Thanks for coming back to join me for the fourth of our Advent devotionals on the theme of God’s ‘I WILL’ promises.
Last year at the beginning of December, I was awaiting major spinal surgery. The pain was intense, keeping me awake long into the night. I used a walker. My back was bent at 45 degrees. Then, over a period of almost seven hours, my surgeon operated. With skill, he fused five of my vertebrae and slowly constructed a cage of titanium rods and nuts and bolts. He carved out space to ease pressure on the nerves passing through the compressed spinal column. After the operation, I was at last free to stand up straight without pain. It felt like a Christmas miracle!
But God does even more amazing surgery! In Ezekiel 36:26, he promises to do open heart surgery:
I will give you a new heart with new and right desires,
and I will put a new spirit in you.
I will take out your stony heart of sin and give you a new obedient heart.
When doctors in the operating room perform heart surgery, they work hard to avoid infections, match blood types, and avoid rejection. But none of those problems arise in God’s surgical procedure. His Son is the true universal donor.
Before a patient receives a new heart, we all know that someone else had to die to make the surgery possible. God’s own Son came to earth at Christmas. Jesus grew up, taught his disciples, and performed a multitude of miracles. Finally, at the cross, he gave up his own heart that we might live. He will put a new heart in all those who believe!
Have you experienced God’s open heart surgery? Have you thanked the Lord for his gift?
