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The Words No One Said to My Son that Night (and Why I’m Grateful)

October 19, 2017 by Marissa 3 Comments

The lights dimmed as I gripped my program and shifted in my seat with anticipation. After driving my son to what felt like 101 rehearsals, I was ready to watch him perform in his school’s junior high musical.

The spotlights followed the young teenagers around the stage, songs filled the air, and my son made the audience roar with laughter. I felt the familiar joy all moms feel as we watch our children do well. I felt relief that he didn’t forget his lines or trip over his own rapidly-growing feet.

I also felt a weight of gratitude that I suspect didn’t cross the other moms’ minds that evening. I was thankful that my son had a great time performing, for friends and relatives who joined us in the audience, and for a school that gives my child these opportunities. But there was one thing I was grateful for above all of these.

I was grateful that no one would say to my son that night, “Your mom sure would’ve loved this. She’d be so proud of you.”

Seven years ago, as I read the dismal survival rates for angiosarcoma, as I traveled to MD Anderson Cancer Center to receive months of treatment and participate in a clinical trial, as I walked through the early months and years of survivorship . . . I thought ahead to these moments. I saw my children, a few inches taller and a few years more mature, playing in piano competitions, dancing in ballet recitals, competing in spelling bees, and walking to the stage during school awards assemblies.

No matter how much I squinted and searched, I couldn’t see whether or not I was sitting in the crowd. I feared those normally-happy occasions would be marred by my absence. I imagined the sad half-smiles and the words others would say to console my children: “Your mom would be so proud.”

And by God’s grace, here I am. Not a week goes by that I don’t marvel at my presence here in 2017. I know other children are missing their moms, and it breaks my heart. I don’t take my present or future health for granted.

But as the house lights came up and I made my way to the lobby after the show, it was a joy to hug my son and say, “Wow, I really loved that! I sure am proud of you.”

Your Imperishable Inheritance is Waiting {No Matter What Monday

May 22, 2017 by Marissa Leave a Comment

My hairstylist and I chatted as I sat in her chair, discussing my next appointment and whether it was time to refresh my salon-induced highlights. That’s when she first mentioned the “fair hairs” that were starting to show near my scalp. It took me a minute to realize what she meant. Those aren’t fair hairs, they’re gray—and they’re popping up everywhere.

I’m forty years old, which is exciting for a cancer survivor like me. But there’s no denying the unstoppable force of aging. I can cover the evidence with anti-aging face cream, hair dye, and strategic wardrobe choices, but the truth is that this body is fading.

As my body deteriorates, there’s one thing I can count on: God’s given me an inheritance in Christ that will never diminish.

According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. (1 Peter 1:3b-4)

We saw last week in verse 3 that by faith, we’ve been given a living hope: Jesus Christ, who is risen from the dead. In addition, verse 4 tells us that we’ve been given an inheritance in heaven.

Your inheritance is imperishable. It’s not like the rotting bag of lettuce in your refrigerator produce drawer that you never got around to eating.

Your inheritance is undefiled. It’s perfect and pure, and no one can taint it.

Your inheritance is unfading. It can’t be diminished in any way.

Your inheritance is kept in heaven for you—because of Christ, your living hope, you can look forward to a glorious future!

No matter what you face this week, you have an imperishable inheritance waiting for you.

Why the Cross Matters

April 13, 2017 by Marissa 1 Comment

This week, we turn our thoughts to the cross and the empty tomb as Easter approaches. I love plastic eggs filled with candy, but Christ didn’t die and rise again to give us a holiday. He endured a shameful death because there was no other way to rescue us. There was no other way to reverse the separation from God caused by our sin.

Does it matter that over 2,000 years ago, Roman soldiers carried out a routine death sentence for a convicted criminal named Jesus of Nazareth?

It only matters if that criminal was actually guiltless. It only matters if He was fully human and fully divine. It only matters if His death satisfied God’s just demands on behalf of guilty sinners. If none of these things are true, it was just another day in the Roman Empire.

But if the man who hung on the cross that Friday afternoon was truly the Son of God, then when He uttered the words, “It is finished,” everything changed. Consider this list of the ways Christ’s cross impacts us:

Christ was betrayed so you could be reconciled to God. (Romans 5:10)

Christ was taken captive so you could be set free. (Matthew 26:50, Galatians 5:1)

Christ poured out His blood so you could be filled with the Holy Spirit (Matthew 26:28, Romans 8:11)

Christ was falsely accused so you could be free from the accusations of the evil one. (Matthew 26:59-60)

Christ was sacrificed so you could be rescued. (I Peter 1:18-19)

Christ was taken outside the city gates so you could be brought into God’s kingdom. (Matthew 27:33)

Christ was forsaken so you could be accepted. (Matthew 27:46)

Christ was disrobed so you could be clothed in His righteousness. (Isaiah 61:10, Matthew 27:35)

Christ became sin so you could be made righteous. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Christ was wounded so you could be healed. (I Peter 2:24)

Christ was mocked so you could be welcomed. (Matthew 27:39-44)

Christ suffered so you could be sanctified. (Hebrews 13:11-13)

Christ was condemned so you could know no condemnation. (Romans 8:1)

Christ became like the guilty so your guilt could be removed. (Matthew 27:37-38, Psalm 103:12)

Christ was separated from the Father so you never will be. (Romans 8:38-39)

Christ died in the darkness so you could walk in the light. (Matthew 27:45, John 8:12)

Christ became cursed so you could be free from the curse. (Deuteronomy 21:22-23)

Christ was humiliated so you could be glorified with Him. (Romans 8:17)

Christ was rejected so you could be adopted. (Romans 8:15-16)

Christ felt the sting of death so you could be freed from its power. (I Corinthians 15:55-57, Matthew 27:50)

Christ was punished so you could be pardoned. (Micah 7:18)

Christ wore a crown of thorns so you could receive the crown of life. (Matthew 27:29, James 1:12)

Christ experienced God’s wrath so you could be spared from it. (Romans 3:25)

Christ was the perfect Passover Lamb so you could pass from death to life. (John 1:29, Colossians 1:13)

The cross of Christ matters. It’s good news for sinners like you and me, because the One who proved His love for us will never fail to keep His promises. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1)!

This list of benefits of Christ’s cross originally appeared on this blog in April 2014.

Christ Jesus Lived and Died for You {No Matter What Monday}

January 9, 2017 by Marissa Leave a Comment

Last week we saw that Jesus gave up the perfection of Heaven to rescue us (Philippians 2:5-7). In the following verse, we learn He didn’t just trade Heaven for Earth. He traded glory for a gruesome execution.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:8)

Jesus “humbled Himself by becoming obedient.” He was the only sinless man who has walked this earth. His perfect obedience qualified Him to take your place on the cross. As the only one undeserving of God’s punishment, He became a substitute for you when God poured out His wrath on Him. Jesus lived the perfect life that you cannot live.

Jesus “humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” In the first-century Roman empire, crucifixion was regarded as the worst form of execution. The shame of hanging naked in public was nothing compared to the excruciating pain of bones breaking and slow suffocation. This painful, shameful death was reserved for the most heinous criminals.

Jesus humbled Himself for you. There was no other way to save you. You could not save yourself by good works, and you could not meet God’s standard of righteousness. Because of His great love for you, Jesus left the glory of Heaven, lived a perfect life, died an agonizing death, and experienced the wrath of the Father.

Because of His sacrifice, even though you live an imperfect life, you can one day taste the glory that Jesus left behind.

No matter what you face this week, Christ Jesus lived and died for you.

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