40 years later

April the 24th is always a special day for me; this year is extra special because it’s a milestone year.  It was 40 years ago today when my life was snatched away from death.  To state it briefly, as an infant, I had a horrible disease.  For several months, it gave me seizures.  One day, on a routine trip to the hospital, I flat-lined; I was dead for three minutes.  But, then a miracle occurred: my heart began beating again; my life returned.  And that horrible disease and the seizures?  They were gone, never to return again!  As I said, this is the 40th anniversary of that event.

In Joshua 3, the Lord does an incredible miracle for the Israelites; in chapter 4, God tells the people to take 12 stones as a tangible reminder of what He had done.  Verse 24, of Joshua 4, is a key verse: it states they were to remember this forever: “that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.” 

There are several other metaphorical stones of remembrance in my life.  It’s not just some event that happened 40 years ago, that’s just the beginning.  I could describe how, as a boy, I attended a Billy Graham crusade; I left a new creation in Christ.  I could mention how God walked with me so closely as I endured the passing of my dad.  Or how God gave me a fine job, and most recently, He led me to my new car.  But my first remembrance stone was a special healing.  I bring this healing up because I want to highlight the mighty hand of God!

Furthermore, I celebrate God’s faithfulness to me, both in the mountaintop experiences, and in the low valleys.  To be transparent with you, I haven’t always been faithful to Him.  Don’t get me wrong, I earnestly desire to grow in Christ-likeness and holiness, but I still mess up.  But the Bible says even if we are faithless, He remains faithful (2 Timothy 2:13). 

In conclusion, I love the song by Chris Renzema titled “Just as good”.  Here’s a sampling: “You’re still just as good as when I met You.  You’re still just as kind, don’t let me forget that You’re still the same God that led me through the fire; You’re still the same God that separates the waters.”  In another stanza in the song, it states, “My faith will surely falter, but that don’t change what You’ve done.  Cause every Ebenezer points to where my help comes from.”  An “Ebenezer” is basically another name in the Bible for what I brought up earlier: a stone of remembrance to never forget what God had done.

Kevin