Lifebridge Church Blog

I’m writing this blog shortly after coming home from our Good Friday worship service, where we gathered around a cross and heard once again from Scripture about the arrest, suffering, crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. It is a somber, reflective time, as we ponder all that Jesus went through for you and me.

At our service this evening we talked about death. Jesus’ death of course . . . but also our death. I spoke briefly of Layla Grace, and how she was the very first funeral that LifeBridge has done (our church is only a year and a half old). Many more are certain to come though . . . unless Christ returns and the world ends, every one of our lives will end in death.

I continue to receive a lot of comments from my previous blogs, and a common theme emerges in a lot of the responses. “Why?” Why did Layla have to die at just two years of age? Why did she have to suffer. Why didn’t God just heal her and make everything right?

This evening, as we gathered around the cross and remembered the suffering and death of Jesus, I was reminded of the lengths that Jesus went to do just that. On the cross, everything is made right. Satan is defeated, sins are paid for, our relationship with God is restored, and we are given the promise that through faith in Christ we will live forever. We believe all this by faith . . . Layla sees it with her own eyes. So very soon we will transition from this life to the next, and we’ll experience that “rightness” that we so long for. But, until then, we remain in our fallen broken world for a purpose. Jesus could have come back today and ended all the wrong, but he didn’t. Why not? Because there are still more people that need to come to faith and believe in him. He sees the big picture, the eternal picture, and he simply calls on us to trust him in the midst of a world that is often falling apart.

Here’s an image that resonates with me. Picture a woman who is making one of those hand stitched rugs. In and out her needle goes as she blends in all the various colors. She’s sitting on the back side of the rug, though, where all the cuts are made and knots are tied. From the back it looks terrible — frayed edges and bulky knots in seeming disarray. But the artist knows what she is doing, and as her expert hands make each stitch she is creating a beautiful work of art that will only be understood when you look at it from the front side.

That’s how life is. So much of what goes on doesn’t make sense or even seem right. All we see is the back side. But God has a plan and a purpose that goes far beyond our individual lives and circumstances. It is a plan done out of love — we know that because of the great lengths he went to save us. Tonight as our little mission church gathered around the cross of Jesus to remember his suffering, my overwhelming emotion was “thank you Jesus.” Thank you for suffering right alongside with me. Thank you for carrying a burden that I could not carry on my own. Thank you for giving me hope in the midst of some really tough things in life.

Because, you have to remember — Jesus rose. He came back to life. His journey involved suffering, but it didn’t end there. That’s our hope! No matter how bad or hopeless or non-sensical things seem to be, it doesn’t end there. At the end of life, there’s still more life. How do we know? Because Jesus already made that journey. And he promises that for us as well. That’s why we can thank God for the life, and the death, and the life of Layla Grace and all those who die in faith.

I pray that as you celebrate Easter this year, you will understand the depth of God’s love for you in a whole new way. You are precious to him.

Happy Easter

Pastor Michael
www.lifebridgecypress.org

Why doesn’t God just heal her? He could, you know. In the Bible he healed all kinds of sicknesses . . . even raised people from the dead. All it would take is one word and Layla’s cancer would be gone. One word and ALL cancer could be gone. And AIDS, tumors, hunger, divorce, war, rape and murder as well. If I were God (scary though that may be), I think I’d be inclined to take all these wrongs and make them right. Every person would live a healthy, prosperous, joy-filled life til the age of 87, then die peacefully in their sleep and go to be with Jesus.

But I know me. If I knew I had 87 guaranteed years, I would live 86 years and 364 days primarily for myself. The night before my time was up, I’d get to my knees and get things squared away with God. Truth be told, it’s often the uncertainties of life and the ugliness of the world that forces me to deal with the deeper spiritual things NOW rather than later. There’s a passage in the Bible that says “Lord, teach us to number our days, that we may gain hearts of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12) I’m still praying that God will do a miracle and heal Layla, but the reality that she could die at the age of 2 reminds me that I’m not guaranteed to live to 87. I may not make it to 50. I may not make it to tomorrow. I need to have my spiritual house in order TODAY.

The Bible tells a story about a man who was so consumed with worldly riches and pleasures that he failed to take time to tend to his relationship with God. He had made all kinds of plans for the years of his life that lay ahead . . . but those years never came. That night he died in his sleep. The word God used to describe him was “Fool”.

I’ll be honest – it hasn’t been easy watching Layla struggle the way she has. I’ve been there up close and personal when she was throwing up bile and crying out in pain. I’ve watched her beautiful face and body slowly wither away into skin and bones. I’ve cried out “why God?” just like you. But I always come back to the same truth: God is good. Even in this terrible situation, we have the promise and confidence that “in all things God works for the good of those who love Him.” (Romans 8:28). Layla’s journey, difficult though it has been, has done so much good. She has reminded us to treasure every day, because each one may be our last. She has reminded us to seek after eternal things, because the earthly ones ultimately don’t last. She has reminded me not to make an eternal “fool” of myself. Thank you God, even for the struggles.

“He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

I can’t help but smile to think that sweet little Layla Grace may have already done more good in her 2 short years of life than I have done in the 40 years God has given me. As a pastor, I spent 4 years in college, another 4 years at seminary, and the past 15 years working 50-60 hours a week in full time church work . . . all this for the sake of Jesus Christ and all that He means for me. Layla has never worked a day in her life, never earned a dollar, never won a game, never done any of those things that we normally use as markers of “success”. But, the impact of her life leaves me speechless. Because of Layla, how many of us parents have held our children closer at night? How many people have cried out in prayer to their God . . . maybe for the first time in a very long time? How many people have paused to ask those deeper questions of life and faith that often get lost in our busy and noisy world? Because of Layla, how many people will haltingly reach out to God and ask for forgiveness through His Son Jesus Christ?
That’s how God most often does His greatest things – He chooses the weak, the simple, the seemingly insignificant things of this world to make the greatest impact. He’s done that through Layla, this precious two year old who has captured the hearts of so many of us with her strength, her courage, and her dependence on God in her battle against this nasty disease of neuroblastoma. She has taught us so much. Without doing anything, she has made a “Texas size” splash in the hearts and lives of so many people.
Thank you Layla Grace, for letting God’s strength shine through your weakness.

Like many of you, I have been touched in recent days by a little 2 year old girl named Layla Grace, in a fight for her life against neuroblastoma lymphoma cancer. Doctors have done all that they can and have now sent her home on hospice care to simply keep her comfortable in her final days. We, of course, continue to pray that God will choose to intervene and do for her what medicine cannot do. God has, and can, heal — and we will pray boldly for that as long as Layla has a breath in her body.

Lots of people have been touched by this precious girl, and there are understandably a lot of emotions, questions, and spiritual struggles from those who are following her story.   In the coming days, I’m going to share some spiritual thoughts and truths that I hope will be a comfort and encouragement to those who are following Layla. I pray that you find them meaningful — and ask that you join me in praying for this precious girl and her family.

– Pastor Michael Meissner

LifeBridge Church, Cypress TX

www.lifebridgecypress.org