Surprises Along the Journey

Surprises Along the Journey | helloHOPE Encouragement

There have been days along our medical journey with Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) when the news we received or the challenges of the day seemed overwhelming. The same is true regardless of the diagnosis. Tough days happen. We are learning, though, that God has some surprises in store for us along that journey — especially through the tough times.

One of the astounding things about Jesus is the fact that he has experienced everything that life can throw at us. Joy, sadness, pain, laughter, mourning, and so on. He walked in our shoes, and He has compassion when we face difficulty because he also had the same types of experiences.

Here’s one example. As Jesus is ministering and teaching, He gets some brutal news: His cousin, John the Baptist, has been killed. Jesus’s reaction is to go off by Himself to find a quiet place. What’s odd, though, is what happens next: 

“When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”
Matthew 14:13-14

In a moment of grief and mourning — a time when Jesus wants to be alone — He is greeted with a needy, hurting crowd. His response? Instead of pushing the people away so He could be by Himself, His heart wells up with compassion, and He begins healing the sick people in the crowd. It would have been completely understandable for Jesus to explain what He was going through and tell the people to wait or meet him later, but that’s not what He does.

Jesus serves in the midst of loss and pain, relying on the Holy Spirit to meet the needs of others.

I tend to process things internally, and I’m an introvert, so often times difficulty makes me want to find some quiet alone time to work through what’s going on. In that sense, I think I can relate to Jesus wanting to get away. When I read these verses, though, I can’t help but see that God wants me to look beyond my circumstances and my needs to realize what’s happening around me. This is such a challenge because my immediate reaction is to think about my own circumstances, feel sorry for myself, or withdraw emotionally.

I believe that God wants us to rely on His Spirit to work through us, especially when we experience pain and difficulty, to spread hope and serve the people around us.

This is one surprise that He has in store for us — that our life and circumstance is bigger than we imagine and that in serving others in difficulty, we can share in greater joy and hope. God blesses us with opportunities to serve that can change our life and perspective forever.

I look at the lives of people like Joni Eareckson Tada, Abby Smith, or countless others, and it’s incredible to see the way that God’s hope and grace is amplified through their willingness to rely on Him in the most difficult of circumstances. That’s what helloHOPE is about. Helping to tell hope-filled stories so that we each have an opportunity to serve — to share hope with — another family in their moment of need. Out of our difficulty, we can share in the joy of each family that finds hope while they are walking through medical adversity.

Our story with Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) isn’t as intense as many of the medical stories out there — including some of the stories featured on our blog. But God has used our experience to open our eyes to see the medical challenges around us and give us a heart for spreading hope in the midst of it. As you walk through medical adversity, ask the Lord to open your heart and your eyes to see the opportunities to serve around you. Your story may have a happy ending, a sad ending, or you may be in the thick of it, but the reality is that God is inviting you to let Him work through you in those times. He loves to do greater things through His Spirit working in us than we could ever imagine.

- 2 Timothy 1:14; Romans 8:10-11; Romans 15:13; John 14:25-27; Matthew 14:13-14 -

Are you ready to spread hope with us? If you have a story to tell, you can contact us about being featured on the blog. If you know someone that is facing difficulty and would be encouraged by hope-filled stories and resources, please share helloHOPE with them.