Hope

Last Friday, July 25, 47 year old Dr. Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon Professor and author of the current NY Times Best Seller, The Last Lecture, died of pancreatic cancer.  After being diagnosed with cancer in September 2006, Dr. Pausch maximized his time and lived it to the fullest.

As of writing this post millions of people have viewed his last lecture on YouTube, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams", that he gave in the fall of 2007.   The purpose for doing the lecture was to leave something for his young children to remember him by and to know the values in life he lived and pursued. 

Pausch liked to have fun in whatever he did. He liked to dream and pursue those dreams. He achieved almost every dream he had except for playing professional football in the NFL.  He was committed to his family.  He valiantly pursued maximizing the life God gave him to live until his last breath.  He has impacted millions of lives by the way he handled a terminal illness. This is an encouragement to me.  But it seems there was one thing missing in Dr. Randy Pausch's life--eternal hope of Heaven!  

My heart goes out to Randy Pausch and his family.  From what I read in his book and viewing the Last Lecture video on YouTube, I do not know if he knew Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord? Where is his eternal hope?  Maybe before he died God saved Randy from his sins?  Only the Lord knows.

For the believer in Jesus Christ there is Eternal Hope.

 

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-6)

Grateful for Eternal Hope in Jesus Christ!

Progress

Yesterday was an important milestone.  It has been almost six weeks since my right ankle was replaced on June 17.  The CT scan of my ankle and x-rays indicate everything is going well-praise the Lord!  I hope to post an x-ray of my "new wheels" (prosthetic) that was inserted during surgery.  An x-ray (picture) is as they say,  "worth a thousand words." It will help to explain what took place during surgery.

Each time I am in for a visit to my orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Haddad, he always takes pictures of my feet and ankles.

What do you think about these cute legs? :)  They are definitely not going to win any beauty contests. The right ankle is nicely aligned and healing well.  The left ankle needs some help!  It is on the way when it undergoes the same procedures, Lord willing, on September 23.

Dr. Haddad's medical giftedness is a blessing. I am grateful to the Lord that He led me to him. He is one of the top ankle doctor's in the country. 

I am thankful for the healing progress in my ankle and foot. When I reflect on the physical progress God has allowed to take place, I think about what spiritual progress is happening in my life?  Either we are moving forward, progressing, in our walk with the Lord or moving backward, regressing. 

The word "progress" is used found only four times in  the New Testament: Philippians 1:12; Philippians 1:25; 1 Timothy 4:15; and 2 Timothy 3:9.  Three of the four references refer to either progress of the Gospel or one's faith. 

In 1 Timothy 4, Paul exhorts his young protégé, Timothy, to not neglect the spiritual gift he received.   

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1Timothy 4:12-16)

Couple quick observations as I reflect on these verses:

1. Be an Example that Glorifies Jesus Christ. No matter how young or old you are in your walk with the Lord we are living for one purpose to glorify the Jesus Christ (1 Cor 10:31). As Paul instructs what we say, how we live, loving others, walking in faith and living a holy life is important.

2. Be in the Word of God and Proclaim the Word of God.  Know it, teach it, and preach it. God's Word is the compass for everything a believer does in life!

3. Be Faithful to Use the Spiritual Gifts God Gave You to Glorify Him and Serve Others (1 Corinthians 12).

4.  Be Diligent Apply 1 Timothy 4:12-16 So That You May Progress in the Faith! 

"Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress." (1 Timothy 4:15)  In other words, these commands are important to live out each day. Be absorbed and focused on living them!

5. Warning: Watch Your Life. "Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers" (1 Timothy 4:16).

How are you progressing in your walk with Jesus Christ today?

Training

“Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” 

1 Timothy 4:7-8

The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing are in two weeks. World-class athletes from around the globe have sacrificed it all: sleep, time with family and friends to represent their country in China for one purpose—to win a gold medal!

As enter into the third week of physical therapy on my ankle, my training has not been as intense as an Olympic athlete. But it has been focused. Not only have we worked on my ankle, but also on my hip, and shoulder. The right hip has been tight because of having to keep most of the weight off of my right foot. The right shoulder has been in pain due to arthritis which has been further aggravated by walking with crutches.

As I think about training and the physical therapy I will be in for 1o more weeks, I am reminded of these verses from 1 Timothy 4:7-8. The elder apostle Paul reminds his young protégé, Timothy, what’s important in life: godliness over physical training. This is not to say you should not exercise, eat right, and take care of your body. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). But it does emphasize the importance of pursuing godliness not only for this life, but also for the future when a believer will see Jesus face-to-face in “the life to come”—Heaven.

“Training yourself to be godly” takes work.  The Puritans called it "holy sweat"! In the context here it is likened to working out in a gym, but the focus is not on the physical but on the spiritual--your own heart.  Are you pursuing Jesus Christ through spending time with Him in His Word, in prayer, turning from sin, confessing it and forsake it? Have you praise the Lord in song today? Praise the Lord that we can do it with His help. In Paul’s second letter to Timothy he writes, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).

Training with perseverance through His strength and grace.

My physical therapists. 

Jen getting after it on my ankle.

Dr. Linda

Nails

The Nails In Your Hands, The Nails In Your Feet
They Tell How Much You Love Me 

The Thorns On Your Brow, They Tell Me How

You Bore So Much Shame To Love Me

Earlier this week my cast, in commemoration of the Chicago Cubs & July 4th, and sutures were removed. This is another milestone on the road to recovery. Praise the Lord! I am still non-weight bearing and wear a walking boot. I will be in the boot until September 23 when the surgeries start on the left ankle.

As I thought about my sutures coming out and looked at my ankle, I reflected on the love that Jesus Christ has for you and me. "This is love; not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:10).

The words to the song above came to mind. This simple song, I learned a number of years ago, drives me to the cross. It reminds me of the the unfathomable love Jesus has for you and me, and the price He paid for our sins. I will never experience the pain and suffering that Christ went through on the cross. I cannot imagine what it was like for the nails to be driven through His wrists and ankles when the Roman Soldiers nailed Him to the cross.

I am grateful that Jesus knows, shares in, and can be a comfort in my sufferings. "For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows" (2 Corinthians 1:5).

The rest of the song goes like this. May it be my heart's cry.

And When The Heavens Pass Away
All Your Scars Will Still Remain
And Forever They Will Say
How Much You Love Me

For I Want To Say
Forever My Love, Forever My Heart
Forever My Life Is Yours
Forever My Love, Forever My Heart
Forever My Life Is Yours