Redemption

“Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” asked the men. “He is not here, but he has risen! Remember how he spoke to you when he was still in Galilee, saying, ‘It is necessary that the Son of Man be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and rise on the third day’?” And they remembered his words.”-Luke 24:5b-8

One year. One year of heartache. One year of tears. One year of lies. One year of setbacks. One year of doubt. One year of growth. One year of hope. One year.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been a little over one year since we lost our daughter, Leah Grace. When we look at the only photo we have with Leah, it’s brings up all different kind of emotions and memories. The biggest question that comes to both of our minds is “How did we get through this year?” The simple answer is Jesus Christ. Within that answer are more details like us drawing close to Him and receiving love, encouragement, and prayers from those close to us. Today, we could easily reflect on the grave, but we don’t want to do that. Today, we want to talk about the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, which brings life to the natural and in the supernatural.

Now, let me be clear about something. Not focusing on the grave doesn’t mean we are in denial. We both know and experience the emotions of losing our daughter. We don’t try to deny or hide the reality of it. We are open and honest with each other and those close around us. But when we just focus on the grave, we forget about the hope of life. For example, after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, many of the disciples were full of somber and fear. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment. The man, who claimed to be the Son of God, who healed the blind and set the captives free, who promised salvation, is now dead. You spent three years following Him and listening to Him and now you may be asking yourself, what went wrong? Honestly, nothing went wrong. This is exactly what He said would happen.

“Then they left that place and made their way through Galilee, but he did not want anyone to know it. For he was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after he is killed, he will rise three days later.” But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask him.”-Mark 9:30-32

See, Jesus Christ needed to die so we could be redeemed, or won back from bondage of sin. Because of sin, the consequences are death, both physically and for eternally. One of the greatest blessings of Christ’s death and resurrection is that we no longer need to focus on the fear of death, but rejoice in life! There is life beyond the grave! That’s what keeps us going. Knowing that Leah is resting in the hands of the Father and one day we will all be together worshipping Him.

Not only does the Lord Jesus Christ redeem us so we can have eternal life with Him, He also redeems or frees us from harm and distress here on earth. Now, I don’t mean that life becomes perfect and we don’t have any problems. What I mean is that our difficult chapters in life have a purpose and what the enemy meant for evil, God means it for good.

In the past year of distress, Rachel and I have heard a lot of lies from enemy. Below are some of the following lies we heard;

• “We aren’t really parents.”
• “We killed Leah.”
• “You have been cursed by God.”
• “God doesn’t really love you. If He did, He wouldn’t have allowed this tragedy to happen.”
• “This is punishment for not being the “perfect” pastor.
• “You’ll never has kids.”

That last lie has been the toughest lie to overcome, especially when many close to us are or are expecting to have kids, and when we have experienced a false positive. What do you do in those moments? Well, as Rachel taught on Mother’s Day about Hannah, “you pour out your soul to the Lord” (1st Samuel 1:15). While we can choose to focus on the sorrow of the grave and be beaten by satan’s lies, we choose to focus on the giver of life, both in the natural and supernatural. Leah has been given life for the rest of eternity as she enjoys being in the glory of the eternal Father. Christ has given Rachel and I life as we anticipate the arrival of our second child in March/April of 2023.

It’s no coincidence, but the Lord’s perfect timing. We ask all of our family members and friends to continue praying for us as we go through this second pregnancy. There are already some spiritual battles we are fighting against, but we know that we are not to be defined by our fears, but to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

-Michael A. Kubus and Rachel L. Kubus