“You only realize Christ is all you need when Christ is all you’ve got.”
This is the Christus Consolator statue in Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins Hospital. It’s a beautiful, towering monument in a tiny domed atrium. When you come upon it, by accident or on purpose, it’s both a thrill and a comfort, especially if your heart is heavy. “Come to me…” (Matthew 11:28) is engraved on the pedestal.
I found this picture on Reddit and asked the dad who posted it if I could use it, and he kindly complied. That’s his little boy, who was then being treated for Stage IV Neuroblastoma. Four years later, he is cancer-free, thank God!
In the wake of Helene, we’ve all seen horrifying footage of lifetimes, livelihoods, and lives being swept away. Wind, storm surge, and flash floods leveled everything in their mighty paths, leaving bewildered victims reeling with grief, gaping uncertainties, and seemingly insurmountable practical challenges
How quickly life can change!
The truth is that anything can happen at any time that sweeps away our notion of security. A spouse calls it quits without notice, the business lays you off, a cherished loved one dies, illness confines you to a bed of nails, the market crashes, war breaks out, and natural disaster strikes.
I often think of leaning our whole weight on Jesus and relying on Christ for everything. Everything. Our identity, our security, our provision, our peace, our power, and indeed, our joy, our salvation in every sense. Everything. Having been stripped to the spiritual studs more than once, sometimes cherished (or obsessive) what/whoevers were torn from my clutching grip before I surrendered wholeheartedly and grace swept in. I now actively seek to lean my full weight on Jesus, even if I have solid alternatives.
There is no better place to be.
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)
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