Daily Delight

A large part of my nursing career revolves around death and witnessing love in the midst of it. For eleven years I have witnessed “the look"- on the face of a mom as I prepare the blood transfusion for her 3-year-old leukemic daughter, on the face of a dad as he holds his 8-year-old son down so that I can stick a needle into his chest, and on the face of a husband as he tells me how amazing his unresponsive wife is. It is the look of “I want to take their place.”As I was driving home from work last week, crying from yet another death, I began to imagine a scenario in which the doctor was explaining the dismal prognosis of a child to the parents:

“Her leukemia has returned. We will do everything we can – chemotherapy, blood transfusions and clinical trials. However, I am so sorry to tell you that she most likely will not survive this. There is one other option though - one of you could take her place.”Without hesitancy. both parents stand up and say, “Take me.”Friends, such pain and love points us toward Christ.Here is another scenario illustrating a very real outcome:With “the look” God says, “My beloved Son, these people that we love are headed toward eternal death and separation from Me. They cannot save themselves. They are dying in sin and will never overcome it. Every precious baby, every smiling child, as well as every man and woman who are looking for meaning in their lives, have no hope because they cannot reach Me, and never will, on their own. However, My dear Son, You can take their place so that they have a Way to eternal life in Our Kingdom.”Without hesitancy, Jesus says, “Send Me.”Friends, I hope these few short paragraphs magnify how loved and purposefully chosen you are. Let this devotion take you to the scriptures surrounding today’s verse (2 Corinthians 5:21). It never gets old that we literally were given a Way out of eternal death (separation from God) when Christ took our place.

About the Author

Shauni MacLean

Meet Shauni MacLean, a native of Washington State and a wife of nearly nine years to the only guy (besides her dad) who saw a light in her. Shauni and her husband are parents to two little treasures, Lilly and Molly. She is 31 years old, and aside from wife-life, mama-life and writing, she is a registered nurse in the field of pediatrics.

After receiving God’s comfort and revelation through inner trials over the last seven years, Shauni has been led to be uncomfortably vulnerable with her past and current struggles, as well as the Kingdom of God triumph that follows, so that other women can be encouraged. When Shauni writes, she is thinking of the women that need to know that we are all in the same fight that will lead to victory.

You can be encouraged on your journey as a wife and relate with Shauni on her blog.

You can also receive real life inspiration, from good times to hard times, with her on Instagram.