“I will glory in the Lord;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the Lord with me;
let us exalt his name together.”
Psalm 34:2-3 (NIV)
We all want answers but some questions will never be answered until we are on the other side of eternity. There are so many unexplainable things that happen in this world that make us ask, “Why Lord?”
People tend to ask the following questions,
Why would a good God allow:
….a parent to outlive their child?
….adult children to neglect their aging parents?
….an adult to betray a child’s trust?
…..or a person to die without receiving justice?
These are good questions, but there are no good answers on this side of eternity. Scripture gives many examples of people who suffered, experiencing affliction of all kinds, and yet they exalted the Lord. So, I wondered who are some of the “afflicted” ones today, that are faithfully exalting Him.
I can think of people I know in the Nursing home, whose lives fit every one of those questions listed above, but unfortunately they aren’t exalting the Lord. There are residents who have adult children who have abandoned them, and others who have outlived their only child. Some have suffered abuse as children, being betrayed by an adult they trusted. There are so many sad stories, and some have given up on their faith, while others have an unstable faith, which changes from day to day.
Then, along comes a young man who seems to have a heart born to exalt the Lord. I only met him about a month ago, and he never ceases to honor Jesus despite his own afflictions and disabilities. He is in his mid forties, like Jon, but was born with cerebral palsy, a condition caused by damage to the brain before birth.
His symptoms include trouble with movement and coordination, but his brain function is normal. For reasons unknown to me, he has lived in that Nursing home for the past twenty years, about half of his lifetime. I am going to call him Anthony for the sake of privacy.
Anthony is someone who stops to pray for others all around him. He ambulates with great effort, using a walker, and despite his own disabilities, he shows compassion and an interest to know other people and their stories, whether they are afflicted emotionally or physically. I’ve watched him put his hand on the hand of another disabled resident, to pray for him. He talks to my son to encourage him in faith.
In addition to the challenge of cerebral palsy, Anthony had a stroke about a year ago. The stroke drew him closer to God, and he has recovered without any deficits. Anthony’s mind, memory and speech are fully in tact, although he has to exert a lot of effort to make his faint voice heard.
One day we had a conversation and then he took my hand and prayed for both my sons and for me. He also told me that he had a talk with Jon, and he believes that Jon understood everything he said. Anthony exalts the Lord, in whatever he says or does, with residents and visitors. He is applying to hopefully attend Moody bible college this year, which is in the Chicago area, where he will be able to live on campus.
None of us have any say in what happens to us or the afflictions we are born with, but we can decide how we will respond to everything. Exalting the Lord is a decision of the mind and spirit. It doesn’t depend on our mood or abilities, because it’s a choice we make. We cannot control physical pain, illness, weakness or our disabilities, but like Anthony, we can control how we think and respond to it.
I learn from observing Anthony that the difference in a believer is that they trust God in the storms of life as well as in the sunny days. To question God in the storm is a very human reaction, but to have persistent faith, is a spiritual choice. When Jesus lives in us, His Holy Spirit merges with our human nature, to give us strength to find gratitude and exalt Him, in the midst of our afflictions.
So Anthony walks around that Nursing home, limping with a walker, speaking with a strained voice, but giving others the gift of dignity, hope and a prayer. He is a constant reminder for me, that whatever happens in our lives, if Jesus is our daily bread and we choose to exalt Him, we are being held in His hands forever.
Even when we are broken, we are still blessed, and God desires to shares us with others, so that we may exalt Him together.
Lord, give us the grace and strength to exalt you together with others, today and always, in spite of our afflictions. Amen
