Good morning…
My husband and I watched a couple taking engagement photos on the beach. The rising sun peaked out of the clouds. The waves ebbed and flowed in sync. The perfect dreams of these young strangers were played themselves out before our eyes. Thinking back to the day before, Steve had performed a wedding for another beautiful couple, guiding them through the ominous promise, “…for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”
Every life has better, richer, times of health, to love and to cherish. Every life also has worse, poorer, times of sickness, to love and to cherish. All the while there is a stark reality that the life of every person ends in the parting of death. Sipping coffee together on a wooden bench, we pondered aloud these thoughts. Then Steve brought up a book that had been recommended to him, Hope Heals by Katherine and Jay Wolf.
“A friend gave me that book,” I said. “I have it at home. We can check it out.”
When I got home, I searched out the book written by a young couple, the wife, a gorgeous model, suffered a brain stem stroke which nearly stole her life before leaving her face permanently disfigured and the husband a man who, since 2004, has lived into the depths of his wedding vows. I browsed through the photos, from better to worse, from richer to poorer, from health to sickness. How does this couple still love and cherish their completely rearranged life?
“I am a sort of microcosm for what we all feel,” Katherine writes in the introduction. “I can barely walk, even with a cane, but who feels free even if they can? My face is paralyzed, but who feels beautiful even when they look normal? I have no coordination in my right hand, so I can’t hold things, even my child, but who feels like a competent parent even if all their faculties are intact? For months I could not eat, and even today I have difficulty swallowing, but who feels fully satisfied even if they can enjoy every delectable treat they desire? I am tired most of the time now, but who always feels energized to engage fully in their life? My voice is messed up, but who feels understood if they can speak plainly? I have double vision, but who sees everything clearly even if they can see normally? My future is uncertain, but whose isn’t?”
“So no matter the situation, universally people feel what I am living out,” Katherine recognizes. “They don’t feel free. They don’t feel understood. They don’t feel satisfied.”
“I believe that pain is pain, no matter what the form, but perspective is also perspective,” her deepest truth dawns. “Ultimately, ours is a story of a life overcome by hope. We are discovering joy even in the sadness and choosing contentment when it is very, very hard. For that, and for countless other blessings, I am so grateful to God. In some ways, Jay and I have been blessed to suffer greatly at a young age because it informs the way we live the rest of our lives. We have learned that when everything else is gone, hope remains.” (17-18)
The back flap of the book reveals the hope that truly heals. “Engaging both faith-based and secular communities…seek to bridge the gap between those disabled on the outside and those disabled on the inside with the hope that Jesus brings healing to the deepest pains we all carry.”
Now my mind wanders to a weird question, “Might this book be a good gift for every beautiful young couple exchanging wedding vows?”
So then, prepare your hearts and minds for action! Stay alert and fix your hope firmly on the marvelous grace that is coming to you. For when Jesus Christ is unveiled, a greater measure of grace will be released to you (1 Peter 1:13, TPT).
…Sue…
P.S. God’s Spirit spurred me to enrich yesterday’s blog post. If you feel drawn, please check out the newly dawning wisdom of Radiate Hope.
