Good Monday morning! Some school starts again today around these parts, I know of one 13-year old who expressed a desire that school not start up again today. I don't suppose his prayer will be answered in the manner he wishes. Have you ever tried to pray away something you know is coming? Like school, it might be something that you view as a "no thanks", but that you also know is good for you. The question of the morning might be: why did God make medicine taste bad?
Going up to a neighbor you barely know to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ makes us hesitant, even fearful; the cure for cancer at this time is almost as bad as, or perhaps worse than, the disease itself; growing in Christ involves trials that can cause us to despair; and of course, as you well know, medicine that works also tastes bad. The good news is that Jesus gave us a preview of how it will be in His kingdom. When Jesus healed, the result was painless and instant. Jesus made his disciples into bold and fearless witnesses of the Good News. Jesus also showed the disciples the end result of all these trials we face by returning from the grave on the third day. You and I didn't get to see Jesus in his glorified body after the resurrection (at least not yet), but he did have a message for us: blessed are those who have not seen and still believe!
Medicine, in all its forms, tastes bad in this world. Our bodies heal slowly and imperfectly, learning is hard work, there is never enough time for a good Bible study, and prayer gets cut short sometimes. We want to give more, but we only have this much money or that much time. However, we should always remember that in this life, we are in the disease if you will. Sin may have been paid for on the cross, and Jesus has defeated the prince of this world; but sin is still all around us and our hearts lean toward it, plus the tempter and accuser of the brethren is still doing his foul work. The world is diseased by sin and we are still here living in it!
If Adam stubbed his toe in Eden, he probably had a healing plant that tasted wonderful and worked perfectly. Perhaps stubbed toes were not permitted at all in Eden, I wasn't there, but we find it hard to imagine a cure that doesn't involve some kind of pain or bad taste. A fallen world is full of fallen cures. If the bad news is that the trials are necessary and the cures rough in this world; then the good news is that Jesus is still in charge and God has not left us alone in these tough times. We also have a glorious hope to look forward to when things seem dark: Jesus is coming soon!
As you make your way back to work or school this morning, remember that all of this will soon pass, and we will soon see the glory of Jesus coming in the clouds.
Bucky
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