There are some big words out there. Words like aids, leukemia, cerebral palsy, and cancer. Maybe you’ve heard them spoken by your doctor or pediatrician. Maybe they’ve been whispered among others in reference to people you love. These words frighten us. They challenge our priorities. For many, these words are synonyms for hopelessness.
When I hear the Big Words others come to my mind, the words of David the Psalmist: “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust the name of the Lord our God.” It’s so easy to come to trust things and forget the Maker of all things. We place our faith in the creation rather than the Creator. But then we hear the Big Words, and we realize that the creation is woefully inadequate to handle our fear and pain. Even though science and skill come from God, these are limited in our place and time. I know people close to me with cancer, ALS, and cerebral palsy. I know many who have suffered devastating physical effects from these diseases. And I know that, right now in this time and place, there is no cure. Science hasn’t the ken. Treatment options are limited. Our technology hasn’t yet caught up to our needs.
But God is not bound by our technology and knowledge. He gives us science and a mind of discovery, but there are many secrets we have yet to learn. God knows. He knows about the Big Words and what they do to us. He knows how to cure and make everything right. He knows why. And while our understanding is limited, when we hear the Big Words, we know that we have nowhere else to turn. The creation has let us down. God lifts us up. “Some trust in medical science, and some in doctors, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” Doctors are good, and medicine is good, but ultimately, healing is from the Lord.
That’s something to think about.
Westside Church of Christ 