Need God's Grace to be strong...

I need your grace Jesus on this Journey of Faith!

I was 36 years old when I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes. Though one may say, thank God it wasn't some other more serious illness, the news was devastating to me. As you know there is no cure for it, you may try and control it with medicine, diet, and exercise. It is also one of those silent killers that destroys other organs in your body and causes various complications.  My doctor put me on medicines, but that didn't seem to do much for me as it was causing other side effects: dizziness, slurring of speech, confused thoughts, muscle cramps, etc.

One Sunday, November 16, 2008, during worship service, I started pleading with God (in my mind) to give me deliverance.  My God had healed me overnight from central retinal vein occlussion in the left eye, He had healed me overnight from a very painful left hip through prayers.  That Sunday morning I thought back to God's healings in my life and decided to completely put my trust in the one who formed me in my mother's womb. I decided to quit taking medicines and just trust in God's grace for a healing.  When we came back home from the worship service, I shared with my wife the decision I had made.  Well, she flipped out, called me selfish, uncaring as a husband and a father, one who puts my own wishes ahead of the family's. She asked me if I knew the ramifications of my decision and she started sharing (or yelling) the complications that could result from this decision of mine. You see, she is a registered nurse who on her job sees the complications resulting from diabetes. I know it was out of her great love and concern for me.

That evening I was totally down, stressed out, scared of what I had done - my decision to forego medicines. I prayed to God to speak to me, tell me he was going to take care of me, I don't know, do something... His answer to me came the following morning as I was reading the Bible.  Hebrews 6:18 mid sentence on, it caught my eye, "...Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence.  This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.  It leads us through the curtain of heaven into God's inner sanctuary.  Jesus has already gone in there for us.  He has become our eternal High Priest in the line of Melchizedek."  The Holy Spirit ministered from these verses to me in the following manner, "In the Old Testament time, the temple high priest offered blood sacrifices on behalf of the people, for their sins, for favors, etc.; in the New Testament time, Jesus is your High Priest, seated besides the Father, and he - our High Priest - offers our Faith - the replacement sacrifice for the Old Testament blood sacrifices - as the sacrifice pleasing to Father God.  For our faith is more precious to God than fine gold. If you believe, have confidence, have faith, you will see God's glory!"

It is also important to note the verses prior to what I quoted above from the book of Hebrews. Hebrews 6:15-18, "Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised.  When people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it.  And without any question that oath is binding.  God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind.  So God has given us both his promise and his oath.  These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie.  Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence."

Why am I writing all this today?  I've been off the medicines for the last two years. For the most part, I watch my diet.  My blood sugar level goes high and low. I can feel it in my body when it's off, but I have not since my decision felt dizzy, slurred my speech, or had any other physical issues that I had experienced during my time on medicine.  Recently, over the last three weeks I have been suffering from a cold, allergies, sinus (whatever one wants to call it) and I've been feeling weak in my body.  My wife took my blood glucose readings and it has been elevated, even the fasting glucose levels.  Fear had crept in, felt down in the dumps, and God reminded me of his promise! I need your grace LORD to continue strong!!  You are the author and finisher of my faith!!!

(PS: the blog I wrote two days ago from the book of Daniel, chapter 3, I realize now is for me to continue in this Faith Journey...)

Jeremy Camp - Walk by Faith