Life's Inanities and Ironies

 Brothers and sisters in Christ, the Word of God never pretends that the righteous will always walk in unbroken health. From Job on the ash heap to Paul with his thorn, from David on the bed of languishing to the saints James addresses, Scripture faces sickness head-on. It shows us both the outward man that perishes and the inward man that is renewed. It teaches us how to live when we can no longer help ourselves, let alone carry the load for others. These six posts draw from the whole counsel of God so that, whether we are the one lying weak or the one standing beside the bed, we may walk in faith, humility, and hope. The dichotomy of body and spirit that frees us from despair When sickness strikes and strength fails, the first truth we must settle is that we are not merely physical beings. Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). The body m...

  So much has happened in the last few days, and I’m still trying to soak it all in. Thursday morning I sat with the heart surgeon at IU Methodist in Indianapolis. They told me they can help me. On the 26th of this month I will go in for double-bypass surgery. I am more than a little scared physically. Spiritually, I know I have nothing to fear. Convincing my mind of that truth is the hard part. If someone had told me even a couple of years ago that a man could feel genuine physical dread and yet rest in complete spiritual peace at the same time, I would have thought they were talking nonsense. But the closer I walk with the Lord, the more I see that the two can truly dwell in the same body. The outward man and the inward man are not the same thing. Scripture has been preparing us for this reality all along. Paul wrote, “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). The body can be breaking down whil...