Is there something that scares you or seems out of control?
This week in the Dispatch:
A book that helps us look at another part of racism
A preview of this week’s podcast on “covering vulnerabilities”
A trip back to 2007 and what God did in my life in “Insights”
A challenge in response to this week’s “Insights”
A final thought
Books:
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI By David Grann
I was listening to a podcast this morning and the topic was racism, which is, thankfully, a common conversation topic now. Much of the discussion centered on black/white issues until one of the participants mentioned Native Americans. My opinion is that Native Americans very much need to be a part of our discussions. It seems that often these brothers and sisters get left out of our talks. Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI takes us back to the 1920’s and the monstrous crimes that occurred. At that time, the richest people in the world per capita were the members of the Osage Indian Nation in Oklahoma, as oil was discovered beneath their land. The Osage people rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe. Then things began to change. One by one Osage people were killed off. It became a real life murder mystery and eventually involved the newly created FBI and agent Tom White. It was racism at its worst. Author David Grann unravels the mystery in a way that makes it difficult to put the book down.
Dr. Kim’s Rating: 10/10. This book may not be for everyone but the message of racism in this story is one we all need to hear.
The movie directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCapro and Robert De Niro is coming sometime! (Do you miss the theaters and the smell of fresh popped popcorn?)
Podcast:
We all have differences. We all have strengths and weaknesses. God’s design in marriage is for a husband and a wife to balance each other out. In other words, where I have strengths, Nancy has weaknesses. Where Nancy has strengths, I have weaknesses. How do we work together as a team to cover each other’s vulnerabilities? This week’s podcast deals with that issue.
Insights:
“Be strong. Take courage. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t give them a second thought because GOD, your God, is striding ahead of you. He’s right there with you. He won’t let you down; he won’t leave you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 MSG
On a Sunday afternoon in September of 2007, I got a call from my doctor. The Friday before, he performed a biopsy on my prostate gland. Going into the biopsy, he was 90% sure it would be benign. We had been friends for a long time but a call on a Sunday afternoon was not the norm. He said the words I never thought I would hear: “You have cancer.” I asked a couple of questions and he asked me to bring Nancy and come to his office the next day at 5 pm. That next day we talked about options. The good news was that we caught it very early and that it was a very slow growing type of cancer. Then other news is that we chose to do surgery. Because of the type of cancer that it was, the surgery was scheduled the week before Thanksgiving. Nancy and I decided to not tell anyone until we got closer to the surgery date.I had a lot of thoughts and emotions. I wanted to get things settled in my mind AND I did not want to worry and miss out on life for the next two and a half months.
Later that week, I headed to a conference in Nashville. Each morning of the conference there was a time of worship. That first morning as I stood with about 2,000 other people singing, I prayed for God to give me His peace. It probably was not a miracle to anyone else but I literally felt Jesus holding me, saying, “Don’t worry. It is going to be okay.” It is hard to describe the peace that flooded over me but from that moment forward, I never worried about the surgery, cancer, or anything related to it. I felt like I had my life back and God was totally in control.
Is there something today that scares you? Is there something that seems out of control and overwhelming? No matter what you are facing or going through, never forget that it is no surprise to God. God is not scared. He is not overwhelmed when things seem out of control. He is always prepared no matter what you are going through. He has the answers you do not have. Be confident in His plans for your life and trust Him.
November came and so did surgery day. I still had peace. Nancy and I arrived at the hospital early in the morning when it was still dark outside. I went through the usual pre operation procedures and soon was wheeled into the surgery room. An hour or so later I woke up to good news. The cancer truly was contained and the surgery was successful! My thoughts went back to that worship time in Nashville and the peace God gave me. I did not know then whether the surgery would be successful or not but that was not the point. The point was that God was with me and would be with me no matter what. He had a plan and it would be good because He was always good. My peace was not in the circumstances but in the One who gave me the peace.
Challenge
What are you worrying about that you need to put in God’s hands?
What would peace from God mean to you?
Why not go to Him now in prayer?
Final Thought
God is always with you. He is in your yesterday, your today and your tomorrow. He is always and forever right there with you. He will never let you down. He will never leave you. He has amazing plans for your life!
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