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Jesus Christ: Victory & Joy Amidst Suffering
by Lisa Oates
The gospels are rich with teachings directly from Jesus. He walked this earth, performed miracles, instructed us in how to live, and taught us about the glorious and unexpected kingdom of heaven. Jesus entered into this broken, filthy world to save us – sinners who absolutely do not deserve a savior.
This has always been known to me. Growing up, you would find me in church every Sunday morning. I was a Christian school and youth group kid. But the gospel message of our Messiah wasn’t real to me until my Dad faced a bleak diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) in January of 2013. In a nutshell, it slowly paralyzes you, but your involuntary organs continue working (heart, lungs, digestive system).
I was a Daddy’s girl. He was positive, brilliant, kind, and fun. A master of spending quality time with his kids and grandkids, and enjoying every moment of life. A solid rock for our family. An example of his love and care: my mom struggled with alcoholism for decades, and he set up an intervention to try to save her from total destruction. She agreed to rehab, praise God! She had been sober for two years when the diagnosis came.
Needless to say, our family wasn’t perfect, but it was full of love. My earthly father was wasting away, and I lived 3,000 miles away from him, making it incredibly difficult to spend time with him in this fleeting life. I prayed. Oh, how I prayed for a miracle. I wanted him to keep living. I needed him in my life.
In March of 2014, he went to the ER with pneumonia and because of his ALS, ended up in the ICU. I flew out to be with him and my mom and siblings so we could soak up our final moments with him. The goal was to get rid of the pneumonia, which did happen, but because of his ALS, he couldn’t get off the ventilator and survive on his own. He was too weak. He knew he was dying, and he was still positive. He knew where he was going, and he had peace. He knew his Savior. On March 8, 2014, we held his hands as he entered Glory.
His absence left a gaping hole in my life. But death, it had no sting. Pain, grief, indescribable sadness, but also joy. I clung to the only thing I knew could save me from this agony – the same Savior that my Dad clung to. My earthly father was gone, but I had always had another Father that cared for me, had compassion on me, and listened to me when I wept bitterly. Jesus Christ pulled me – a sinner, completely undeserving of a savior – out of the pit. He left the 99 to seek me out – the one who was easily on the verge of drifting away. Hallelujah, what a savior!
Every year, when March rolls around, I feel this deep wound of missing my Dad. (I’m not sure that will really ever go away.) But I also remember how wonderful it was to have him in my life for 32 years. That, I did not deserve. And then every year about a month later, when we get to celebrate Easter, I am reminded that the sacrifice that Jesus made for me saved me from the pit of despair, and I will one day see my Dad again in full glory. What a day that will be!
One of my favorite hymns is “Hallelujah, What a Savior!” It captures the reality of the miracle of Easter in a way that brings me to tears of joy. Jesus stood in our place and took on our sin to reclaim us. His blood has rescued us, sisters!
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