Year of the Bible

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5, KJV).

What is the mind of Christ? How does God think? If we continue with this passage in Philippians, we learn that even though Jesus was God, He humbled Himself to become a man. But He didn’t stop there. He didn’t come as a king or some wealthy person; He became a servant.

He didn’t stop there either. He humbled Himself to be subject to death on a cross—the worst and most humiliating form of punishment any human could endure. Accordingly, the mind of Christ is complete and utter selflessness and humility.

Because of His selfless sacrifice, we learn that Christ was exalted above every name. And “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow” (Phil. 2:10, KJV).

“‘The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the Lord loved you’” (Deut. 7:7–8, NASB).

When I was 7, I had been in and out of hospitals multiple times trying to find answers on how to correct severe congenital birth defects that affected my hands and feet. Now I was on a stage at a major university medical center, complete with spotlights and about 30 adults around me wearing white jackets—presumably doctors, researchers and interns. A professor got up and listed the great qualities I possessed. Good grades in school. Socially well-adjusted. Loving home. Then the show really started, at least for me.

“I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24, NIV).

There are times when believing does not come easy for me, because too many people that I care about hurt too much to let believing come easy. People close to me get cancer and die. My friends’ marriages turn into battlefields. God does not seem to do many miracles for my crowd.

But people in my little orbit are just starters. All those starving children I pray for around the world keep on dying, and the oppressed people I pray for keep getting their heads banged and their freedoms choked. I know we make many of our own miseries. I am only admitting that when I believe that God really cares, there are a lot of hurts that suggest He does not seem to care enough.

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths” (Prov. 3:5–6, KJV).

Many times throughout my life, I have followed these passages, and the Lord has led me in the right path.

Several years ago, I lived in a mobile home that, unbeknownst to me, was affecting my health. I had been dealing with pneumonia for several months. One day, I saw an ad for an apartment and prayed for the Lord’s leading. I was able to sell my mobile home, and I moved into the apartment. I have not had pneumonia since!

“With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26, NKJV).

“This can’t be happening to me!” I said. The doctor’s diagnosis hit me like a ton of bricks. I was suffering from a painful illness that was spreading aggressively. In spite of this distressing news, I remained optimistic that surgery was still an option.

Unfortunately, I awoke from that first surgery only to be confronted with more dismal news. There was nothing they could do for me! Naturally, I started to blame myself because I knew something was wrong years ago, but I ignored all the warning signs, choosing to bear the pain silently.