(Upward Soccer Testimony, Spring, 2008)
Around this time of year, as the weather gets warmer, our kids start getting anxious to get to Kings Dominion and ride the roller coasters—and let me tell you, they ride them all! It doesn’t matter how big they are, how fast they go, or how many times they turn you upside down—they’ll ride it. Recently, I was thinking about roller coasters, and I told Kenny that I feel like I’m on one. But when I say that, I’m not thinking of those huge monsters the kids ride—I’m thinking of the Rebel Yell (that’s more my speed). And my kids just look down their noses at that, and say, “Mom, that’s not a real roller coaster!” But in my day it was! If you’ve ever ridden that before, then you know that as you slowly creep up that first big hill, there’s plenty of time to think, and get nervous, because you know once your reach the top of that hill, you’re in for quite a ride. And it’s too late to change your mind—once the ride is started, you can’t get off. If you look around you at the other people on the ride, you’ll see some with their heads down, eyes closed, and they’re holding on as hard as they can, because, basically, they’re scared to death. I’ve ridden it that way. But others will have their eyes wide open, their hands up in the air, and will be yelling their heads off and enjoying that ride for all it’s worth. And I’ve ridden it that way, too.
Well, this roller coaster ride that I feel like I’m on now started just a few years ago when I found out, surprisingly/unexpectedly that I have Parkinson’s Disease. Parkinson’s is a brain problem—the signals from the brain to the rest of the body do not function properly anymore, and it just messes things up! Especially, movement. For instance, this tremor on my right side (that I try to hide, but can’t) is one of the symptoms. Although there are many medications, and even some procedures that help ease the symptoms of Parkinson’s, there is no cure for it. And it is a progressive, degenerative disease, which means it will continue to get worse.
Well, that was the beginning of my ride, and as I headed up that first big hill, things that I’ve done easily for most of my life, without hardly thinking about it, started to become difficult. And as I started thinking about what was coming in the days and years ahead, I guess you could say I put my head down, closed my eyes, and tightened my grip on the handles. Because I was scared.
And that was the point when God let me know, unmistakably, that He loved me, He cared about me, and He was going to help me. When you’re on the Rebel Yell, high up in the air, if you open up your eyes, and look around, it’s a pretty neat view. Things look different when you’re looking at them from above. God got me to open up my eyes and start looking at things from His viewpoint. And all of a sudden the things that really aren’t all that important started to fade away. And the things that really matter became crystal clear. And for that I am so thankful.
He has taught me so much, and one of the most important things was that this diagnosis was not an end to hope, by any means, but a new beginning. Through this experience, I am coming to know and love Jesus in a way that I never have before. (I don’t mean learning about Him, I mean getting to know Him, the way you get to know a friend.) Jesus has become my hope—for today, tomorrow, and forever.
Each and every day, no matter what that day might bring, Jesus is with me, and He’ll never leave me, and I have nothing to fear. I don’t need to worry about tomorrow, next year, or five years from now—because the future is in His hands. He has a plan for me and I just need to take it one day at a time, and leave the rest to Him. And although I will most likely have this disease for the rest of my life here on earth, this is not all there is—this is not my true home. Because I have accepted God’s incredible gift of eternal life, I know that when I die, I will be with Him in heaven. And that’s my real home—that’s where I belong. And when I get there, I’ll get a new body that won’t shake, won’t hurt, won’t have Parkinson’s or any other disease, and I’ll live forever—with Jesus.
I don’t have to close my eyes and hold on in fear while I’m on this ride. I may not be able to get off of it, but I have a Savior who loves me, who gives me hope beyond measure, and nothing, absolutely nothing, can happen to me that He does not allow. So I will keep my eyes open, lift my hands in praise, raise my voice in thanksgiving, and enjoy the ride for all it’s worth. And once the ride is over, Jesus, my Savior, my Friend—He’s going to take me home. And what a glorious day that will be!
God is a God of hope. The hope that He offers is available to everyone. I’ve told you my story, and everyone here has their own story. We all face troubles and difficulties in our lives. That’s because we live in a world corrupted by sin, full of people who are sinners. And I wish I could say I’m talking about all of those other people, you know, the mean, nasty, bad ones somewhere “out there”. But we are all sinners—it’s a common denominator among the human race. Even if our lives look pretty decent on the surface, and our sins are not very obvious, they’re still there. My family, who lives with me, could tell you of the many times I’ve just plain blown it— fallen short of God’s standard—every single day. And even those things that I might be able to hide from them, attitudes and thoughts in my heart that are wrong—God sees it all. And it doesn’t matter if we’ve sinned more or less than anyone else—just one sin qualifies us as a sinner.
Why is our sin such a big deal? Because of who God is. The Bible says that God is love, but that’s not all it says. God is holy, and just. Our sin separates us from Him, because of His holiness— and because He is just, He must punish sin. There is a price that must be paid. That paints a pretty bleak picture for us, but that’s not the end of the story.
God, because of His love for us, provided the answer—in the Person of Jesus Christ. Jesus, God the Son, who has always and forever been fully God, became fully man—He left heaven, came to earth as a baby, grew up, and lived an amazing, sinless life. But that amazing life was not the main reason He came. He came to die on the cross—because when He was on that cross, He was taking our place, He was taking the punishment that we deserved. He bled and died to pay the price for our sins. How do we know that what He did was good enough—that it satisfied a holy God? Because although they put His body in a tomb, and sealed that tomb with a huge, massive stone, and guarded that tomb with Roman soldiers, nothing, absolutely nothing, could keep Him in the grave. He rose from the dead, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that God was satisfied, and the debt was paid in full. Jesus paid it all. And now, sin’s burden is lifted, death has been defeated, and God offers eternal life to you and me as a gift—all we have to do is accept it by faith—simply trust in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. (That’s why it’s called “The Gospel”, “Gospel” means “good news”, and this is the best news in the world!)
Whatever difficulties you might be facing, whatever ride you find yourself on, you don’t have to hold on in fear. Jesus offers you hope—for today, for tomorrow, and forever. If you’ll put your trust in Him, and what He did for you, not only will He take you home with Him one day, but in the meantime, He’ll give you joy...for the ride.
"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
