20 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 2

Day 2: Today I am thankful for healing.

One of my best friends lost her grandmother today to cancer. A reality that hit pretty close to home. When I got the text message from her this morning with the news, the first thing I did was pray. I asked God to comfort her family during this time, but I also thanked God for healing her grandmother. Not healing in the way we typically think of it, but healing in His way - the wisest way. I thanked God for allowing her time of suffering here on earth to be brief, as she was diagnosed with cancer not long ago. Only because i've recently walked through this in my own family, did I understand the signifigance of God's timing and His will.

The view of healing through God's eyes can sometimes look different than our own. But our desire for healing is often a self-driven desire. We don't want to watch those we love suffer. We don't want to suffer. We want to be over him. We want to be over her. We want to move on. We want to be at our best. We find ourselves praying for healing from a variety of things:

Healing from an illness
Healing from an injury
Healing from a broken heart
Healing from being hurt by a friend

We also find ourselves sometimes angry at God if He doesn't "heal" the way that we visualize healing for a situation. I can remember 13 years ago, as a freshman in high school, getting angry with God when He didn't heal my grandfather of cancer. I could only comprehend that He took him away from me, and it hurt. Bad. Looking back now, I realize how incredibly long my grandfather suffered through treatments and radiation, sickness and pain - and now, years later, I can thank God for taking him home when He did, and not making him suffer any longer. It took me watching my other grandfather struggle with every breath, just a few short weeks ago, to understand that.

Then there's times when we don't understand why God doesn't heal our broken heart immediately after it's been crushed. Another painful lesson i've had to learn first hand. But again and again the words of James 1:2-4 keep ringing in my head- “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perserverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” John Woodall described it so perfectly not too long ago when he said that God often wants to break out hearts because that is the only way we can minister to the brokenhearted. We have to suffer to be able to connect to their suffering. In other words, the more we suffer and persevere, the more we become like Christ. I have experienced this first hand in my own life - God has completely taken moments of absolute heartbreak and healing, and allowed me to share them with others who where enduring those same struggles. For that reason, even though it is painful, I gladly welcome suffering into my life for the glory of God.

Why? Because I know in the end, He will be the ultimate healer of ALL things....all pains, all sickness, all hurt, all heartache. All in HIS perfect will and timing. And ALL for HIS glory.


O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.
Psalms 30:2 (NIV)