Thursday, January 25, 2007
Wouldn't Everyone Want to Be Healed?
Tuesday, I spoke at a conference called Faith Forward at the Crystal Cathedral in Orange County, California. Hands down, the most fascinating speaker was Francis Collins author of The Language of God. He headed up the Human Genome Project to map our genetic map. He took on--head on--Dawkins, Dennet, and Harris on why, as a scientist, he believes in God. You can put this guy in the history books with some of the greatest scientists who ever lived. More on that in a later blog. Later in the evening, a small group of us had supper with Dr. Schuller. Ken Medema, the famous pianist was with us. The conversation went over to Ken’s blindness and Dr. Collins asked if he knew the cause of his blindness. Ken explained it was a genetic issue since birth. Dr. Collins told him there is a significant breakthrough with his condition and experiments have been done and it might be possible to fix his condition! Ken was excited, right? Wrong. Pleased, ok--yet questioning.
I would think a man who’s been blind his entire life and has a chance to see would want to see. Ken told us he had "seen" a movie about a man who had been blind his entire life and for a brief period he could see, but he was relieved when the treatment failed and he could go back to life as he had known it.
Healing--he would have to learn an entirely new way of coping, surviving and living in the world. Maybe if he were in his 20s, but now in his 50s plus, would he really be ready for that?
Healing--he believes that he plays the piano as he does because his other senses have compensated for what he lost. Would it impact his passion, his ministry, and who he has become? Would it be worth risking his music not being what it is now?
Healing--he’s never seen anyone, anything, mountains, oceans, or people he loves. The first person he would expect to see would be Jesus, now it might be a doctor--would he really want to trade that?
Healing--maybe Ken’s already healed. Maybe what others would call a loss has become his gain, and perhaps ours as well.
I would think a man who’s been blind his entire life and has a chance to see would want to see. Ken told us he had "seen" a movie about a man who had been blind his entire life and for a brief period he could see, but he was relieved when the treatment failed and he could go back to life as he had known it.
Healing--he would have to learn an entirely new way of coping, surviving and living in the world. Maybe if he were in his 20s, but now in his 50s plus, would he really be ready for that?
Healing--he believes that he plays the piano as he does because his other senses have compensated for what he lost. Would it impact his passion, his ministry, and who he has become? Would it be worth risking his music not being what it is now?
Healing--he’s never seen anyone, anything, mountains, oceans, or people he loves. The first person he would expect to see would be Jesus, now it might be a doctor--would he really want to trade that?
Healing--maybe Ken’s already healed. Maybe what others would call a loss has become his gain, and perhaps ours as well.
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