As I watch the insidious beast of cancer bite chunk after chunk out of my Dad, witness his decomposition before my eyes, a part of me cries, "Is this FAIR?" He served so earnestly and faithfully – look at his work in Malawi! Why is this happening to him of all people?
We like to think we have a right to health, success, the good life. Haven’t we donated our time, given to charity, served faithfully? These are like grimy fingers used to scrub ineffectually at equally grimy faces. We like to think there’s a chance we’ll eventually show some clean skin, but God knows we’re not even close. There’s no way for us to wipe away our sin – it is part of us, the very skin we’re trying to clean. We’d have to gouge it away like that cancer does to my Dad’s skin. And that’s slowly killing him.
Our only chance is to replace our dirty, disease-ridden skin with clean, uncorrupted tissue. Like that’s just lying around for the asking! And how would we transplant that organ in its entirety, may I ask? We’d definitely need a qualified physician…like God. He takes his own son’s skin – pure, uncorrupted by sin – and fits each of us in its perfection. We leave the operation room healthy, our substitute skin smooth, silky, clean.
Is this FAIR? No. It’s not fair that Jesus had to give up his skin for us, sorry lot that we are. But fortunately, God’s idea of FAIR is different from ours. It doesn’t matter to him if we’ve served 40 years or come breezing in like Johnny-come-lately. It doesn’t matter that our best service is like the questionable help of a toddler. We don’t DESERVE anything. But he gives us Jesus’ skin to cover ourselves. He attributes Jesus’ perfect works to us. He welcomes us to heaven saying, “Well done, you good and faithful servant!”
I don’t know why God allows Dad to suffer so. Maybe this is a Job-like test of his faith. Maybe this is a strengthening exercise – working Dad’s spiritual biceps. Maybe Dad’s suffering is a lesson for someone else. God knows. And, given what God has done for us, that should be enough. I must take a deep breath, close my eyes, and trust that God not only knows what he is doing, but is doing it for Dad’s good.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
~Romans 8:28~
This makes me think of Eustace as a dragon in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader--when Aslan finally tore off his hideous dragon skin, it hurt like everything. But then it was gone for good. I'm praying for your dad and your family.
ReplyDeleteYeah, not easy. But may His grace give your dad strength - and your family strength to endure. The race can be rough, the battle scare, but our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
ReplyDeleteMay the Savior carry your father in his arms every day.