Against All Odds

Mark 9:23 (NKJV) - Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.
Mark 10:27 (NKJV) - But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible…”

My Dad recently had surgery – a total hip replacement. At the young age of 85, he wasn’t a prime candidate for such a risky procedure. Dad’s age coupled with pre-existing health issues and the on-going pandemic really didn’t make for the safest, mind – settling circumstances for him to have surgery. Not to mention all the pre-op appointments, procedures, tests, exams, therapy … the list goes on and on. BUT GOD!! Not only did God allow all the boxes on the pre-op to-do list to get checked, He allowed Dad to come through surgery with flying colors! His road to recovery will take some time, but I am eternally grateful to God for His wondrous, working and keeping power!

As I shared, the odds were stacked against my Dad. Some family members, close friends, even some of his doctors were leery about Dad making this decision. His quality of life had decreased significantly over the last few years. Listening to him say he was in pain and watching him be in pain was hard for me. So when Dad called me and said, “You gone hafta call somebody … I can’t live like this! This ain’t no way for somebody to live …”, I knew I had to do something.

The key word for me was live! My Dad wanted to LIVE! In my mind, his words translated to me saying “I believe I’ll run on … see what the end’s gonna be!” and “I been runnin fo’ Jesus a long time, I’m not tired yet!” (Nothing like some old school gospel to put things into perspective, huh??) As the process started, I prayed that my Mom wouldn’t get overwhelmed with all the pre-op appointments in addition to taking care of Dad and trying to take care of herself too. I prayed for God’s strength, wisdom, provision and peace. I prayed that every person that had a responsibility for caring for Dad would do so with integrity, compassion and extra safety. As usual, our God exceeded our expectation! (Ephesians 3:20-21) What seemed impossible to man/with man, is/was possible with God! We just had to keep believing and seeking God and let Him show us who He is in ways unimaginable!

Many times we box God in. We try to tell Him how to move in our lives, especially when we are going through uncertain times. We tell Him what the doctors said, what friends say, what we say! We want Him to hurry up and fix things because we don’t want the pain and discomfort to last any longer that it has to. We would rather not have the pain and discomfort at all but we know it’s all a part of the journey, it’s all a part of the testimony! Just like Dad – he wanted the pain and discomfort to be over so he could feel better immediately! In moments like these – whether it’s physical, emotional, social, spiritual – we must learn to trust God! We must learn to trust His timing … we must learn to trust the process! And that’s what it is – a process!

“God is able to do … just what He said He would do! He’s gonna fulfill … EVERY promise to you! Don’t give up on God … cuz He won’t give up on you – HE’S ABLE!!” When we place our faith in God, we show Him that we trust Him, not man, which leads Him to answer our call. Man will disappoint you every time! We often disappoint ourselves. We are flawed, we fall short, we miss the mark and yes, we get it wrong sometimes … we’re human! And for all the times we get it wrong, God’s grace guides us through – sometimes coming out on the other side unscathed! (Isaiah 43:1-2)

Let’s remember who we are and Whose we are! Man can say, think and predict a lot of things, but God has the final say-so! No matter how much control we think we have, He’s the only one who determines the who, what, where, when, why and how in our lives. Who wouldn’t serve and trust a God who loved us so much that He sent His one and only begotten Son – innocent, compassionate, meek, lowly, humble – to die on that old rugged Cross in our place? I don’t know about you, but I’ve gotta trust in Him! (I’m a work in progress but I’m learning to trust the process!) He didn’t just tell me I was worth it … He showed me!! And I take Him at His Word – with Him ALL things are possible!!

Prayer: Father, thank You for making ALL things possible! Even the thing man said was impossible. Thank You that we can trust You to keep Your word and keep us! Thank You for bringing us through every test to a testimony, through every mess to a message, so that we can tell others of Your goodness and mercy toward us and them! Help us to shine our light brightly to represent You so that men will praise You and glorify You! Help us to trust You through what we deem as possible moments but even more so through the impossible moments! You have proven Yourself over and over again. We have no other choice but to trust You! Thank You for counting us worthy to witness Your greatness and Your faithfulness in our lives daily! In Jesus’ Name we always pray … AMEN!

(by Casey Turner)