The Golden Nugget: Jesus suffered so that we would not have to suffer; he was wounded so we could be healed.
Daily Verse: “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” —Isaiah 53:5
Daily Message:
Joni Earekson Tada’s life story* elicits so many emotions. A 1967 diving accident left her paralyzed from the neck down. She constantly struggles with the paraplegia, chronic severe pain, and, now, stage 3 breast cancer. Yet she is quick to let everyone know how wonderful and full her life has been, even through the suffering. She credits God for doing the amazing things in her life. “I have the effervescent fountain of God’s healing . . . God is my ecstasy,” she beams.
But she’s in a wheelchair, unable to care for herself. How can she think and say these things?
It’s easy to doubt her; the visual doesn’t match the audio. But she is undaunted. For Joni, “suffering is a little splashover of hell, rousing [her] out of [her] spiritual slumber.” She says she does not suffer because her “wounds are healed in finding Jesus beckoning her into the inner sanctum of heaven.” Her self-proclaimed deeper healing is that she complains less, sins less, has more compassion, and cares more for others.
Could it be that your healing will come when you let God have his way? After all, isn’t that the deeper healing that only God can provide?
Consider This:
- How do you think Tada would react if you told her there is no God?
- Where do you find your hope when it seems that there are too many things for you to bear?
Take Action:
Pray for a handicapped person you know. Pray that God’s plan for healing will be fulfilled for them.
*To hear Joni’s story for yourself, see “Joni Eareckson Tada Speaks at the 2013 NRB Convention,” March 18, 2013, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrO5fGSIyM8.