An incredible thing happened this summer (2018). After years of pain and suffering, my mother went in for complete reconstructive back surgery to correct a poorly performed procedure she had in 2010. Her doctor, Richard Easton, from Troy Beaumont in Rochester Hills, MI was kind enough to take on her case and what he did was nothing short of a miracle. When he came to deliver the news of what a great success her surgery was, even he was noticeably excited about the outcome. When he described the operation, I was fascinated by what I heard.
First, Dr. Easton removed the faulty hardware that caused so much pain to her nearly destroying her nerves and inhibiting her overall ability to stand, walk, and even live.
Some of my medical jargon may be a little off here, but once Dr. Easton removed the hardware, he replaced parts of her destroyed back with a portion of her own pelvic bone. Additionally, he used her stem cells and pieces of her arthritis, coupled with a medical poultice that cost $6000/half-ounce. Using a modern pestle and mortar, he ground it all together (crushed it) and used that mixture to repair her back. This not only would provide immediate healing, but it created the foundation for her back to regenerate.
In any other setting this could have been viewed as a brutal and heartless process:
• Removing the old structure
• Breaking off pieces of her pelvic bone
• Using arthritis, a known enemy of our joints
• And a special compound that was very costly
But, only after the cutting, after the breaking, after the crushing, could the healing and regeneration take place. It’s vitally important to note here that Dr. Easton did this FOR her, not TO her.
There’s are striking similarities between what Dr. Easton did for my mom and what God can do with our brokenness. When God seemingly cuts us down to size, removes our old faulty hardware and structure, we then embark upon what feels like a breaking and a crushing. The old things are passed away…
Using bits of what we had that were good, and even incorporating bits of the old (arthritis), He adds a special and costly compound; the Blood of Christ to heal and regenerate us.
My mom was barely able to function due to the pain she was enduring, it wasn’t until after the breaking and crushing that she found deliverance from that pain.
My question today is, how many of us are so used to debilitating effects of our pain and anguish, believing this is all there is? We have a loving Savior already “scrubbed up” patiently waiting in the wings, ready, willing, and able to turn our pain into power, our sorrow into joy, and our anguish into complete healing.
It may not always feel like it or look like it, but never judge what God is doing in your life, or anyone else’s for that matter, until the process is complete. There’s healing in the crushing, and a breakthrough in our brokenness if we entrust it into the Hands of the Master Surgeon.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. (Psalm 51:17)
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