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Wednesday, December 06, 2006

One door closed, still looking up

We found out a day or so ago that our insurance won't cover a trip to Santa Monica for the trial treatments. It's a relief, to a certain extent. It's also an answer to prayer, as we've been asking God what to do.

I've felt for the past couple of months that God will not share His praise with anyone or anything else. Not Isagenix, although it has helped to better Jeseca's life. Not chemotherapy or any radiation treatment. These only treat the symptoms. No, it will only be God who completely heals her, and He will deserve all of the credit.

So we are down to the decision of whether to seek Him in Mexico at the Oasis of Hope (an alternative treatment center with a concentration on Christian principles) or here at home. The Oasis of Hope offers 2-3 weeks of natural treatments, solitude, and a good soaking of the Bible and prayer. But it comes with a $18,000 price tag, all out-of-pocket. We don't have the money, so unless God sells a couple of cows, we'll be praying here in San Diego.

Time appears to be getting shorter, but we balance what she goes through with the promises of God, words He has actually spoken to us through the Bible, in our hearts, and through other people, and we wait for Him to come through. He will, we are sure of that. We just hope it will be soon. JG

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posted by Jon Graves at 5:58 AM links to this post

Sunday, December 03, 2006

The Real Superman

Today was Everen's 8th birthday. We had a great 2-day celebration with him. I can't believe he's been with us for eight years! It is amazing to see how much he has grown over the past few years; to see how much he has matured and grown to love God. His Sunday School teacher told me today how special Everen is, how much he knows about God, and what a great job we are doing in raising him. I couldn't have been prouder. Nothing matters more to us than establishing the foundation to the relationship our boys have with God. And I pray they won't abandon it as I did when I got older.

Part of his birthday celebration included a surprise home-screening of Superman Returns. Christian loves Superman -- continuing to claim as he has for the past couple of years that he is Superman -- and since Jes and I saw it when it came out in theaters, we knew it would be okay to see if we fast-forwarded through the more intense scenes. So we watched it together, and again it fascinated me that the story is so metaphoric of Jesus. In fact, I used the movie to tell the boys how amazing He is; that He is the real Superman. You really can't escape it, either.

Superman is his father's only son, sent to Earth to save its people from evil and destruction. He does more miraculous and supernatural things than you can count. Then, knowing that doing so will destroy him, he chooses to lift and send into orbit a kryptonite-laden rock the size of Texas. If you've seen the movie, before he heads to the bottom of the ocean, he flies skyward to spend some time in the Sun, which gives him power. (The sun is light...God is Light...time in the sun...time with God. Like I said, it all follows The story line.) And for the icing on the cake, when he sends the kryptonite island off to neverland, as he collapses just outside Earth's atmosphere and falls toward Metropolis, he strikes a pose in the form of a cross.

Now he doesn't die and come back to life, mind you. And you have to get past the nonsense of his having a baby with Lois Lane out of wedlock some five or six years before. In the end, though, you have to wonder how or why Hollywood would put this type of imagery in a movie about a comic book superhero.

On the other hand, nothing can ever come close to the story of Jesus. For the entirety of His life, He predicted that He would die and how. He walked toward Jerusalem knowing that the cross awaited Him. When Judas approached Him in the Garden of Gethsemane with the Roman guards, He stood to meet them. And when they asked for Jesus of Nazareth, He said, "I am He," and the entire mob fell to the ground at the sound of His voice.

Superman had to be patterned after Jesus. There's no other explanation. Jesus stood in front of the "bullets." Jesus came to save the world from its sin. Jesus was beaten beyond recognition for me and for you. And Jesus rose from the dead so that you and I could live with God for all of eternity. Unbelievable. Jesus is the real Superman. Never forget it. JG

posted by Jon Graves at 10:12 PM links to this post

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