Invest in Him
by Yesenia Menjivar
“Now may God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23
During my battle with cancer, what I refer to as my healing season, I received something very special and so unimaginable. I use the word “unimaginable” because it is impossible in my human mind to really devise what He did. You see, “What the enemy intended for evil, the Lord turned for good (Genesis 50:20).”
The type of cancer I was diagnosed with was found in my blood. In general, cancer cells are fast growing and destructive cells in one’s body. Are sins not like this? Fast growing and destructive to our mind, body, and soul. Harmful in every aspect of our lives. Then, how do we heal? Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick (Mathew 9:12).” Jesus wasn’t only referring to physical sickness, but also the spiritually broken. The lost. My treatment for cancer involved chemotherapy to rid me of these fast growing cells in my physical body, and by the will of God I was healed. This treatment cleansed me of all cancer cells, but it was the work of the great physician that purified my spirit through and through during this season. Today, we live in a world where we invest in self-care, therapy, medicine, networking, sharing resources, etc. There’s nothing wrong with these things to an extent, but God’s business is matchless in every way. We serve a powerful God that cleanses us from all that was; into all He desires for us.
But, suffering? Yes, there will be seasons of suffering in our health, our marriages, watching our unsaved family members, shepherding our children, in our finances, our schools, our workplaces, and even in our churches. But without suffering there is no reason to hope. And without hope, we fall back into sin. Thus, saints, I encourage you today to hope. Hope in the one who heals! Invest in Him.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1–2
“Now may God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23
During my battle with cancer, what I refer to as my healing season, I received something very special and so unimaginable. I use the word “unimaginable” because it is impossible in my human mind to really devise what He did. You see, “What the enemy intended for evil, the Lord turned for good (Genesis 50:20).”
The type of cancer I was diagnosed with was found in my blood. In general, cancer cells are fast growing and destructive cells in one’s body. Are sins not like this? Fast growing and destructive to our mind, body, and soul. Harmful in every aspect of our lives. Then, how do we heal? Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick (Mathew 9:12).” Jesus wasn’t only referring to physical sickness, but also the spiritually broken. The lost. My treatment for cancer involved chemotherapy to rid me of these fast growing cells in my physical body, and by the will of God I was healed. This treatment cleansed me of all cancer cells, but it was the work of the great physician that purified my spirit through and through during this season. Today, we live in a world where we invest in self-care, therapy, medicine, networking, sharing resources, etc. There’s nothing wrong with these things to an extent, but God’s business is matchless in every way. We serve a powerful God that cleanses us from all that was; into all He desires for us.
But, suffering? Yes, there will be seasons of suffering in our health, our marriages, watching our unsaved family members, shepherding our children, in our finances, our schools, our workplaces, and even in our churches. But without suffering there is no reason to hope. And without hope, we fall back into sin. Thus, saints, I encourage you today to hope. Hope in the one who heals! Invest in Him.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1–2