WHAT JESUS DID FOR ME

What Jesus Did For Me

9/22/2011



“And, behold, there came a man named Jairus,…and he fell down at Jesus' feet, and besought him that he would come…For he had one only daughter, …and she lay a dying,…he (Jesus) answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole…and (Jesus) took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise. …and she arose straightway... And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.” Luke 8:41, 42a 50, 54b, 55b, 56.



The parents of the young girl in the story above, who everyone had supposed had died, (everyone but Jesus that is) we’re astonished at what Jesus had done. Obviously overcome with joy as they received their daughter back from the jaws of death. Certainly they wanted to scream their elation telling everyone what Jesus had done. Jesus charged them to tell no man. What do you think; did they comply with His wishes? Probably not. Lately that same elation has been overwhelming me. I too am now placed in the very real life scenario of wanting to let anybody and everybody know what Jesus did for me. Let me tell you why.



A question I get asked a lot these days is “How are you feeling?” Well, the answer is I feel pretty good. If I may I’ll explain why, starting from the beginning. As many of you know I’ve been fighting a battle with a disease called Myasthenia Gravis. My wife, daughter, and I have a piece of property here in southern Missouri. It’s just a small four acre parcel, but I truly enjoy it. Before my illness I kept our little piece of ground well manicured like a park; this chore had become a labor of love for me. For the past two years my chores had turned into nightmares since I was unable to carry out any of them.



I had endured seven IVIG infusions and a host of drugs had been prescribed by my neurologist to attempt to fend off this horrible debilitating neuro-muscular disease. My health seemed to be as a yo-yo, I’d feel fairly good for a few days then back to full on muscle fatigue. This was the routine since beginning the infusions. Then one day in July seemingly out of nowhere God intervened. I just woke up one morning feeling great. Wow! Praise God! Now I gotta tell somebody what Jesus did for me.



Back in May of this year I wrote a commentary explaining to my readership, that the infusions had worked and I was feeling better. Just after posting that commentary the fatigue came back with a vengeance. Our eldest daughter and her children lived with us at that time and my hematologist told me that the strain and stress was too much for me. He told me that trying to contend with four grandchildren (one of which was just a toddler, and the youngest still an infant) while in the midst of this disease was creating a wall of resistance to the procedures he had put in place as he tried to eradicate, or at least send into remission, the Myasthenia which was attacking my body.



My grandchildren are so important to me, and for the 10 months they lived with us I had become completely captivated by and attached to my infant granddaughter. So much so that we had bonded to a point that I knew I could never give her up. Grandpa, with his disease, wasn’t able to do much in the way of interacting with the other kids, but with the youngest I was able to hold her on my lap and feed her when it was time and everyday she would fall asleep on my chest while I sang to her. But, alas, I did give her up. Our daughter had made the decision to move back to California to pick her life back up, I imagine that means where she left it prior to moving to Missouri. When she took my ten month old granddaughter away I honestly thought I would die. The pain was incredible, far worse than any illness or disease I’d ever endured. I spent weeks in misery, the tears would not stop. Only through the grace and insistence of Almighty God was I able to continue with life and with writing the commentaries.



Just one month after their departure my health greatly improved and God gave me the relief I needed from the horrible depression that had beset me. With my health improvement, my outside chores became something I was looking forward to tackling again. Little by little I ventured out into the midsummer heat attempting to bring a not so good looking yard back to its previous splendor. At first it was a bit overwhelming. I’ve now progressed to a point that I’m able to perform some of my outside chores with little hindrance. God is good, and He gets all the glory.



Why am I telling you all of this? Because I gotta tell somebody what Jesus did for me! Jesus brought me back; He and He alone is responsible for my very improved heath today. No matter what the doctors might think or what the skeptics that read my commentaries might say, I know who healed me. Our family doctor is a great guy, this man is very knowledgeable and he dearly loves his work. He genuinely loves people, thus he makes a great doctor. When I fell into that seemingly bottomless pit which this whole disease experience had caused, my wife and I were convinced that my life was quickly approaching its end, and my doctor also saw the signs that caused him to concur. We had begun to discuss funeral arrangements. Our family doctor suggested it might be time for some hospice care. This all took place just a few weeks before our eldest daughter left for California with our grandchildren.



Needless to say, my doctor was shocked at my incredibly quick recovery, yet not really all that surprised as he also knew who was responsible for the miraculous improvement. When I visited my doctor just a week ago all he could do was simile and congratulate me on my recovery; all I can do is praise God. My doctor asked me that day what I attributed my renewed heath to and I told him – God. He agreed, even with all the marvelous advancements in medical technology, what happened to me was nothing less than a miracle. So, I gotta tell somebody – I gotta tell somebody – what Jesus did for me!



That’s why I am in a renewed posture these days. I want to shout it from the roof top. “Look what Jesus did for me!” It’s no secret what Jesus did for all of us two thousand years ago, not to mention all the miracles He performed. The miracles Jesus does today are just as visible, although these days it’s seldom our God and Savior who receives the glory, but it should be.



It wasn’t long ago that I made a conscience decision to place my life fully into God’s hands, holding nothing back for any reason. I’m His. This is essentially what the mindset of every devoted follower of Jesus Christ should be, which is nothing short of what Paul explains. “…But we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:16b. The Greek word for mind is “nous” which denotes spiritual truth, the higher powers of the soul, the faculty of perceiving divine things, of recognizing goodness and of hating evil. All those who are born again have the mind of Christ, so use it.



My life is still in a bit of turmoil these days even after the Myasthenia has disappeared or gone into remission. I will go through knee replacement surgery on the 26th of September. Then after I’m fully recouped I’ll see another doctor about the problem with my esophagus. I’ve had constant reflux for some months now and my doctor is very concerned that there might be a growth down by the area of the junction of the stomach and the esophagus. The main point to all my rambling is to assure everyone who God is and that He is fully involved in the lives of His children. We say “God is in control” but do we mean it? I have no doubt who’s responsible for my much improved health. Just look what Jesus did, and is doing, for me. I spent two years with this disease which was only diagnosed last November. Did I ever think God had abandoned me? Not hardly. Even though the deterioration had caused my wife and I to focus on the end game – God was never dismissed as coach.



Many of my readers, and many more people than that, are in much worse straits than I ever was. On the other hand there are some who will never experience in this life any debilitating physical illness whatsoever. The crux of the matter is, either way, there is an end coming. The Truth which will lead us to everlasting life is always available, the perfect peace given us by Jesus Christ is that everlasting life and it is fully attainable for anyone who desires it. Those of us who have acknowledged the truth of the Gospel of Christ and who now have the mind of Christ are in for an awesome everlasting future. Of course, there will always be those who see no benefit in acknowledging God’s existence or who place no importance in the sacrifice of His only begotten Son for the remission of their sins. Therefore they will experience a very different eternity – one the Bible refers to as Hell.



Babies are born and people die, battles with illnesses come and go, there’s nothing new under the sun. “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:9. Eternal life is and always has been eternal – there’s nothing new about it. Once we have it, it’s ours for eternity. We can take solace in that fact.



I have a brother in the Lord who, just a few years ago, was in an accident that put an end to his career. That which he had previously held as important began to disappear. He began to see life differently; materialism was no longer his goal. He is now in his early forties, and he has a new focus on life. Jesus Christ has become the most important part of his life and he’ll tell you his future looks brighter now than ever before. Some people fall apart when illness or injury besets them. Others, like this young brother in Christ, simply change their focus. In the process of the loss of his wealth he became the wise man Jesus tells us about. “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” Matthew 7:24-27.



None of us know when, or if, we will be burdened with a debilitating accident or disease. But we should know who will be there for us when we begin a journey down one of those paths. Some people tell us that Jesus is simply a crutch. Wow, as a disabled follower of Jesus Christ what more could I want than Jesus as a crutch? Now, for all who see those of us who follow Jesus the Christ in a derogatory light – as needing a crutch to get by – allow me to be your teacher for a moment. Another word for crutch is support. What is the purpose for someone needing support? To bear, to hold up, to sustain. Who would be better equipped to sustain us than the Creator of the universe? Even for those who hate Him and wish to be rid of Him once and for all, they too are being sustained (held up) by Jesus Christ (who, while we're on the subject, is God Almighty) every single day. Acknowledge it as truth or not, Jesus is also your support – your sustainer - your crutch if you will. Who in their right mind would refuse Jesus’ love because they simply see Him as a crutch? What a crutch.



Knowing Jesus as Savior, Lord, friend, brother, God Almighty brings a peace which cannot be surpassed. No matter what befalls us, with Jesus living in us we can endure anything. I can’t speak for the rest of you but, I just had to tell everybody, what Jesus did for me!



God bless you all,



Ron Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

All scripture is from the KJV and God breathed