God twisted his lips ....

From a book titled "Mortal Lessons," by Richard Selzer, M.D.

"I stand by the bed where a young woman lies, her face postoperative, her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, the one to the muscles of her mouth, has been severed. She will be thus from now on. The surgeon had followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh; I promise you that. Nevertheless, to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had to cut the little nerve. "

Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed and together they seem to dwell in the evening lamplight, isolated from me, private. Who are they, I ask myself, he and this wry mouth I have made, who gaze at and touch each other so generously, greedily?

The young woman speaks. "Will my mouth always be like this?" she asks. "Yes," I say, "it will. It is because the nerve was cut."

She nods and is silent. But the young man smiles. "I like it," he says, "It is kind of cute."

All at once I know who he is. I understand and I lower my gaze. One is not bold in an encounter with a god. Unmindful, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth and I am so close I can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate to hers, to show her that there kiss still works."

Touching story. Brennan Manning makes an observation on this passage which I thought was so cool. In 2 Corinthians 5:19 it says, "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." KJV

Even though in this world we are touched by our own consequences and the consequences of others action, sickness, alcoholism, broken relationships, insecurity, hatred, jealously, cancer and on and on. This was all experienced by our Lord, "a thing despised and rejected by men" Isaiah 53:3. Its as though God twisted his lips to accommodate our sinful selves, scripture shows He loves us so!

Just thought I would bring this up ... Tim

Divorcee: Forget the kids, I want my kidney back!

This could very well be the strangest article I've come across yet ...


Divorcee: Forget the kids, I want my kidney back



Broken hearts are a staple feature of many divorces, but one US man has added a novel twist to his settlement by demanding that his estranged wife undergoes surgery to give him back his kidney.

In 2001, Richard Batista showed his dedication to his other half by stepping forward when doctors said she was in dire need of a new kidney. The doting husband beat odds of 1-in-700,000 to be a viable match.

But he claims that his wife-of-19-years repaid the heart-warming gesture by shacking up with her physical surgeon - a charge both of them deny - and says he now wants the organ returned to his body.

"This is my last resort," Batista said. "I didn't want to be in the public eye." Despite the animosity, Batista insisted he would donate the kidney all over again to his hopefully soon-to-be-ex. He fondly recalls a visit to her room on the day after surgery.

"There was no greater feeling on this planet," he said. "As God is my witness, I felt as if I could put my arm around Jesus Christ. I was walking on a cloud."


http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/01/07/2009-01-07_long_island_doctor_richard_batista_to_es.html


I don't think I would take the kidney back... the whole situation is just weird.