Nine Years Later

Below is a Facebook post. It is from 9 years ago today. I first fell ill with psoriatic arthritis about 14-15 years ago. Then “POOF”, all of a sudden, all healed 4-5 years later. As you can see in the post that I started running again. I was determined to enter in a marathon. A marathon is 26.2 miles long and although I had done 32 miles in a single run, it was never in a sanctioned race. I wanted the distance to be “official”.

My running partner was my dog Bonzo. About a year or so into my healing we got up to 15 miles a day. We would run in the 3AM-5AM time period. It was pure joy.

Then one day while on a run, I felt what I thought were the signs of overstrain from overtraining. Then the skin lesions appeared all over my body. Refusing the reality of what was happening, Bonzo and I took off on a 10-mile run. It was a scenic route that took us down Evans Street to the eastern end of the Morehead City waterfront and back.

In runners terms, the run turned into a “death march”, except worse. It felt like all the blood had been drained out of my body. Every joint felt like the bone was grinding against bone. But I kept pushing it. I had to because I was in real trouble. I’m miles from home, it’s approximately 4AM, no phone and arthritis had made a crash landing on my body. I simply cannot describe the physical pain. It took me about 3 hours to cover 2 miles, something that would normally have taken me 15 minutes.

The psoriatic arthritis effects all of my joints including the spine, but it also affects the ligaments and tendons too. Why was it back? I suffered with it for several years. I credited God for taking it away. Now psoriatic arthritis, with its lesions and pain were back in full force. Why?

It’s really easy to think like how some Christians do and believe that bad people who do bad things get punished while good people who do good things get rewarded. Imagine the mental Hell I would have put myself through if after admitting God had healed me, only to have the disease return in full force.

One time in church I was upfront with the Pastor when he said that my illness was because I was a sinner. Yeah, that was an interesting hobble back to the pew.

Jesus dispelled the notion that sin and sinners are so instantly punished by God.

Jesus gave the example of when Pilate had murdered some Galilaeans during a ritual ceremony. The Galilaeans, who were known to be wicked, were murdered and had their blood mingled with that of the sacrificial blood. Jesus said, “Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans because they suffered such things?” (Luke 13:2)

Jesus then goes on to tell of a tower in Siloam that fell over and killed 18 people. Again Jesus asks, “Think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?” (Luke 13:4).

To both questions, Jesus answered, “I tell you, Nay”.

There is not necessarily a direct correlation between sin, sinners and immediate punishment or with the saints, good deeds and immediate reward. God sometimes allows sinners to prosper. Sometimes God allows the most saintly among us to suffer. Why? We don’t always know for sure. I do know that God always does what is best for His chosen. Sometimes we shouldn’t focus too much on the individual as we should the entire situation.

God called Job perfect in all of his ways and yet permitted the devil to rob Job of his wealth, health and family. Three of Job’s dearest friends spent the majority of the Book of Job trying to figure out what great sin Job had done to warrant such a punishment from God. But he hadn’t sinned. God described Job as, “None like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil”. This is who God, “punished”.

Think about this. If you didn’t know the backstory, imagine how terrible you would think it would be to be the Son of God? He was crucified!

The Psalmist had similar fears and concerns. How and why do the wicked prosper?

“Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves? They break in pieces thy people, O Lord, and afflict thine heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the fatherless. Yet they say, The Lord shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.” (Psalm 94:3-7)

The Psalmist wonders if God even sees all of the sins that the sinners are getting by with.

“He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see? He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?” (Psalm 94:9-10)

As often is the case, we become envious of those wicked people who seem to be able to get by with all of their dirty deeds and even tempt our self with joining them in their nefarious doings.

“But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped. For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm. They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.” (73:2-5)

Does any of this sound familiar? We see bad people getting by with bad things and wonder, “What is the point? If sinners get by with everything, why shouldn’t I do the same?”

And be honest, have we not all been on our righteous high horse and condemned some as sinners because of their misfortunes or praised others as saints for their prosperity?

Everything God does is right, righteous and for the benefit for the elect.

“So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee” (Psalm 73:22-25)

Keep this in mind, the sin of another has no bearing on you. The sin of another is not a permission slip or an open invitation. Do not allow the sins of another to be a temptation for you to sin. Temptation should be a big red flag for it comes from the devil, not of God.

“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (James 1:13-15)

Sometimes God will use the reprobate, the never to be born again as a teaching tool for His elect. The above is a perfect example. We see a sinner sinning. What do we do? Participate? Heaven forbid! Do we see the same sin within us? Do we understand that it is a sin and why? Teaching tool! Do we repent of that notion? Lesson learned.

Pharaoh is a perfect example of a never to be born again being used by God for the benefit of His elect.

“For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.” (Romans 9:17-18).

God has mercy on whom He will have mercy and does not show this mercy to everyone. Paul tells the Romans something that is difficult for some to understand and accept.

“So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.” (Romans 9:16).

God’s chosen, His elect, His children are by God’s mercy. We can not do anything to cause His acceptance. We can’t wish it or will it. Rightfully so, we are all sinners condemned to death. Every single one of us. But only through God’s grace and mercy is salvation possible.

Two things we must know about God. We must maintain absolute faith in God at all times. We also have to understand that we can’t understand everything about God, who He is and what He does.

“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:30)

Remember when Jesus was dispelling the idea the Galilaeans and the victims of the falling tower were great sinners? Jesus said, “I tell you, Nay”.

That was the first half of His statement. In the second half Jesus said, ”except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Unless we all repent of our sins and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior then the end result will be the same for all of us. Jesus was speaking spiritually and eternally. We must always be long term thinkers and never get caught up in what amounts to the pettiness of the here and now.

Why did God remove my illness only to return it in full force a year or so later? Why did I suffer for 4-5 years, get healed, and then get sick again going on now some 8-9 years? Have I done something? Have I not stopped or not started something?

I have no clue.

Have I prayed, believed, had faith, repented, loved, befriended, helped, worshipped, studied, tithed, attended church, preached, listened, had fellowship, praised God, witnessed, testified, taken communion, helped the homeless, elderly and the poor, washed the feet of a brother, donated, fed, and participated in every church function?

Yes.

Have I lost faith?

Never, which is an interesting topic. Without a doubt, the number one comment from fellow Christians to me in regards to my illness is, “Don’t lose faith”. That is a totally irrational statement. Why would I willfully lose the most powerful force there is, my faith? My faith, my salvation, why would anyone think I would lose that?

I refuse to get caught up in what amounts to the pettiness of the here and now. My faith in God is not dependent upon goodies from God. My faith is in God and in the knowledge that everything He does is right, righteous and for the benefit of His elect. I do not have to understand, I just have to have faith.

I’m in pain, a lot of physical pain. Over time, physical pain generates psychological pain and mental anguish. But all of these things are separate from faith.

If faith is believed to be a magic pill. If God is Dr. Feel Good. If your belief is that saints are illness and pain-free, have lots of money, a new car and a big house, then maybe what you have isn’t faith nor God.

Conversely, if you believe it is Godly to be poor, suffering and destitute then I beg to differ. Those things in of themselves are neither holy nor righteous. But you say, “Jesus never had lots of money and a big house”. Again I repeat never, “get caught up in what amounts to the pettiness of the here and now”.

Jesus was the Son of God. His home is heaven, sitting beside God. That’s exactly what Jesus tried to communicate to everyone here on earth. We are all nothing more than pilgrims, travelers, and sojourners on this planet. Our citizenship is in heaven, not here.

For the people of this world and not of God their, “end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things. For our conversation (citizenship) is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” (Philippians 3:19-21).

Recalibrate your spiritual lens and focus on things to come. That’s our present day hope, our faith in our final and eternal destination. Don’t let the positives or negatives of this world distract you from the point and purpose of it all. Truth, righteousness, love, equity, peace, fellowship, eternal life-God!

Bill Hitchcock