Seeing Christ at Work

Throughout my family's journey, I have been amazed at how clearly Christ has shown himself. Rarely has He shown himself in the completion of a well crafted personal plan. Instead, He has shown himself in the midst of uncertainty, in the middle of fear, and in the middle of waiting. He has shown himself in the hospital rooms, in the unexpected detours, in prayers answered as I wished as well as those where the answer was not what I originally desired, in unexpected strength, and in the living words of scripture.

Where we have seen Christ at work

Embrace/Discover

My heart weeps for those who claim to have a relationship with Christ, but have never experienced the joy of his presence. Our family has been blessed over the years to experience the joy of Christ's presence in many environments. The environment where I have experienced it the strongest and with the greatest consistency is when I am worshipping at 'Discover'. Discover is the name of the special needs Bible study at Austin Ridge. I have been attending this Bible study for several years and I have been amazed at how consistently Christ has shown himself in this environment. According to Matthew 25:37-40, when you serve the least of these, you are serving Christ. Worshipping with the special needs community at Discover, I am reminded that there is a powerful ministry to Christ that I am finding myself in the midst of.

In the Hospital

Sadly, we have had far more hospital time than we would prefer. Those times have weighed heavy on our hearts and have led us to contemplate our faith. However, in the midst of those hospital stays, we have been amazed at how clearly Christ has shown himself. We have seen him in the care of the medical staff, in the prayers of friends and family, in the support of our church community, and in the strength that he has given us to endure those times. We have also seen him in the moments of joy and laughter that we have experienced in the hospital, even in the midst of difficult circumstances.

In Answered Prayers

I have a challenge in talking about answered prayers. To many, they view God as a vending machine and they see their prayers as requests for God to answer or not. When I look at prayer, I look at it as a conversation with God. I ask, I listen, and I respond. In that conversation, I have seen God answer prayers in ways that are not always what I would have expected, but the prayers are always heard by God even if I don't always want to acknowledge His answer. I have seen him answer prayers for strength, for peace, and for provision. I have also seen him answer prayers in ways that are not always what I would have expected, but they are always what I needed.

In Unexpected Strength

One of the biggest challenges of Muscular Dystrophy are the years of seeing dreams die. As a parent, you have dreams for your children and you have dreams for your family. Muscular Dystrophy has a way of stealing those dreams. However, in the midst of those stolen dreams, I have been amazed at how clearly Christ has shown himself. I have seen him give us strength to endure the loss of those dreams and to find joy in the midst of those losses. I have also seen him give us strength to find new dreams and to pursue those dreams with passion and purpose.

In Scripture Coming Alive

For several years, Sue and I have been going through the Bible together. I am always amazed when I see the living nature of God's word. We will read a passage and marvel at how real that passage is to our current circumstances. We will read a passage and see how it speaks to our hearts in a way that it never has before. We will read a passage and see how it gives us strength, hope, and encouragement in the midst of difficult circumstances. I have been amazed at how clearly Christ has shown himself through his word and how he has used his word to sustain us.