2002-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
IS 19: 22, “The Lord will punish the Egyptians, but then He will heal them. They will turn to Him, and He will hear their prayers and heal them.” When I read that, I was initially astonished. But, that was because of my limited human perspective. The power for God to make His enemies His friends and servants, even if it is in our future, is here for all to see. I hope to write more in a later message on IS 19, but am compelled to turn to the issue God leads me to share. IS 55: 8-9 is a citation that bears repeating many times as I serve God. “ ‘My thoughts,’ says the Lord, ‘are not like yours, and My ways are different from yours. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways and thoughts above yours.’” A faithful person will not see this statement as God posturing for personal and evil intent. He is simply stating a fact that has profound implications on our way of looking at things. It is a wake-up call, telling us that we must stretch to reach toward His perspective on the things that are around us or that happen to us, so that we may have a more accurate understanding of them. God is always pleased when we turn to the Holy Spirit for understanding, instead of other people or ourselves. Such is the perspective we need to see in Norm Ackert’s story which I now share with his permission in his own words.
Norm’s Words
“I vaguely recall my mother telling me about Memorial Day Eve of 1950. It was prom night; my brother was going, I was not. My friend and I decided to ride over on my motorcycle and watch them go into the hotel in Minneapolis. I don’t remember the time, somewhere between 6:30 and 8:00 PM. We were going out University Ave., and at Vandalia I tried passing a car. He moved over and pushed me into the safety isle. You probably remember the big cement blocks put in the middle of the street to protect people waiting for the streetcar.
I caught the left handlebar in my stomach, was thrown over two cars into the gutter, taken by ambulance to the old Ancker Hospital on W. 7th. Mom says they got the call; they had no car; my brother was using it to go to the prom. Called a neighbor and they got to the corner of Snelling and University as the ambulance was turning to go south on Snelling to the hospital. She said when they got to the hospital they barely managed to catch the gurney as they were propelling me toward the operating room.
Mom says she reached and touched my toes. I was whiter than the sheet from the loss of blood; she said I winked at her, and she almost lost it. Four and one half hours in surgery and 36 hours in a coma [elapsed] before I came to. Could not remember what had happened; did not remember where I was. All that registered was the stench in my room from my roommate who had burned both legs in a fire by the highway.
I was finally lucid along about Tuesday when Rev. Notto, the Lutheran Chaplain at the hospital, came to see me. He said he had been there before and wondered if I remembered what I had told him. Of course, I could not remember. He then went on to say that he asked me why I had not died. It was close. I told him that I had, that I tried to go to heaven, and they sent me back because I was too mean. I then said that I tried to go to hell, and they said I was not mean enough and had to go back. I had no place to go, so I had to come to this life.
I remember my experience in the operating room. My brain or conscience being was totally separated from my body. It was sitting up on a shelf, listening, recording, understanding all that was going on. Twenty-three pints of blood in 4 ½ hours! The doctors discussing what to do, saying they might not be able to save me, concluding that they had done all that they could. It was time to close it up. What I remember the most is, ‘the perfect peace, the quietness, the absolute silence, the reluctance to return to my body.’ I have had that feeling twice since, a total of three times. I knew when I totally came to the agony I had put my parents through, how close I came to cashing in, and knew then that there was a God Who looks after us and takes care of us.
We had the same experience of being called to the hospital when our son had an accident on the Houlton curve just up the hill from Stillwater. It is a terrible agonizing time in the life of a parent as they head to the hospital.
God bless and be with everyone and anyone that has to lie there and die, pass from this world, without the comfort of knowing Jesus and having someone to hold them close and say, ‘I love you.’ Hopefully, this message that you send may save someone some place.”
Now, back to my words
I was blessed to become friends with Norm after we met several years ago at our church’s annual Passover Seder. Norm was raised by a traditionally Jewish father and a Christian mother. I am Jewish on both sides of my family, so we had a lot of common ground. Jehovah Rapha heals for reasons we don’t always understand. I would like to say that in Norm’s case it was because He wanted to use Norm to spread faith in Him to others. Tomorrow, I hope to have more to say about Norm’s story and his impact on my life. 1 PET 4: 12-13 gives the suffering Norm went through God’s perspective. “My dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful test you are suffering, as though something unusual were happening to you. Rather be glad that you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may be full of joy when His glory is revealed.”
PRAYER: O Lord, Your ways are truly higher than ours. When seen from Your view, not all suffering is evil. You often invite into Your service ordinary people whom You created to have extraordinary potential to serve You and others around them. These people are often not famous, not materially wealthy, and not Madison Avenue beautiful. Yet, You have given them the capacity for deep faith, to be wonderful friends, and to bring Your goodness into the lives of others around them. Their presence in our lives enriches and blesses them. They bring us closer to You and encourage our hunger for Your word. They help us to understand that we should never waste the salvation that was made open to us by the work of the cross. While some of us serve You in more public ways, others do so by living in faithful godliness. They set an example for the rest of us. You, Dear Lord, ask us to watch You at work in the lives of others around us. When we do, You show us the power that faith in Christ has and give us instruction in how to make the changes that we must make for You to forward our sanctification. These are just a few of the reasons, why You deserve nothing less than our adoration, worship, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and thanks. In humility, we offer these to You today and always. In Christ’s name, amen.
While the messages that I have been writing in this series lead me to cite many places in the Scriptures where God reveals His wonderful attributes, today’s message hopefully demonstrates that what we learn from the Scriptures applies to life in 1950 and in 2000 and in the future equally well. It helps us to know that people today grapple with the same issues with which God has been challenging mankind throughout history. Our advanced technology and modern lifestyle does not make us immune from the life-giving need for His presence or from our need to heed His teachings. Our Abba loves each and every one of us more than words can describe. Take comfort in that love and know that He is there for you every hour of every day. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn