“The Right Stuff”
April 17, 2022
Do you ever wonder if you have the “right stuff”—the necessary qualities for a given task or job? When I read novels, for example, about the early American pioneers and all they endured to settle the West, I wonder if I would have had the “right stuff” to survive. What kind of pioneer spirit would I have possessed if I lived during that time? When I watch an occasional episode of “The Amazing Race”, I find myself wondering if I could endure, compete, and reach the finish line. The truth is, that is a very, very, very brief wonder because my arthritic knees cry out, “Stop wasting your time thinking about this. No, you cannot!”
Maybe you find yourself wondering about these things too! As a young girl, I wondered if for some reason I had to die in order to save a loved one, could I, would I? Did I have the “right stuff”—the necessary qualities? And when I read John 15: 13, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends”, I wonder again, could I, would I?
I wonder what Jesus must have been thinking during the days that led up to His crucifixion. Was He concerned if He could, or if He would be able to carry out the task His Father asked Him to do? We can glean some insight into His thoughts by reading various passages from the Bible. We know Jesus asked,
“Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
(Luke 22: 42)
Jesus made this request on the Mount of Olives, the night before his crucifixion, and He agonized over it. Luke 22: 44 tells us, “And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” Could He, would He, lay down His life for us?
Perhaps, rather than pondering if I have the “right stuff”, I should ponder if I believe the “right stuff”?
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” – John 11: 25-26
I do believe the “right stuff”—I believe what the inspired Word of God says! Do you? Reflect on this song and all Jesus endured for you and me:
“He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay.”
Happy Resurrection Sunday!