Yesterday afternoon my son had a successful skin graft on his right hand. But, let me back up to explain why. Three weeks ago he was driving in a 1200 mile race down the Baja in Mexico when suddenly a fuel line burst, filled the driver’s compartment with fuel and ignited. The good news is he was wearing a fire suit, fire helmet and fire shoes. The bad news was he had taken his fire gloves off because it was 105 degrees outside. His left hand would have been spared except the safety harness release was on his right side. Being that his right hand was instantly damaged it became necessary to put his left hand into the flames to press the release button.
Needless to say we are all grateful for the effectiveness of the protective suit, shoes and helmet. And we are grateful for an effective burn unit in a hospital in Southern California. One thing that does haunt me is taking a perfectly healthy hand and sticking it in the flames. But, of course, the alternative would have been much much worse.
I have often thought of God’s decision to make John 3:16 a reality. Paul wrote that Jesus came in the fullness of time. When the moment was right, when the world was psychologically ready preparations became actions. Mary was notified. Joseph was notified. The Roman emperor called for a census that would take Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem. And then it happened. Jesus’ place in heaven was empty. It was unthinkable. The Creator became one of His created. Jesus came to be part of a financially poor family but one rich with love. The trip into the flames began.
Written by Roger Bothwell on May 15, 2013
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
rogerbothwell.org