God and Medicine - Lyn Kublick

I spend a lot of time walking in the past. It is where I get the inspiration to write. Many think of the early days as a relaxed and simple time and in some ways this is true. However, it was often a very difficult place to live.

The picture, to the right, is of my Aunt Bessie. Unfortunately I never was able to know her because she, and her younger sister Vivian, died of Typhoid Fever forty years before I was born. Their mother, a recent widow, ran a boarding house to support her five children. It was believed that the sickness came from "bad" well water. Doctors did all they knew to do, but it was not enough. Prayers were said, but they weren't answered as the supplicants hoped.

Today this story would probably end differently. God has helped scientists and doctors to develop many skills in the last hundred years, and typhoid no longer carries a death sentence.

We do still face numerous trials, including illnesses, that can not be easily resolved. We must still rely on prayer, knowing that God is ultimately in charge of our lives. His plan for us is perfect. Despite repeated tragedy in her life, my grandmother continued to cling to her faith and rely on God's wisdom in all circumstances. There are many people today who walk away from Him when His plan doesn't suit their personal design. They have come to expect instant results and immediate gratification in many areas of life. When things go wrong they assume God isn't listening.

It can be difficult to remember that while His ways are not our ways, His plan for our continued growth is the perfect design. Reliance on Him, and His grace, is the only was to find peace now and life eternal.