The man born blind
Matt
She's 4 now, and has the mentality of a 12-month old. She probably
will never walk without assistance. She is receiving the best
possible treatment, but she probably won't live more than 20 years.
When my wife and I received our daughter's diagnosis, we were
despondent. At some point, I re-read the Book of Job. It made me
feel better-not because the Bible had explained why this happened, but
precisely because it gave no reason. So many people say "everything
happens for a reason"; mostly, these are people who have never had
anything seriously bad happen to them. How refreshing it was to read
the Bible and discover that bad things happen for no reason, or at
least no reason we can hope to understand!! (Perhaps God is playing
dice with the devil again.)
I grew to accept that my daughter would not be "normal." Spending as
much time with her as I could, I enjoyed all the little unique things
about her-her infectious laugh, her ability to endure horrible things
and be completely happy a few seconds later, her unconditional love
for the people in her life, her profound lack of selfishness-I could
go on forever. At some point, I realized that some (all?) of these
beautiful things were inextricably linked to her illness. If she were
"normal," she would not be the beautiful little girl I love so much.
Recently, I re-read the story of Jesus healing the man born blind.
Here is the beginning of John's account:
"As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.
His disciples asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man
or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered,
'Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind
so that God's works might be revealed in him'" (Jn 9:1-3)
The disciples' question seems primitive, but so many of us think this
way. I certainly did. As usual, Jesus rejects the "either-or" choice
implicit in the question and urges us to reconsider our assumptions.
The passage inspired me to look beyond the usual choices, and to see
things from Christ's perspective. I know I'll never understand why
God allowed my daughter to suffer this illness, but I do understand
that she was born to glorify God. In fact, we are all born to glorify
God. My daughter just does a better job of it than the rest of us.
And I am doing my best to realize that that is not something I should
mourn.
Peace.
Brian
for your family, God will be glorified through your daughter's
illness. I believe what you've heard before and rejected: all things
do happen for a reason. That reason is to glorify God. He is in
soveriegn control over everything. It can sometimes look like God is
using His authority capriciously or (God forbid) even malevolently.
But He has a purpose for everything that occurs. We can't always see
the purpose. But we can trust that it is for our good, and I'm sure
that in the end we will thank God for even the most painful moments in
our lives.
Bless your soul, Matt. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to pray for you
and your daughter.
Matt
Thanks Brian. I'd be deeply grateful for your prayers for my family--
especially my daughter. Her name is Jessica.
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