Dig for Gold

“Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.” Luke 5:12

In this 5th chapter of Luke, we encounter a man full of leprosy who wanted Jesus to heal him. When Jesus said, “Be made clean”, the leprosy left him immediately. I don’t know anybody with leprosy but I know people who are sick, some very sick, and then there are people with a kind of weakness, or depression, or disability of some kind. Whatever it is, we can’t escape having a “thorn in the flesh” like St. Paul. 

St. Paul begged God to take it away, and what did the Lord say? In 2 Corinthians 12:8-10, St. Paul writes: “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Several years ago, I used to have Pemphigus Vulgaris which gave me multiple blisters in my mouth all at the same time. It was so painful to eat and talk. I got so so thin. The amazing thing is when I would give a talk to students or grant interviews or do workshops on TV, my mouth would get numb and I could speak with no discomfort. To me, that was always a miracle and I knew only God could help me through my trials. Eventually I was healed even if there is no cure for this rare autoimmune condition. That is why I have confidence praying for the sick. I know God continues to heal today. 

Then there’s President Franklin Roosevelt who was one of the three greatest American Presidents. In 1921, he contracted an illness that permanently paralyzed his legs. Many historians would say that what made him an influential figure was his commitment to the working class and unemployed and his advocacy for social programs. That compassion he had for the disadvantaged was born out of his struggle with his thorn in the flesh. 

There’s a saying that where you stumble, dig for treasure. When something makes you look down, makes you humble, there’s always gold to be found. The strength that God will provide in our weaknesses is much greater than any strength that we can  muster on our own.