While recently travelling on vacation, my wife became ill with some sort of stomach bug. She was miserable, so I did my best to adjust our plans to allow her to recover as comfortably as possible while accounting for various plans. Then my oldest daughter, who was travelling with us, got the stomach bug shortly after my wife recovered, so I did my best again to adjust plans in a manner that would allow her to recover as comfortably as possible. As this was going on, I was doing my best to understand how they were feeling, so as to not push too hard. Yes, there were things that we wanted to do, but there were also now some legitimate limitations that had been unforeseen.
Then, once my oldest daughter recovered, both my youngest daughter and I caught the bug at the same time. Once again, plans needed to be adjusted, but this time I understood firsthand the issues that needed to be fully accounted for. I was no longer making assumptions about someone’s physical condition, because I was experiencing it firsthand. And what I realized was that, for as patient and flexible as I thought I was being when someone else was suffering, my own suffering suggested that I should have been even more patient and flexible.
The Bible instructs us of the importance of showing kindness to the least of these – the young, the infirmed, the outcasts, the vulnerable. But as we seek to be kind, sometimes we act without understanding, because we either never have been in the position of the least of these or, more likely, we have forgotten what it was like to be in that position. Unfortunately, the Bible also tells us of instances where people were allowed to experience suffering for the very reason that they had forgotten what it was like to be dependent upon the kindness of others.
I did not want to be sick while on vacation, and if I had a vote, I would have voted for excellent health – for myself and my family. But suffering opened a window into how I could have better responded to others in their suffering, and I’m not sure that I would have learned that lesson any other way. So I’m grateful that it wasn’t worse, I’m grateful for healing, and I’m grateful for hard-learned wisdom that says that sometimes the only thing you can do is slow way down and allow life to dictate the schedule. Evidently, God wanted me to focus less on my desires, and more on the needs of others, regardless of what my schedule looks like.
Friends, I don’t want you to get sick or suffer either, so would you do me a favor? Would you please spend some time today considering what your schedule looks like, to see if there is too much time devoted to your wants and not enough time addressing the needs of others? There’s no reason for any of you to have to learn this lesson firsthand, because I can assure you that my discomfort was enough to go around.
Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron