Reasoning...

There are all kinds of things that help me come up with ideas for blogs. Sometimes it’s something that sticks in my head from a conversation with someone. Sometimes it’s a situation that is happening to myself or someone close to me. Sometimes (as you well know) it’s a song that really speaks to my heart. Sometimes it’s something that G-d brings to my attention while I am sitting and writing in my journal. All these different sources of inspiration have really taught me just how simple little things in my everyday life can speak to me in one way or another. My inspiration for this blog comes from a TV series called Scrubs. Season 6, Episode 14 to be exact.

I have had more than one person tell me that of all the medical sitcoms out there, Scrubs is the most accurate (in an exaggerated way of course). I love the variety of characters that we are able to follow as well as that fact that I usually can’t help but laugh out loud several times when watching an episode. The other night I was watching one that really caught my attention to the point that I repeated it a couple times. I really don’t know much about the medical profession and ever since becoming pretty close friends with a woman that is a pediatrician I have discovered I know even less than I originally thought. One thing that I have observed is just how much doctors really have to face death. Another dear friend of mine is an Oncologist and he faces it with his patients pretty regularly. More than once I have observed them and wondered how they do it. I would be an emotional mess if I was in their shoes. But they both hold it together beautifully. In their shoes, I would question so much about life and even G-d. And that is why this episode stood out to me.

There is a character named Lavern that is a straight forward nurse known for being a Christian. A lot of her jokes revolve around listening to other people’s conversations and responding with statements like, “You don’t have to answer to me; but you will have to answer to Jesus.” The point is she’s the one in the group that has the faith in a higher power. And in this episode you see everyone facing difficult cases that made them question why it all had to happen. And from the beginning Lavern says, “Everything happens for a reason". This causes Dr. Cox to spend his time trying to prove her wrong. For example, an eight year old girl was brought in with a stab wound from a “wrong place at the wrong time” situation that results from meaningless violence. Dr. Cox looked at Lavern and said, “What could possibly be the purpose for this?” Lavern replies that they will know when G-d chooses to reveal Himself. The little girl was sent up to have an MRI to see the extent of the injury and it turned out the knife had gone in right where an unnoticed tumor was growing in the little girl. Had the stabbing not happened, the tumor wouldn’t have been found soon enough to save the little girl’s life. At the end of the episode, Dr. Cox almost seemed ready to admit that everything does happen for a reason…until they were faced with a tragedy of one of their own. Lavern was in an accident and left in an unresponsive comma. A comma that, in the next episode, she actually did die from. One of the last lines that the main character said was, “Be careful, because when you start believing bad things happen for a good reason around here, it hurts that much more when they don’t.”

I know full well that this subject can be considered a “double-edged sword”. Telling people that everything happens for a reason can raise alot questions. Questions that, quite honestly, I have asked G-d from time to time. Sometimes G-d reveals Himself in an unquestionable way and sometimes He doesn’t reveal Himself at all. I can’t tell anyone His rhyme or reason. I do know that I have seen things happen in my life that I absolutely hated. I have had to say goodbye to people when (to me) it clearly wasn’t their time to die. I have watched dear friends make choices that affected their lives in the most drastic ways. In the world as a whole, we see wars and hate. We see one natural disaster after another. Even through these blogs, we see comments from some readers that are hurting or searching. It’s so easy to allow ourselves to get wrapped up in the negative that is all around us. It’s so easy to only look at the surface and ask G-d how he could allow such things. But one of Lavern’s statements really made me think...”I’ve been coming in here every day for 24 years watching children die and seeing good people suffer. If I quit believing there is a bigger plan behind all this, then I wouldn’t be able to show up tomorrow.” You know what? She’s right. It’s our nature to want to understand why things happen. We are meant to ask questions. We are supposed to observe and evaluate. And when the questions that hit the closest to home seem to go unanswered, it can leave us with a negative outlook on life and on G-d. That is the moment that the devil shines. He takes those unanswered questions and keeps whispering them in our ears, telling us that it shouldn’t have happened and encouraging us to be angry at each other, at the world, and at G-d. For several months now I have been struggling to come to terms with some events in my life, past and present. I see things about myself that have changed and grown. I see where G-d had guided me through turning points and brought me out of difficulties. I see how He’s allowing me to use some of these experiences to help others and I see parts of me that He’s still working on.

The phrase, “Bad things happen for a reason” or “G-d has a purpose” isn’t always going to bring people the comfort that we all wish it would. But sometimes we also need to look a little deeper to see where G-d left His fingerprints to let us know He does have a hand in things one way or another. We also need to realize that G-d isn’t the only one involved with the events of this world. The devil is playing his role more than ever. As we near the end times, Satan’s presence is being felt more and more. He’s playing his games and spreading his chaos in the hopes of making people come to a point where they want nothing to do with G-d. Something that I have really noticed is his timing. It’s when I manage to come out of a low point. It’s when I have been struggling and G-d manages to give me some peace. I am going to be including a link to a part of the episode that I have been discussing and you will see that when people start feeling some ease, for example when Dr. Cox actually starts thinking there could be something good behind it all, a new situation arises that knocks everyone off their feet. How many of you have seen that happen in your own lives? I’m going to ask you all to do something that I have been trying to make a point of doing during times of struggle. Bad things do happen for a reason...but it’s not always because G-d is trying to accomplish something....sometimes it’s because the devil is trying to avoid something. This thought is what has actually cause me to get angry and say out loud (when alone of course) “What are you so afraid of?!?” (Obviously I don’t get an answer but a part of me hopes it shuts the devil down for at least a short time because he was called out.) In the year that this blog has been going, I have run into many struggles. The hardest has been the last few months and they will probably continue for a while. But looking at the patterns, anytime I struggle, I find it harder to write. The things that help me are your comments. They and G-d tell me I am doing something right and that I need to keep going no matter what. And like Lavern, facing struggles without the belief in a higher power would make it impossible to keep living and moving forward. We all have something on this earth to live for. We just have to keep sight of that at all times. That’s how we keep going and continue to serve in one way or another.

So stop and think...what do you hold on to in this life? What gives you reason to keep moving forward? What can give you hope and/or a smile in rough times? Now hold on to that and the love of G-d with all your heart. And know that through good times and bad...we as believers are in this together. No one can defeat the devil except G-d...but we as a group can make Satan’s efforts much more difficult. We can stand together and remind him that he will never be as powerful as G-d. And that fact alone is the most terrifying and infuriating thing that we can ever throw in his face. Are you with me?

G-d Bless,

K

This is the segment of the episode:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3MZ8SA57mY

This is a song that I thought would fit well with this blog:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkwU92ak07Q