{"id":563,"date":"2022-01-17T21:56:34","date_gmt":"2022-01-18T01:56:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/?p=563"},"modified":"2025-09-29T12:51:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T16:51:09","slug":"46","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/?p=563","title":{"rendered":"Forty-six"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Last month, our men\u2019s breakfast and study completed the book Undefiled<\/em>, which uses a fictitious couple, Jim and Carrie, to explore redemption from sexual sin and restoration of broken relationships. Honestly, it wasn\u2019t my usual type of book, but I learned things I hadn\u2019t considered before. At our last meeting, I felt compelled to share this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Forty-six.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was diagnosed with aggressive cancer at age 46. By then I had been born again for about 20 years and was fully committed to God, praying He would shape me into the image of His Son. I didn’t yet realize just how arrogant I still was or how that issue was affecting my family. I was completely blind to it all.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surviving cancer, I often quoted Psalm 119:71: \u201cIt was good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your decrees.\u201d<\/em> That trial was necessary to begin opening my eyes to my sin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether trials are physical (like mine) or relational (like Jim & Carrie’s as in the book) trials are meant for our good, to open our eyes, to cleanse us — if we are willing to listen to God and be changed. Sin deceives us; we see only the surface while God sees the heart. We cannot fix ourselves apart from His grace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is Satan’s work; it is sin’s work that we are blind to the root of our own sin.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sin deceives us.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We see only surface things; God looks at the heart.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hebrews 12 reminds us: \u201cNo discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.\u201d<\/em> Not everyone is \u201ctrained\u201d by God\u2019s discipline; we must allow it to open our eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My oncology doctors said that I could have died that year.  Quote: “If left untreated this type of cancer can take the life of its victim in 6 months to a year.”  — I was in intense pain for 5 months before I was diagnosed and treated for the aggressive cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But more to my point is that my wife and family suffered not for 6 months but for decades while my arrogance was as of yet \u201cuntreated\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As my doctors were initially blind to the cancer within my bones I was blind to how my sin of arrogance was hurting my family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We must pray: \u201cGod, show me my blindness. Do whatever it takes to bring Your righteousness into my life for the sake of my loved ones. Heal me. Make me whole.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I grieve how my sin hurt others. I can’t change how unkind I was to everyone. But I can repent, change my way, learn to put myself aside and truly, unselfishly love my wife as I promised her on our wedding day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 Corinthians 13:4\u20137 teaches: \u201cLove is patient, love is kind\u2026 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pride hinders this love; humility heals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Georgia and I are closer than ever. Pride once blinded me, but humility now allows me to see, confess, and grow. I praise God for the unity in our marriage and the chance to love my wife as He defines and demonstrates.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last month, our men\u2019s breakfast and study completed the book Undefiled, which uses a fictitious couple, Jim and Carrie, to explore redemption from sexual sin and restoration of broken relationships. Honestly, it wasn\u2019t my usual type of book, but I learned things I hadn\u2019t considered before. At our last meeting,...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-thoughts-short-entries"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=563"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":590,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563\/revisions\/590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rodatus.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}