~ 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 (NIV)
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On one episode of my now-favorite TV show (Extreme Edition: Home Makeover), a teenager with cerebral palsy showed me and the world that God not only doesn't abandon the weak, but He lifts them up as precious and beautiful and of great value. The mom said that when you look at her son, how can you not smile, because he is smiling all the time. God has given this boy, who in the eyes of the world could be considered a cast-off and certainly not someone who could teach us anything about anything, a beautiful spirit and a love for family and baseball and plenty of other things. Though he cannot talk or walk or even sit up by himself, he communicates love and joy that transcends what the world considers valuable and worthwhile.
When the news comes to parents that their child has been born with or develops a major disability, the shock is obvious. But I believe that many come to realize that they hold in their arms a treasure of great value. I have heard parents say that their handicapped child teaches them more than the parents teach the child. They have an insight, a wisdom, a love that often far exceeds those of us who are "regular". Parents of a handicapped child often feel they are the blessed ones, not those who have "regular" children...
When the news comes to parents that their child has been born with or develops a major disability, the shock is obvious. But I believe that many come to realize that they hold in their arms a treasure of great value. I have heard parents say that their handicapped child teaches them more than the parents teach the child. They have an insight, a wisdom, a love that often far exceeds those of us who are "regular". Parents of a handicapped child often feel they are the blessed ones, not those who have "regular" children...
Individuals and governments who have desired to eliminate the handicapped, either through abortion or euthanasia, don't have a clue about the sociology of God's kingdom. Their idea of perfect and desirable is flipped on its head when God's light shines on it.
"If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." ~ Mark 9:35 (NIV)
Do you think that runway model would willingly submit herself to serving the cerebral palsy girl in the wheelchair? Would she feed her, change her, bathe her, love her? No one really knows, but I do know that that is the kind of attitude we all need toward those we consider foolish, weak and lowly, because God chooses them.
"If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." ~ Mark 9:35 (NIV)
Do you think that runway model would willingly submit herself to serving the cerebral palsy girl in the wheelchair? Would she feed her, change her, bathe her, love her? No one really knows, but I do know that that is the kind of attitude we all need toward those we consider foolish, weak and lowly, because God chooses them.
God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. ~Proverbs 3:34 (NIV)
Jesus wasn't the perfect idea of what the Jewish people and the world could embrace for their Messiah. In fact, the whole concept of Christianity in many people's eyes is a handicapped religion, where Jesus is just a crutch for those who are weak and helpless. Anyone with a good sense of self can get to heaven on their own merit -- they don't need an oatmeal marshmellowy God like Jesus, who got the crud beat out of him and died like a criminal, never once lifting a single finger to save himself. That's what some people think. And those same people will stand before God on Judgment Day and boast about all that they are and how good a job they did while on earth. But they have it backward. Their wisdom is foolishness to God.
...no one may boast before Him.
Let us seek the wisdom of God in all things, which seem foolish to the world, but is the key to life.
Jesus wasn't the perfect idea of what the Jewish people and the world could embrace for their Messiah. In fact, the whole concept of Christianity in many people's eyes is a handicapped religion, where Jesus is just a crutch for those who are weak and helpless. Anyone with a good sense of self can get to heaven on their own merit -- they don't need an oatmeal marshmellowy God like Jesus, who got the crud beat out of him and died like a criminal, never once lifting a single finger to save himself. That's what some people think. And those same people will stand before God on Judgment Day and boast about all that they are and how good a job they did while on earth. But they have it backward. Their wisdom is foolishness to God.
...no one may boast before Him.
Let us seek the wisdom of God in all things, which seem foolish to the world, but is the key to life.
Love,
Joelene
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