I was blessed to grow up in a home, where following Jesus was the first priority. I was taught that you should seek God in all of the decisions of life, and that he would guide you where you should go. With this committment, I was blessed with a beautiful wife and a great career. I was hardly perfect, struggling with the same issues that most men struggle with, but things seemed to work out for good as I tried to follow God and was involved in ministry.
What I did not realize is that my faith was largely untested and perhaps naive. As God led my wife and I to start to have children, we lost our first child through a miscarraige. This led me to realize that "the good" mentioned in Rom 8:28 was to become more like Christ, not necessarily good as I thought of it. To be like Christ meant to suffer.
Two years ago, my oldest daughter was diagnosed with brain cancer, and after lots of ups and downs, she passed away on December 24th, 2006 (her story is chronicled on http://jennagrace.info). I can certainly say now that I do not understand why suffering surrounds us. Whether we try to follow God, or go our own way, there will be suffering. But as Simon Peter says in John 6:68, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."
God bless.
Meet the Prof
Our Journeys, Beliefs & Stuff
- Name:
- Gary Painter
- Location:
- CA
- University:
- University of Southern California
- Department:
- Public Administration
My Life
- My friends describe me as:
- Loyal
- Hobbies:
- basketball, disc golf, hiking
- Fantasy dinner guests:
- Billy Graham, Mother Theresa, Magic Johnson
- In college I drove a:
- 1984 Volvo DL
- My worst subject in school:
- Penmanship
- College for undergrad degree:
- University of Southern California, San Diego
- Best advice I ever got:
- Even a fool is considered wise when he holds his tongue - rough paraprase from the Proverbs of Solomon
- Favorite books:
- The Bourne Series, Grisham
- Favorite movies:
- Star Wars, it is fun to watch them again with my kids
- Favorite city:
- Los Angeles, CA
- Favorite coffee:
- I don't really like coffee
- Nobody knows I:
- Love fried catfish, but I am getting too old to eat as much as I like
- If I weren't a professor, I would:
- Work for the Federal Reserve Board
My Story
Comments
Marc Schiler says:
June 13, 2008 at 10:04am
Gary, thanks for sharing. I've heard of Jenna's story and prayed for you. Don Ludwig gave us reports. Many of us have learned a great sense of perspective from what has happened in your lives and for how you have worked through it all. We will continue to pray for you and Patty.