The man whose CT Scan results I was looking at, Jim, was a sixty year old man who had come in to see me for vague abdominal pain and some weight loss. He didn't really have time to slow down as he was caring for two special needs children. You could see in his eyes how much he loved them and could feel in the air how much they needed him.
I shook my head, afraid of what the future held for them all.
As I picked up the phone to call Jim, I asked myself how I was going to share his results with him and still give him hope -- without being dishonest. Fortunately, I suppose, I don't know the future and it is easy to fall back on that uncertainty to give someone a little light in an otherwise dark diagnosis.
I suppose the thing that keeps me going in medicine is the fact that those sorts of phone calls are few and far between. It isn't usually all that hard to bring hope into a situation.
There are people who believe that the Bible is a book full of good teachings. They think that it contains philosophy that enhances a person's life. They just can't seem to believe the miracles that line its pages.
If I am honest, the Bible is a book that passes a death sentence on every person. It is full of verses like "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." In a sense, it is like a doctor who walks into each room to give a terminal illness as the diagnosis and then walks out, taking all hope with him.
No treatment.
No cure.
That is all the Bible would say, except for one thing.
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
For, one day, two thousand years ago, one man conquered sin and death. There is an assurance that because His tomb is empty, Jesus has power over death and that His promises are certain. There is forgiveness and pardon and hope for all.
Because He lives we can too.
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