Ed, my neighbor next door, is down sick with a cold. The only good thing about the cold is that it came after Ed finished combining. Ed describes his cold as a runny nose, a tug of war between a fever and chills, and that beat up feeling where you want to sleep the aches way. Yet, you cannot sleep, because you can't breathe if you lie down. I know Ed must be sick, because he has he not been going for coffee each morning the last three days.
I think the trouble with having a cold is that it is like having company that won't go home. My colds hang around at least a week and some have stayed even more than double that. In the greater scheme of health problems, a cold is a minor aliment. Yet it slows a person down and makes them struggle to keep going. A cold leaves me feeling that I want the world go away and leave me alone. When I'm battling a cold, I seem to get half as much done after working twice as much to do it.
Anyone who is sick hopes to get better. They are willing to do what they can to bring about a return to their health. When Ed's cold is gone he will be back to normal - able to do what he wants without a cold holding him back. That is often how we think of health - being able to do what we want freely without pain or discomfort. Often when sickness or disease bring us down we get impatient and depressed, especially if there seems to be no immediate or easy cure ahead.
One of the reasons Jesus was so popular was he was able to heal sick people. Usually, we think in terms of sickness affecting our bodies. Jesus came to heal us in body and soul. As a pastor, I found hospital visiting so encouraging because sickness tends to bring the best out in people. It is the worst of times, but it is a sacred time when we have to admit our health is a gift and life is more than being free to do what we want without pain or discomfort. Sickness challenges our plans for life, our hopes and our future. Mostly, I found sickness brings people face to face with the truth that our future is in God's hands and there is always hope with God.
Many people are faced with hopeless situations, for there is not always a cure or treatment to restore health or continue their earthly life. That is why Jesus allowed himself to become a sacrifice for all people on the cross. He died so that we could be healed of our sins before God. He died that we might know death has no lasting victory. With God we always have a hope and a future. The bible says it this way: "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only ours but also for the sins of the whole world."
