No one ever cared for me like Jesus.
No one loved me better than His faithful believers.
And there's no hospital greater than the church.
How I wish every person had experienced the love of God directly and personally. If every soul could truly meet God, then they would know the Wondrous Lover. They would encounter the Savior, the comforter, the best friend. They could know the Peace-giver, the life-giver, the healer. If every person had a real encounter with Jesus, the world would be a better place and would be full of hope- instead of apathy, despair, and sadness.
And for those who haven't gotten to know Christ personally, I hope they have a brother or sister, or a true friend who knows Him. If only their friend or family member would have the courage to love them outrageously, the way God commanded us to love each other as brothers and sisters. If they would have the boldness to share their testimony and to share how God is working in their life, yes the world would be a better place. If only the church could reach out and love their neighbor, love their enemy, and love the poor. If only the church could truly love the way the Word talks about sacrificing a life for another, the world would be healed friends, the world would be different.
Friends, I work at a hospital for sick people. I am a pediatric nurse and I strive to take good care of my patients and treat them kindly. But friends, because I work in the hospital, I see what going to the hospital is like and I see the loneliness and fear in many hospitalized patients. I see the procedures they have to go through that are painful, traumatizing, and difficult. And I see some that make it out to the others side, yet others that do not.
We live in a time where everyone is sick or getting sick. Sin abounds in our world; sickness and pain are everywhere you look. The hospitals are full with COVID, full of broken legs and arms, diabetics, strokes, and heart attacks. The hospital is full of sick people longing for a healer. The world is full of depressed, anxious, lonely, desperate people. We all want a cure. Patients invest their money, time, and energy into getting better and following the directions the doctors in the hospital tell them.
But what about when the medical system is failing? What about when hospitals steal all your money but they don't fix you? What happens when the doctor truly messes up? All your hope is lost, all your health is lost. What can save you now? Who can care for your body and your soul?
Friends, no doctor here on this earth can care for you or heal you the way that Jesus can.
No nurse can provide kind or supportive comfort the way Jesus does.
No earthly possession, or amount of money, can fill the loneliness and brokenness in your longing heart.
And no husband, wife, girlfriend or boyfriend can give you purpose and love you without fault.
But Jesus can.
Jesus can love you better and deeper than anyone on this earth.
Jesus can heal you the way a hospital system, doctors's office, counselor, or therapist can never.
Jesus can fill you up with peace, fill you up with purpose, fill you up with love.
So I invite you, in this cold month of December, a month full of pain for many people suffering in the hospitals, or maybe suffering without a family member this holiday season, or maybe just suffering with their emotions.. I invite you to meet Jesus. If you would invite Jesus into your heart, to love you and pursue you, to care for you and comfort you, I promise your life would be changed forever.