There’s this tattoo I want to get…
It’s a line from a song that practically brings me to tears every time I hear it. A Switchfoot song that puts me back into an appropriate perspective when I get [easily] distracted by life and my ever present cynicism. The song is about belonging to another place and remembering that identity and that one day we will finally be in the world where we belong. That line that repeats several times accompanied by this decree the author says fervently:
“‘til I die, I sing these songs on the shores of Babylon…”
It reminds me of this passage in Daniel that I’ve heard about a billion times. Three men are about to be thrown into a very hot fire for refusing to not worship God. Their response is as resounding as Jon Foreman’s from above: “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
Daniel 3:17-18
This year has sucked a lot for my family; mostly in the last two months or so, but I know that God is still good. I don’t know why He is, but I know that He is.
I find myself back in the hospital again this evening (Kaiser wants me to celebrate all of my holidays with them apparently). I was diagnosed about a month or so ago with Crohn’s Disease, a wonderful auto-immune disorder that can affect the entire GI tract. For me, it’s the end of my small intestine that’s utter inflamed and causing me (and also my patient and caring wife) lots of pain. This absolutely isn’t where I want to spend my son’s first birthday or thanksgiving, and the God I serve is conclusively able to deliver me from this, but even if He does not; I’ll still be singing these songs on the shores of Babylon.
I’m fine, but these little sleepovers are very, very difficult on my sweet bride. Keep in mind that she won’t ever asked anyone for anything, but despite her incredible strength, she needs more…and maybe other things too, but I can’t guess what those things are. Prayer? That would help her…a text message encouraging her? Remind her how stubborn I am and that I can definitely bounce back from this and that there’s nothing to worry about? Any of these will work.
In the meantime, I wait…Need to see what’s going on, listen to my doctors do some kick ass forensic medicine, and attempt to ignore food commercials until these fools let me eat something. And I’ll finish designing this tattoo to remind myself (in between listening to this song) that the God I serve is good even if I’m not delivered the way I think is best, but that “delivered” is still His plan.
[kyle]