Subtle Changes

I'm obese.  Having been a body builder, involved in sports, I know the disciplines for losing weight.  Diet and exercise are both necessary.  Yes, it is my fault that I am obese, and yes, I'm doing something about it.  But losing weight when you're past sixty is a bit more difficult than many realize.  Be that as it may, I have noticed a difference in medical treatment.  Constantly I get the subtle message from my doctor that because I'm obese, I'm not worth taking the extra effort.  Is that truth, or perception, or both?  I'm inclined to think both!

Recently California passed the suicide assisted bill, allowing people to choose death over life.  I've called that bill the sewer side bill since its inception.  Why?  Because life is not something to be flushed down the sewer, and that is exactly what that bill allows!  Obviously it won't stop there.  How soon before Capitol Hill decides there's not enough money to support Social Security, so all those on Social Security should be euthanized?  They will find a way to identify people who are retired as worthless and useless, a drain on the economy.  I do not doubt that soon the medical profession will devise a simple pill to take to have a painless death.

There are many who would argue that this is most humane!  Why wouldn't we offer a painless death to someone?  Because life is precious.  If you want to measure the preciousness of life, answer this question:  What is the value of one drop of Jesus' blood?  Am I correct when I say that He shed His precious blood for all mankind?  Did He not say that He came to give life, and to give it abundantly?  Does the Psalmist record that every day ordained for him was written in a book before there was one of them? (Psalm 139:16)  How angry will He become when our physicians begin helping people die?

But what about people who are suffering?  That's a legitimate question.  I hate suffering, and I don't want to suffer.  But what if in the midst of all the suffering I find His perfect will and purpose?  What if that is what He uses to show Himself to me as my most intimate friend and provider?  There are many who were martyred who suffered terribly, yet through the entire experience their faith remained steadfast, and their testimony touches lives even today.  I guess the real question is:  Will I accept what God allows in my life, or will I try to avoid His desire.  In reality I often do try to avoid His desire.  Those choices always lead to unpleasant consequences.

Am I less because I'm obese?  If I lose all the weight, what real difference will it make?  My quality of life might be better.  We'll see.  But I will still be me, a human being for whom Christ died, and therefore worthy.  In the end it is not what I've accomplished that sets me apart, how many friends I have, whatever legacy I leave, how much money I made, or how many books I wrote that were published.  What will set me apart is that Jesus died for me!  Me!  My one and only claim is the blood of Jesus!  All glory, power, majesty, authority, and honor is His.  I am His. Whatever I face, I can face because He lives.

I fear that the battle for the dignity and value of human life is long lost in our culture.  That is our great shame.  Yet I know who I am in Christ, and can with confidence face whatever future there is.  I hope you know Jesus well enough, and intimately enough, to find courage when you need it most.  "Whom have I in heaven but You?  And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.  My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You.  But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works."  (Psalm 73:25-28)