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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for February 16, 2010
“I Was Sick and You Visited Me”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
On July 3rd, 2008, this was written by Sheri Easter.
“Yesterday at 4 p.m. I received a call from my newly acquired surgeon informing me that I had breast cancer.”
She continued. “I have breast cancer. I feel almost as if I should type it 100 times to remind me not to do it again, just like in grammar school. I cried until it hurt, and then I cried more.”
Sheri Easter is an award-winning, Grammy nominated Southern Gospel singer along with her husband Jeff, and they travel the country on a touring bus with their band and their children Madison and Morgan.
She continued. “Morgan was sitting with me when I got the call. Jeff, Madison and everyone on our bus quickly came to the front lounge and along with me were broken. Jeff called my mama, my brother and several of my closest friends because I couldn’t speak.”
Moments like this take place every day. It may not be you, but it’s someone four or five people down.
Instead of zooming past them, we need to slow down, take time, and be there for people who are sick.
For Sheri Easter, following her diagnosis were days of tears, days of pain, and in her words, “days so full of fatigue that I didn’t even feel like getting out of bed.”
She endured the rigors of chemotherapy, and what was one major source of strength? Listen to what she wrote in December, 2008.
“I continue to receive cards, calls and gifts from encouragers everywhere and for each of you, I am so thankful. You have given me a spirit to fight when I didn’t think I could. May God bless each of you bountifully for the giving of your hearts…”
Being sick is a terrible thing. It’s terrible when you are fighting a killer, but it’s also wretched when you are just plain old fashioned sick. And one of the most important things is to just have someone be there for you.
I’m so thankful that when I was sick as a child, my mother was always there for me. Sometimes she tried to make me drink a rancid elixir called “Anti-Pain,” but that’s another story.
For each of us children, when we were sick we had a little bell that we could ring when we needed something. And when we rang, Mom was there.
I’m thankful that I’ve only been sick a couple of times in over 20 years of marriage, but each time my wife was there for me, even when I was delirious from strep and pulled out a gun to shoot the crazy birds outside.
Being there for sick people is near and dear to the heart of God. In Matthew 25 Jesus said, “I was sick and you visited Me.” The Amplified Version says, “I was sick and you visited Me with help and ministering care.”
A while back I took a young man to the emergency room. It was a long wait, but it was so encouraging when some of his friends showed up. He was sick, and they came to visit, to show that they cared, just to be there for him.
I was sick, and you visited me.
If you know someone who is sick today, see what you can do for them.
And of course, as Christians, we should always pray for the sick.
James 5 says, “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up.”
It goes on to say, “If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
As Christians, we are called to be there for sick people, to intercede for them, to pray for them, to talk to them, and even just to visit them.
So is someone around you sick today?
Let this be your sign to reach out to them. Don’t wait and expect that someone else out there will do it. And don’t think your visit won’t mean anything. It always means something when someone shows that they care.
And if you need anymore motivation to care for the sick, just remember these words of Jesus.
I was sick and you visited Me.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
You can read Sheri Easter’s blogs here: http://www.jeffandsherieaster.com/SHERI_S_BLOGS.html
© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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