ONLY in Jesus

The news from the oncologist had knocked the wind right out of me. I held it together as I quietly scheduled another appointment with the receptionist and raced, head buried in my chest, to the top floor of the parking garage. There, in the presence of empty vehicles, under stormy skies, I let the tears fall. They mingled with ice-cold rain as I tried to catch my breath. My spirit felt empty and alone. 

Some people think "cancer" is the most awful word you can ever hear. I disagree. The words, "I'm just not sure we're out of the woods yet," are much worse. When I first arrived at the top of that garage, the sun smiled brightly from a blue sky, the air-- crisp and clean --easily filled my lungs, and I was excitedly anticipating my appointment. It had been weeks since my surgery, and this was the day I would be released from my doctor's care. In moments I would be free! But for those words...

On the roof of that garage, the thoughts came. I'd failed. I was still damaged and dirty, sick and afflicted. My poor husband --what would I say? It wasn't supposed to be this way. This can't go on. I'd paid my dues. On and on the worries and fears came. There would be more tests and treatments. My life would still remain on hold, unable to move forward. Those around me would continue to be plagued by worries and fears of their own. We had been so optimistic.

I'll save you the wondering, the cancer was gone. There was no need for any further remediation, praise God. But recently, as I spoke to a friend, these events came back to me. I remember quite vividly how it all felt: living each day post-surgery as though I had been made new, only to find out that might not be quite the case. It was a betrayal of the highest degree. And it caused me to think of those who will stand before the Throne of God one day, checking off box after box. I volunteered in the nursery. I attended Bible study. I memorized the Book of James. I served on the Board of Trustees. But without love --their love for God-- their lives had meant nothing. Who was Lord of their heart? Whose character shaped their soul? Whose words permeated their mind? Who was their strength? Had they loved their neighbor as themselves? Or were they merely completing a list, doing all of the things "good people" do? Religion without relationship. Their works without faith will let them down.

God's work at the cross is the standard by which we ought to live. That's why he tells us, "There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends." (John 15:13 NLT) Only by trusting in God's great love in giving Himself as a sacrifice for us, can we be assured we are free from the enemy. Only by trusting in God's great love in giving Himself as a sacrifice for us, can we be assured we are made whole. Only by trusting in God's great love in giving Himself as a sacrifice for us, can we know for sure, beyond the shadow of a doubt that there is no need for further remediation. Jesus, God's Son, the second person of the Trinity, paid the price for us and it is finished. In the person of Christ, we meet God's standard. We walk in freedom; we walk in wholeness. We can face each day with the anticipation and surety I had when I drove to the top of that parking garage, standing in the truth it is God Himself who has eradicated the cancer of sin from our lives and given us an eternal life of hope. We can stand even in those moments when we are faced with the trouble and gut punches of this life; His results are guaranteed. Nothing separates us from His love. Nothing undoes anything He has or will do. Nothing escapes His attention or approval. Everything can work together for His glory and our good. And as a result, we are empowered to pour out as He pours out, to endure as He endures, to love as He loves, and to walk in the good works He has prepared for us to do because we are most assuredly made whole in Christ Jesus. But only in Christ Jesus.