From Chronic Pain to Constant Praise預覽

Never Get Over It

At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. — Hebrews 12:26–29 (ESV)

After a seven-year trial of misdiagnoses and unending pain, I received a miracle when surgeons found my biceps degenerating inside my arm. My doctor cut out the bad tissue, reattached my biceps lower in my arm, and tightened three-fourths of my shoulder capsule with anchors. 

Initially, I spent four weeks in a body brace and then six more in a normal sling, but when I began to move my reconstructed shoulder again, I felt like I had been given a second chance at life. I went on a jog and realized that for the first time in as long as I could remember, I had exercised without pain. As I continued to live out my newfound miracle, I couldn’t help but end each workout on my knees in gratitude. 

I jokingly asked God, “How long is this supposed to last? Once I’m swimming miles a day again, am I supposed to fall on my knees in the locker room each day sobbing from gratitude?”

And the quietest whisper of the Spirit responded in my thoughts, “Am I not worthy of that?”

Beloved reader on the other side of this screen, Jesus is worthy of all of you, of everything you have to give from now until you dance on the golden streets of heaven, because he is your king, your friend, and your love. Don’t ever get over what he has done for you.

Our trials serve to shake up our lives, and the things that are shakable will crack and crumble like a building shattered by an earthquake. But they mold our character to be based in God, who is unshakable. Hard times show us what is unshakable, that we may choose to build the foundation of our lives on those things. Once we’ve made it through, we must respond in gratitude, never forgetting what God has saved us from, and being diligent to build our faith upon the unshakable foundation of Christ rather than our own ambition, health, relationships, or prosperity. 

If God has done anything in your life, don’t ever get over it. Thank him for it, and use it to build a remembrance of God’s faithfulness around which you can construct your entire life. If you can’t think of something you should never get over, then start at Calvary. There, on a blood-stained cross, the greatest miracle that humans will ever witness took place: God died for man in the Great Exchange so that you and I could have unmerited eternal life. If that’s all you get out of this devotional today, that’s okay, because that’s all you really need. Don’t ever get over the cross. Don’t ever get over Jesus. For as long as you live and no matter how high God lets you fly, don’t ever forget where it all started. Never get over it.

God, show me things in my life that I have taken for granted that you want me to be grateful for. Holy Spirit, please reveal to me one thing today that you don’t want me to ever get over. I want to see your glory in every laugh I hear, in every wind that blows through your creation, and in every opportunity I have to serve someone else. I want to notice you, God. Jesus, thank you for paying the ultimate price for my salvation. Don’t let me ever get over your sacrifice. In your name, amen.

Tera Bradham is the author of Swimming for Freedom. For more information visit https://broadstreetpublishing.com/swimming-for-freedom/9781424558926/