May 1997

Sometimes in life we lose perspective.  Several weeks ago I was struggling over an issue in my life.  I asked a close friend to take a long walk with me.  At the end of our time my friend handed me a postcard he had just received.  Let me share it with you.

Thank you for the letter and picture.  Makes me miss you.  So thankful you are both in my life.  What is your life of Christ like these days?  Are you experiencing any of the spiritual renewal that is flowing about? I am more free inwardly than ever.  And am experiencing more gifts of the spirit in my life.  Am more aware of grace and the fear of God and the place of prayer.  Our marriage is richer and more dear than ever.  The children are following God in everyday choices.  I hurt my ribs somehow and have pain. But I understand I should be fine in a few weeks.  I love you.  Your Joy.

This is not a remarkable postcard until you know the circumstances of the author (whom I had met years earlier).  Joy has been married 17 years and has two growing children.  Ten years ago, Joy was leaving a Safeway parking lot early on a Saturday morning when a drunken teenager smashed into her car.  Joy has been a quadriplegic ever since.  Now, go back and reread the postcard: phrases like “I am more free inwardly than ever” and “our marriage is richer and more dear than ever” take on new meanings!

My reaction to the postcard was two-fold.  First, my own problem seemed to pale by comparison.  Second, I wanted to know how Joy had coped so courageously with her suffering.  I picked up my phone and called her (though she was in a foreign country).

My question was simple.  “Joy, how were you able to overcome a tragic event that shattered your body, but did not shatter your family, marriage or life?”  She shared her three key scriptures.  I now share them with you.

·          Nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Rom. 8:38&39

·          See to it that no-one fail to obtain the grace of God: that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble.  Hebrews 12:15

·         If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile . . . If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people to be pitied.”  1 Corr. 15:17, 19

What these mean to Joy is:

 ·         “Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.  We can block his love by choice.”

·         “We can miss the grace of God in every circumstance if we are not careful.  My greatest fear is bitterness - it is a choice.”

·         “Since Christ was resurrected our faith is secure.  The resurrection gives one an eternal perspective that this life is brief and fleeting compared to the life to come.”

The next time problems overwhelm us, let us remember Joy’s postcard and her application of the Bible.  Chances are we will gain both gratitude and a new perspective for our lives.

Blessings,

Thomas Cooper

Volume VI, Issue 3