of sorrows, acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3). So we have not walked it alone.

Learning Contentment in Suffering:

I didn’t know contentment in my prosperity — contentment then meant health and ease, not God. God has not given us an indication that Ian will be fully healed here, which means that we have needed to enlist ourselves in our suffering. We still pray for complete healing, but we also pray for strength to endure a life-long disability. We are learning that contentment is produced as we obey and act on His promises, like the one mentioned above, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

A Daily Disabled Life:

In the middle of these losses, though, sometimes weʼre given little glimpses of the beauty God has designed in disability, and in Ianʼs in particular. Ian is the happiest and funniest person that I know.

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