Incarnation - Lori

Isaiah 53:7  He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth


I graduated Fruitland Baptist Bible Institute in 2004 and the following fall I began studying at North Greenville University. At 36 years of age, I was much older than the average student. One of my classes was Music Appreciation and in that class I met a woman who was just a year or two younger. Her name was Lori. She and I became friends and we had fun in class with an instructor who was probably 12 years younger than us. After that semester, I was forced to withdraw from NGU and Lori and I lost touch. A few years later I happened to run across Lori on Facebook and we re-connected.

What I learned is that in the summer following my departure from NGU, Lori had traveled to Israel on a mission trip and had contracted a bacterial virus known as Brucellosis. It causes muscle pain and fatigue. However this did not deter Lori from her studies even though she often had to use a cane to get to class.  On top of this, in her former career as a police officer, she had suffered a traumatic head injury which required her to re-learn how to read and write. Despite all of this she finished her career at NGU a point or two shy of a 4.0 GPA. A rather remarkable achievement. In the last few years she has also began to deal with a rather crippling case of Rheumatoid Arthritis. All of this before the age of 40.

In the years since reconnecting with her, she and I have had many phone conversations. I do not believe I have ever heard her talk as though she is down and depressed. She always has a smile in her tone of voice and often times cheers me up with her wonderful sense of humor. Through all of this, I have never heard her complain about God's lack of response to her prayers to free her from this physical prison. Her endurance and perseverance under heavy trials is strong evidence of her deep faith. Her perseverance humbles me. I think I have been through some difficult times, but nothing like her struggles. Yet I often question God and act down and depressed. Through Lori, God has shown me what it means to truly trust God. To take what God has in store for us, whether we see it as good or bad, and trust him through all the difficulties with a Christ-like attitude is something I have seen in her. She truly epitomizes, to me at least, the strength of Christ during his suffering. In this way Christ becomes real to me as I see Him in her.

With all of these health difficulties, she is still active in her orchestra at her church and active with her church ministries. Through her I see the strength of Christ and His perseverance through trials and pain. Jesus is called the suffering servant and Lori captures that aspect of Jesus in her life, attitude, and strength.