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“‘I was a stranger and you never made me feel welcome, lacking clothes and you never clothed me, sick and in prison and you never visited me.’ Then it will be their turn to ask, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or lacking clothes, sick or in prison, and did not come to your help?’ Then he will answer, ‘In truth I tell you, in as far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me.’” — Matthew 25:43-46
In this parable of the Last Judgment, Jesus states that people are to be judged by their works of mercy, as a shepherd separates sheep from goats.
In the United States today, a broken health care system separates human beings into sheep and goats as if they are cattle. Rationing of health care does not start in some future scenario. It is a reality today.
Previously I enjoyed the benefits of group health insurance coverage provided by an employer. Then for the past five years I was self-employed and had to purchase an individual policy for myself. I faithfully paid premiums to Blue Cross Blue Shield so that I could keep health insurance coverage. The first thing I learned with it was that certain conditions I had were to be excluded from any coverage because they were “pre-existing.”
Secondly, I learned that the insurance was relatively affordable as long as I didn’t need it. But when I did that would make the premium rates and deductibles I had to pay for increase. And finally I have learned what it is like to be deemed “unworthy” and excluded altogether from health insurance.
That is how rationing exists in the US today. People are divided into groups of haves and have-nots. We are a two-tiered society, where the fortunate ones have full access to health care coverage, and the others can fend for themselves.
In recent weeks I have been following the health care reform debate closely. Thanks to the internet we have a free flow of information that cannot be controlled by the media. On the internet citizens express their outrage at the injustice that is the American health care system of today.
There are many encouraging developments every day as people get organized and speak up for universal health care.
Americans who are denied health insurance coverage by insurers are essentially being told, “you are not worthy,” because the insurer has deemed their condition as not profitable enough for them. They have become second class citizens of the US who do not have equal access to health care. See my previous blog post, The Baucus Plan and 44,000 Uninsured Deaths a Year for more on this.
Can the Congress seriously believe that we can wait until 2013 to start health care reform? What can they be thinking? An estimated 44,000 people are dying each year, that is 122 per day.
At a minimum we need a robust public option, or as Dr. Howard Dean has proposed, to open Medicare in 2010 to people between 55 and 65 years old who lack coverage.
We must keep the pressure on Congress to enact the sweeping health care reform we need with a robust public option.
My own faith journey has taken me from being a non-believer raised by secular parents to conversion to Christianity as an adult, where I was active for many years in a mainline Protestant denomination, including serving as an ordained pastor. I left that vocation five years ago, then joined the Catholic Church.
I have been influenced by many types of Christian writers, from orthodox to pietist, evangelical and Catholic.
There are of course many others as well that could be included. I place these books in my top ten reading list because they have made the greatest impression on me.
Confessions, St. Augustine
Practice of the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence
The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis
Orthodoxy, G. K. Chesterton
The Journals of John Wesley, John Wesley
The Seven Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton
A Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster
Interior Castle, Theresa of Avila
The Complete Works of E. M. Bounds on Prayer, E. M.Bounds
The Long Loneliness, Dorothy Day
This month I have just completed and published an ebook: Free and Clear: Break the Debt Habit and Gain Financial Liberation, an inspirational, motivational personal finance how to book.
The book features practical steps to devise your personal action plan. The topics covered include evaluating your finances, organizing, recording and tracking expenses and income, creating a personalized financial plan, how to save, dealing with creditors, repayment of debt.
You can download a free sample at Smashwords.com or get the whole book for half-price, just $2.49 by using the coupon code BC95T before November 23, 2009.
“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.” — Psalm 68:19
During the past year I have experienced numerous instances of God’s grace at work in my life; in this journal I will attempt to record and reflect on how the this grace has come to me.
I have faced financial disaster, significant health problems, been on the brink of foreclosure and near bankruptcy; yet through all of these circumstances I have been able to find a way through them and the strength to keep going. Through it all I kept praying and praising God, and thanking him for answering my prayers even before I could see the answers.
I had a vision that I should move to another state where I could be close to my family. I did not know how I could do this, but I trusted that God would provide. I wrote out a vision statement and kept praying, seeking God’s help. I began to get ready to move by clearing things out so that I would not have so much stuff to move. I gave away carloads of items that I hauled to the Salvation Army thrift store. I was touched by the gratitude of the people for what I brought; being able to help others in need gave me joy.
I kept praying for God to bring the right buyer for my condo and thanking him for the offer I would receive. Many people came to look but none of them made an offer. I decided that I must move, and that I would do whatever was necessary to realize my vision. I just kept on packing and getting things moved out as much as possible, and we did lower the price a couple of times.
Finally I received a notice that I was in a grace period from the mortgage company before they started to foreclose. I still kept praying, asking for God to provide.
I just kept going in faith each day on what I thought I should do next. I decided I would have to get ready to move, and began working out the details of moving. Then a miracle happened, and a qualified buyer finally came forward with an offer, which called for having a closing within two weeks. My realtor said she didn’t believe they could do it, but they did.
About this time my children asked if I would be a nanny for my younger grandson after I moved, and I was able to get an apartment, just a few blocks from their home. Everything seemed to happen at once, and it has all worked out.
This amazing grace truly has been sufficient for me. Surely, God is able.
