As a teenager, Joni loved life. She enjoyed riding horses, loved to swim. One summer in 1967, however, that all changed. While swimming with some friends, Joni dove into a lake not knowing how shallow it really was. She broke her neck, paralyzing her body from the neck down. For the next two years during her rehabilitation Joni struggled. She struggled with life, she struggled with God, and she struggled with her paralysis. Since then, Joni has written fourteen books, has recorded several musical albums, and she’s actively involved as an advocate for disabled people. On this tape you’ll hear how Joni, now an internationally known mouth artist, learned to accept her disability. And Joni will tell you how a personal relationship with God has helped her overcome the obstacles in her life and how you can experience the love of God, despite pain and suffering. Now with her life story, here’s Mrs. Joni Eareckson Tada:

Thanks for the wonderful introduction. Do I really do all those things? My goodness! But I don’t tap dance. One of these days, yes, but not quite.

It hardly seems 26 years ago, that I was lying on a hospital bed in suicidal despair, depressed, discouraged, after the hot July afternoon when I took that dive into shallow water, a dive which resulted in a severe spinal cord injury, which left me paralyzed from the shoulders down, without use of my hands and my legs. Before that time, I didn’t even know what you called people like me. Who are we? The physically challenged, the mobility impaired, the differently abled, handicapped. I knew we weren’t crippled or invalid. But I just didn’t have any contact with people who were hurting or in pain. That spinal cord injury changed all that. There I was lying in the hospital bed in the summer of 1967 desperately trying to make ends meet, desperately trying to turn my right side down emotions, right side up. In my pain and despair, I had begged many of my friends to assist me in suicide. That seems to be a common topic these days and many disabled people that I know even in the nineties have a tough time finding life worth living. I sought to find a final escape, a final solution, through assisted suicide, begging my friends to slit my wrists, dump pills down my throat, anything to end my misery. The source of my depression is understandable. I could not face the prospect of sitting down for the rest of my life without use of my hands, without use of my legs. All my hopes seem dashed. My faith was shipwrecked.

I was sick and tired of pious platitudes that well meaning friends often gave me at my bedside. Patting me on the head, trivializing my plight, with the 16 good biblical reasons as to why all this has happened. I was tired of advice and didn’t want anymore counsel. I was numb emotionally, desperately alone, and so very, very frightened. Most of the questions I asked, in the early days of my paralysis, were questions voiced out of a clenched fist, an emotional release, an outburst of anger. I don’t know how sincere my questions really were. I was just angry. But after many months those clench fists questions became questions of a searching heart. I sincerely and honestly wanted to find answers.

Now I knew, in a vague sort of way, that answers for my questions about my paralysis were probably hidden somewhere between the pages of the Bible, but I had no idea where. I needed a friend who would help me sort through my emotions, who would help bring me out of the social isolation, who would help me deal with the anger. A friend who would point me somewhere, anywhere, in God’s Word to help me find answers. I found a friend, a young man named Steve, who knew absolutely nothing about emptying leg bags or pushing wheel chairs and he had no idea what to call people like me, whether we were physically challenged, differently abled, mobility impaired. Don’t you get tired of all those fancy, schmancy euphonisms?

I remember my friend Steve, just a young teenager, who had a caring, compassionate heart, a love for God, and a halfway decent working knowledge of the Bible. At my bedside, I cornered him one day, and I said to Steve, “I just don’t get it! I trusted God before my accident. I wasn’t a bad person. This possibly couldn’t be a punishment for any sin that I’ve done. At least, I hope not. I don’t get it, Steve? If God is supposed to be all loving and all powerful, then how, what has happened to me, be a demonstration of His love and power? Because, Steve, if He’s all powerful, then surely He should have been powerful enough to stop my accident from happening? If He’s all loving then how in the world can permanent and lifelong paralysis be a part of His loving plan for my life? I just don’t get it! Unless I find some answers, I don’t see how this all loving and all powerful God is worthy of my trust and confidence. Who is in control? Who’s will is this anyway?” I said to him.

My friend Steve took a deep sigh and he was wise enough to discern that my question, again, was not voiced out of clench fist, but out of a searching heart. He knew I sincerely wanted to find an answer. And so he said, “Joni, those are tough questions and theologians have been trying to answer them for hundred of years. I can’t pretend to sit at your bedside and know why and how. I can’t pretend to explain the loving nature of God and how your accident is a demonstration of His power. But when it comes to the question about who is control, and who’s will is this anyway, I think I can show you some answers.” Huh, well! I wanted to see this! So I waited to see what he would say. I thought he might quote to me the sixteen good biblical reasons as to why all this has happened.

I thought surely he might lay out before me the blueprint of my life. I thought for sure he’d give me a lot of advice, a lot of his counsel, but no, Steve didn’t do that. Then he opened up his Bible and he pointed me to the example of Jesus Christ. He told me that in the life of Christ I could find the answers about God’s will. But he went even more specifically, he showed me Christ on the cross and he challenged me with a couple of hard hitting questions himself. Saying, “Joni who’s will do you think the cross was?” Well, I obediently remembered all those good Sunday school lessons I had learned growing up and I easily voiced in response, “God’s will, of course, it’s God’s will. Everybody knows that. But then Steve said, “Joni, think it through, because you better believe that it was the devil who entered the heart of Judas Iscariot who handed over Jesus for a mere 30 pieces of silver. And you got to know that it was Satan who instigated that mob on the streets to clamor for Christ’s crucifixion, and for sure, Joni, it had to be the devil who prodded those Roman soldiers to spit on Jesus and slap Him and mock Him. Even the devil inspired Pontius Pilate to hand down mock justice in order to gain political popularity. How can any of these things be God’s will? Treason, injustice, murder, torture?”

Well, I nodded and agreed. None of it seemed to be God’s will. But what about all those Sunday school lessons I had learned as a little girl? That the cross was God’s plan and purpose for all of mankind? My friend Steve turned to a verse in the Bible which helped answer that question about God’s will. He turned to Acts chapter 4:28 and it says there that these men, that is Pontius Pilate, Judas Iscariot, the mob in the streets, the cruel Roman soldiers, these men did what God’s power and will had decided before hand should happen. In other words, the cross was no mistake.

Somehow, some way, God was in control. Heaven and Hell participated in the exact same event when Christ died on that cross. Heaven and Hell participated in the exact same event but for different reasons. Now, no doubt, Satan had his reasons. The devil wanted to put an end to this ridiculous talk about redemption. Stop God’s son dead in his tracks. No more talk about reconciliation, no more talk about atonement. Kill Christ. That was Satan’s motive. But you see, the wonderful thing about God is that He’s a miracle worker and God is in the business of reaching down and, with otherwise seems to be awful horrid evil, He wrenches out of it positive good for us and glory for Himself. God can do that because He’s God.

God always aborts devilish schemes to accomplish His own ends and His own purposes. That’s what he did at the Cross. The world’s worst murder became the world’s only salvation. In Satan’s most daring attempt to frustrate the plan of God, he ended up slitting his own throat because God aborted those devilish schemes at the Cross. What was God’s motive in the Crucifixion? What was His purpose and will? That through the cross, the floodgates of heaven would be open wide. That whosoever will, might come in. Heaven and Hell participated in the exact same event but for different reasons.

Steve closed his Bible at my bedside and didn’t say much after that. He let the message sink in. It didn’t take long for me to understand the parallel between what happened at the cross of Christ and my own disability. I began to see that in the accident in which I became paralyzed, Heaven and Hell were participating in the exact same event, but for different reasons. When I took that reckless dive into shallow water that caused me to be a quadriplegic, no doubt , the devil absolutely wrung his hands in delight, thinking to himself, “Aha, I have now shipwrecked this girl’s faith. I have dashed her hopes. I have ruined her family. I have destroyed her dreams and I am going to make a mockery of all her beliefs in God. That, I’m certain, was the devil’s motive. Remember we have an all wise, all powerful, all loving God who reaches down, and when otherwise would be horrible evil, and wrenches out of it positive good for us and glory for Himself. I am convinced that God’s motive, God’s purpose, His plan in the accident in which I became paralyzed, His purpose was to turn a head strong stubborn rebellious kid into a young woman who would reflect something of patience, something of endurance, something of longsuffering. Who would get her life values turned from wrong side down to right side up and would have a buoyant and lively optimistic hope of heavenly glories above.

I wouldn’t dare list 16 good biblical reasons as to why this accident happened to me. No I wouldn’t dare do that because suffering is still a mystery.. I can’t explain it all and my friend Steve couldn’t explain it all by my bedside either. It’s a mystery but not a mystery without direction. We know for one thing in this mystery ,nobody is glorifying suffering. God does not think this that a spinal cord injury is a great idea. There is no inherent goodness in cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, brain injury, stroke, heart disease, manic depression, No, No, No!. There is no inherent goodness in disease or disability, but like I said, God can reach down to an otherwise would seem like a terrible difficulty and wrench out of it positive good for us and glory for Himself. There is no inherent goodness in disability, disease, or deformity but we are promised in the book of Romans the 8th chapter the 28th verse that all things can fit together into a pattern, a plan for good, our good and His Glory.

I remember when my friend Steve shared that verse with me as well, and I challenged him saying,”That sounds to me that you’re saying, there, that all things are good.” He said, “No, Joni, that’s not what the verse says. It doesn’t say that all things are good. It just says that all things can fit together into a pattern for good, a plan for good.

What is that good? I can’t speak for you. I really can’t, and I would never take my experience and lay it like a template over your life and say this is the way God ought to work in your life. No, No, no, it doesn’t work that way. We’re all individuals, we’re all significant, we’re all unique, and God’s plan for each one of us is so personal, so highly personal.

I would like to share with you the good, that I believe, has come out of my disability. I would like to tell you God’s motive in having permitted my accident to happen. For one thing, my life values have gotten turned from wrong side down to right side up.There was a time when I used to think that man’s cheap end for happiness was to have a date on Friday night and to be a slim trim 135 lbs, a size 12 dress, a college degree, a nice little home in suburbia with a white picket fence with Ethan Allen furniture, and 2.5 children. That’s what I used to think was important in life. After my accident, those life values, that were so wrong side down, got turned right side up and I began to see that what really mattered in life were friendships. What really mattered in life was love, warm and deep and real and personal, between a husband and a wife, or a sister, or a brother, or a aunt, or a niece, or a nephew, or a neighbor, or a nurse, or an attendant. I began to see that it was people who counted. And smiles and tears and embraces, these things began to count so much in my life.

I remember that my hospital bed was situated near a window in the ward that I shared with 6 other women and I used to thank God that I could see the moon at night and that my room was situated near a tree so I could watch the leaves blow in the wind. Little things, small things, began to matter. Looking straight on into the eyes of another person in a wheelchair and sensing their pain, being moved by their tears, feeling the rhythm of their heart, sharing oneness in the spirit, like experiences. These are the things that began to matter to me.

But other things began to matter to me as well. God used this injury to develop in me patience and endurance and tolerance and self-control and steadfastness and sensitivity and love and joy. Those things didn’t matter much when I was on my feet but, boy, they began to matter after I began living life in a wheelchair. I began to see that this is what made me a truly peaceful person. This is what real beauty was all about. This is what purpose in life involved. Being made somebody special, somebody significant, way down deep on the inside and beginning to share that with smiles and encouragement to others.

Also, I began to get a buoyant, lively hope of heavenly glories above. In other words this wheelchair help me see that the good things in this life aren’t the best things. There are better things yet to come. The good things in this life are only omens and foreshadowing of more glorious, grand, great things to burst on the scene when we walk into the other side of eternity. For one thing, the Bible assures us that we’re going to have new bodies. First Corinthians, chapter 15, read it sometime for some encouragement. We learn there that one day we will have new hands, new legs that will walk, new hearts, new minds.

I can’t wait for the day when I’m given my brand new glorified body. I’m going to stand up, stretch, dance, kick, do a aerobics, comb my own hair, blow my own nose, and what is so poignant is that I’ll finally be able to wipe my own tears, but I won’t need to, because the Bible tells us in the book of Revelation that God will personally wipe away every tear. There will be no more need to cry. How ironic that finally on the day when I have my hands so I can blow my own nose and wipe own tears I won’t have to. I look forward to that day. I never used to when I was on my feet. I thought heaven was pie in the sky by and by. I used to think that it was an escape from reality , a psychological crutch, but no, no, no, heaven is the reality and when you have your heart fixed on heaven it helps you live life better down here on earth. You’re able to develop relationships from an even keel. You’re better able to discern how more wisely to use your time, how to invest your talents, your gifts. You begin to see that people are what really count in life. Heavenly glories above, patience, peace, perseverance, life values turned right side up, these are just a few of the things God has shown me in the 26 years I’ve been in this wheelchair.

I can’t pretend to know all the answers, honestly. But I know what has worked for me from God’s Word. I know that God’s Word can come alive and active in your life as well. You see, the choice is yours. Heaven and Hell are participating in the events in your life. You know that without me having to tell you. You know that because of the loneliness you feel, the pain, the hurt, the heartache, the tears, the pressure, the discouragement, the Monday morning blues. I don’t have to remind you that sometimes Heaven and Hell are participating in the exact same events in your life but what happens, and who gets the glory and who’s motive is brought to fulfillment in your life, is entirely your choice. The grace is God’s but the choice is yours but, oh, what wonderful things happen, when you trust in God and make a choice to go for His plan, to believe in His purpose, to hold on to His motives for your life.

I want to hearken back to the cross just for a moment. Remember I talked about that earlier on. It’s odd to me that Christians wear crosses around their neck. I don’t know if it’s curious to you, but it sure seems odd to me. I mean a cross is an instrument of torture. It’s like wearing a little execution machine around your neck. Wearing a cross is like wearing a little guillotine of gold and pearls or a little electric chair of silver or a little hangman’s noose made out of gold. What makes the cross different from other execution machines? The fact that Jesus exchanged it’s meaning. Once was formally a symbol of death and destruction and pain, has become a symbol of hope and victory, and that is why we wear crosses around our neck. Crosses symbolize hope and victory and it was the choice that Christ made at the cross to go all the way to secure our salvation.

That’s what’s given it new meaning, new hope, new victory. The same is true in your life as well. This wheelchair to me use to symbolize alienation and confinement, but God has exchanged its meaning because I trusted in Him. Now this wheelchair to me is a symbol of independence and freedom and mobility. It’s a choice I made and it’s a choice you can make too. You won’t be able to make it over night some of you. It will be a long hard haul for a few a you. There will be dark days when you will ask questions, not out of a searching heart but you’ll voice them out of a clenched fist, but that’s ok. God is big enough to handle our biggest doubts and He’s not held hostage by our handicaps. Oh, no, He cares and He welcomes all the doubts, the fears, the questions, and the frustrations. The grace is His, the choice is yours. Would you let Him reach down into an otherwise, seems to be awful pain in your life and wrench out of it positive good for yourself and glory for Him.

You’ve heard me talk about heaven thus far and I want to share with you a song that means a lot to me and a poem that I wrote that expresses my joy and my enthusiasm about working and waiting on heavenly glories above. Poem: Our risen heart sent free will be pure passion poured purely Adore He who will give us this heart free to love for the first time again Our risen bodies, light, bright, clothed in righteousness lest with glowing flesh that feels, really feels, for the first time again. But now we wait, wait, wait for our risen Lord who will reward we who weep yet still seek Him above all. So stand we tall together for the first time ever and then fall, please, on grateful knees, eternity is ours Song: For though I spend my mortal lifetime in this chair, I refuse to waste it living in despair.

And though others may receive gifts of healing, I believe that He has given me a gift beyond compare. For heaven is nearer to me and at times it is all I can see. Sweet music I hear coming down to my ear and I know that it’s playing for me. For I am Christ the Savior’s own bride and redeemed I shall stand by His side. He will say shall we dance and our endless romance will be worth all the tears I have cried. I rejoice with him who’s pain my Savior heals and I weep with him who still his anguish feels. But earthly joys and earthly tears are confined to earthly years and greater good the Word of God reveals. In this life we have a cross that we must bare. It’s just a tiny part of Jesus death that we can share. And one day we’ll lay it down cause He’s promised us a crown to which our suffering can never be compared. That’s why heaven is nearer to me and times it is all I can see. Sweet music I hear coming down to my ear and I know that it’s playing for me. For I am Christ the Savior’s own bride and redeemed I shall stand by His side. He will say shall we dance and our endless romance will be worth all the tears I have cried.

And it’s worth all the tears that you’ve cried too.

Thank you for listening to my life story. You may have heard me mentioned a special verse from God’s Word. Romans 8:28, where it says that all things fit together into a pattern of good to them who love God and are called according to His purpose. It’s a wonderful promise isn’t it? It is a special promise, a conditional promise, in fact, and it’s for those who love God. All things fit together into a pattern for good, but only to those who love God. I suppose the question I put to you now is, what is your relationship with God? Do you know the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior? If you do, then you can be guaranteed for certain that all things can be used of God to fit into some marvelous plan, some pattern for good in your life.

Now I know you’d like to see that happen and I know that you’d like to have the assurance that one day you will find that home in heaven where it says according to Isaiah 35, “The eyes of the blind will one day be opened, the ears of the deaf unstopped, the tongue of those who can’t speak will one day shout for joy, and the lame shall leap like dear.” That’s going to happen one day in heaven and if you want to be certain that you’ll be there then you’ll need to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. That will insure your relationship with God the Father. All it takes is a simple prayer and prayer of repentance, a decision to turn away from bitterness and resentment and to grab hold of all the hope and help that God offers. So if you would like to embark on a new adventure and journey with God that assures that all things will fit together into a pattern for good then will you please pray this prayer with me.

Father, thank you so much for the Lord Jesus Christ who died on the cross for me. I confess my rebellion, pride, stubbornness. I lay it all at the foot of the cross. Father, I thank you that Jesus has paid the penalty. You have no more anger left for me, only love and mercy. I receive that love and mercy now as I confess my sin. Thank you that Jesus is my Savior and I bless you for the difference He will make in my life. Help me to follow you in the power of His Spirit. In Jesus name, Amen.

I hope you prayed that prayer with me and I’d like to take a couple of more minutes to share with you how now you can continue on in your spiritual journey because for one thing, welcome to the family. You are a believer. You are now my sister, my brother in the Lord Jesus. If you prayed that prayer with me, I’d like to encourage you to begin reading God’s Word. Begin it daily. Start with the Gospel of John, something simple. Second, I suggest that you find a Bible teaching church nearby and a attend there on a regular basis. Third, pray, would you? Start praying and be open and honest with God. He knows what you’re going through. He knows the struggle that you’re dealing with regarding your disability. Finally, take the initiative and tell others about your decision to follow Christ. Number one, get into God’s Word, number two, get involved in a church, third, be open & honest with God and start praying, and number four, start talking to others about Jesus.

I face a lot of limitations what with living in a wheelchair for over 26 years, but I have found limitless joy and peace in knowing the Lord Jesus. Knowing that I’m heading for heaven. My first priority is always my relationship with him. The things I talked about today are important. I want you to know I really care for you and your spiritual walk. God bless you on your spiritual journey.

 

Click here to listen.

I'm alone, yet not alone. 
God's the light that will guide me home. 
With His love and tenderness, 
Leading through the wilderness, 
And wherever I may roam, 
I'm alone, yet not alone. 

I will not be bent in fear. 
He's the refuge I know is near. 
In His strength I find my own. 
By His faithful mercies shown. 
That so mighty is His shield 
All His love is now revealed. 

When my steps are lost. 
And desperate for a guide, 
I can feel his touch, 
A soothing presence by my side. 

Alone, yet not alone. 
Not forsaken when on my own. 
I can lean upon His arm, 
And be lifted up from harm. 
If I stumble, or if I'm thrown, 
I'm alone, yet not alone. 

When my steps are lost. 
And desperate for a guide, 
I can feel his touch, 
A soothing presence by my side. 

By my side! 

He has bound me with His love, 
Watchful angels look from above. 
Every evil can be braved, 
For I know I will be saved. 
Never frightened on my own, 
I'm alone, yet not alone. 

I'm alone, yet not alone.

One hot July afternoon in 1967, I dove into a shallow lake and my life changed forever. I suffered a spinal cord fracture that left me paralyzed from the neck down, without use of my hands and legs. Lying in my hospital bed, I tried desperately to make sense of the horrible turn of events. I begged friends to assist me in suicide. Slit my wrists, dump pills down my throat, anything to end my misery!

Paralysis was God’s plan? I had so many questions. I believed in God, but I was angry with Him. How could my circumstance be a demonstration of His love and power? Surely He could have stopped it from happening. How can permanent, lifelong paralysis be a part of His loving plan for me? Unless I found answers, I didn’t see how this God could be worthy of my trust.

Steve, a friend of mine, took on my questions. He pointed me to Christ.

Now I believe that God’s purpose in my accident was to turn a stubborn kid into a woman who would reflect patience, endurance and a lively, optimistic hope of the heavenly glories above.

A new perspective My wheelchair used to symbolize alienation and confinement. But God has changed its meaning because I have trusted in Him. Now my wheelchair symbolizes independence. It is a choice I made and one that anyone can make.

I have discovered many good things that have come from my disability. I used to think happiness was a Friday night date, a size 12 dress, and a future with Ethan Allen furniture and 2.5 children. Now I know better. What matters is love.

Good things for the future I live with the heightened awareness that better things are coming. The good things in this life are only a foreshadowing of more glorious, grand things in heaven.

The words of this song capture the thrilling perspective that I have come to know in the years since my accident:

I rejoice with him whose pain my Saviour heals. And I weep with him who still his anguish feels. But earthly joys and earthly tears are confined to earthly years, And greater good, the Word of God reveals. In this life we have a cross that we must bear; It’s just a tiny part of Jesus’ death that we can share. And one day we’ll lay it down, ’cause He’s promised us a crown To which our suffering can never be compared.

That’s why Heaven is nearer to me, and at times it is all I can see. Sweet music I hear, coming down to my ear, And I know that it’s playing for me. For I am Christ the Saviour’s own bride, And redeemed I shall stand by His side. He will say, “Shall we dance?” and our endless romance Will be worth all the tears I have cried.

Take a look at your life. How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times. There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget. In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new. What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

 

That’s right!  Welcome to a place where you’ll hear a lot about handling your doubts and fears and anger about suffering.  And I'm sure that’s because I’ve had a lot of doubts and fears about God's goodness over the years in this wheelchair of mine; I’ve felt fearful of the future as I’ve faced getting older in my chair; and I’ve struggled with anger when God has piled on more problems on top of my quadriplegia – like, how about chronic pain and cancer for starters?  Like, hello God?  What are you thinking here?  Look, you can understand and you most likely are not in a wheelchair or maybe you don’t have cancer, but, man when your life circumstances become so twisted and jagged; when pain moves into stay… it can push you to the limit.

So may I please tell you today how I have worked through that fear and doubt; that “irritation” toward God for piling on more problems?  I’d like to share what I did when I was tempted to blame God for my suffering.  First, as soon as those doubts and fears started to encroach (and they always seemed to creep up on me in the middle of the night when I couldn’t sleep)… when doubts started to choke out my confidence in God, I quickly turned it around and reaffirmed my belief in His sovereignty… I have to start talking to myself… I have to remember His power and wisdom and goodness toward me through Christ.  And I have to do it quickly.  Listen, I know how awful, how claustrophobic suicidal despair can be, and I did not want to go back down that dark, awful road one more time, so at the first hint of fear or doubt or anger I rehearsed in my mind everything I had ever learned about His sovereignty:  God is good, He always has my best interests at heart; He is kind and merciful and He doesn’t take His hands off the wheel of my life for a nanosecond.  He’s in control and He’s got reasons for allowing this. 

Secondly, you’ve just got to reject the temptation to accuse God of plotting evil in your life.  No, way; don’t go there.  Although so many so-called Christian therapists will try to convince you that it’s okay to lay it all out and vent your anger against God full force.  Some will even tell you that you need to forgive God…  friend that is the wrongadvice.  Never cast aspersions on His character; never talk behind His back; never sow seeds of discord about Him among others – not only does it dishonor the Lord, but it’ll definitely make things worse for you… much worse.

Third, I had to recognize my limited ability to understand God’s ways.  Look, like you I have a finite and very fallen mind that is simply incapable of comprehending God’s dealings with man.  I had to recognize I’m not responsible for figuring out God; only for knowing, trusting and pleasing Him.  Someone wisely said, “Resist the demand to know God’s secret things and learn to rest in God’s revealed things.”  That’s great advice!  And you know, there’s much more counsel and wisdom I want to offer in an excellent little booklet called “Angry at God?” that I’d like to give you.  Or maybe you could pass it on to someone you know who’s struggling with doubting God’s goodness.  Whichever, this little book is a treasure and I encourage you to visit my radio page today at joniandfriends.org and ask for your free copy.  Finally, when tempted to be angry at God, you don’t need to settle for being a cold stoic or hot-headed blasphemer.  God has opened the door for you to lament, to bring to Him your doubts and questions, wisely, honestly, and in humility.  He bends His ear to His suffering people – and He’s waiting to hear from you today.

 

Used with Permission. www.joniandfriends.org  © Joni and Friends

Jesus was always focused on the results.  Think about it.  Just go through the gospels.  He's always focusing on the end of things, whether it's the end of a day's labor, the end of one's life, or the end of the world.  Every story He starts about sowing seeds, He finishes with the harvest.  Whenever He brings up the subject of trees, fig trees or whatever, He finishes up by talking about the fruit, the end result.

Jesus was always urging us to see that whatever we do here, has results out there in heaven.  The state we are in on earth is necessary to reach the state we want in heaven.

This is exactly why Jesus spent so much time and so much energy emphasizing the end-of-time perspective.  The Lord had come from heaven, and He knew how wonderful it was.  And so, He was always focusing on the end results - the harvest of the crop, the fruit from the tree, the close of the day’s labor, the profit from the investment, the house that stands the storm.  He knew that our fascination with the here and now would have to be subdued.  How else could He tell to those who mourn, “You are blessed”?  How else could He tell the persecuted to be happy?  How else could He remind His followers facing torture to “count it all joy”?

Scripture is constantly trying to get us to look at the end results.  Your pain and mine will be erased by a greater understanding, it will be eclipsed by a glorious result.  Something so superb, so grandiose is going to happen at the world’s finale, that it will suffice for every hurt and atone for every heartache.  In the meantime, the Bible keeps driving home the point that our life is like grass, a wisp of smoke.  It talks about life as though it were but a blip on the eternal screen.

Nothing more radically altered the way I looked at my suffering than leapfrogging to this end-of-time vantage point.  Heaven became my greatest hope.  In fact, I wondered how other people could possibly face quadriplegia, cancer, or a death in the family without the hope of heaven.  It meant no more wallowing away hours by the farmhouse window, scorning Romans 8:28 and muttering, “How can it say all things fit together into a pattern for good in my life?”  God’s pattern for my earthly good may have felt painful, but I could grab hold of the fact that the end result in heaven would exude a fragrance and a glorious aroma: Christ in me, the hope of glory.

It’s all a matter of time.  “God makes all things beautiful in His time.”  And for many, they won’t see the beauty until the end of time.  Time solves the dilemma of Romans 8:28, as well as all the other problems of evil, suffering and pain.  It’s a perspective that separates what is unreal from what is real.  All the numbing heartache and deep disappointment, all the hardship of the day’s labor, will have a result.  Your tree will bear fruit.  Your investment will have a return.  The seed you plant here will have a harvest there.  You can count on it: Jesus is very interested in results.

Previously aired on 4/25/95 as program #3387 and 1/15/01 as program #4881

Used with Permission. www.joniandfriends.org  © Joni and Friends