I was a high school student the day I met Jaylyn, a young woman that I will remember forever. I only encountered this person on one occasion. The three of us who were visiting had less than an hour with Jaylyn that day, yet, she became an unforgettable person in my life. She survived a fire seven years before we met her. I admit being taken back inwardly at first glance. Her scaring was immense. Then I saw her Bible.

I have loved my Bible from childhood, but never before had I seen one so worn. How could the book be so enlarged and seemingly frayed? Obviously, from years of being her mainstay. She must have lived within those pages that were roughed up from being so very well read.

From the moment of seeing this book, it stood fast in my mind as having been a monumental force and strength in her life. Jaylyn had found God’s great love, His strength, comfort and solace.

Self-sufficiency can keep us from the Bible. Yet, for a person who recognizes their need of God and faith, the Bible becomes the greatest of all sources for courage, tenacity and strength. What made Jaylyn different, besides the scars? How could she exude such grace and peace to us, three teenagers who came to visit? Seeing Her Bible was enough. We knew she had found Christ.

That day while being in her home, I could not know how deep and wide her influence would become for me. In a very short time–in less than two years–I would be enduring emboli as they struck my heart and lungs. Hoping and praying to stay alive, the Bible became my fortress, day and night. I came to more fully lean on the One around which Scripture swirls. Here is what the Bible reveals as the crux of the cross:

Jesus is known to be “the true Light which gives light to every person who comes into this world,” (John 1:9). John, a disciple of our Lord reveals Jesus as “the Word.” At the beginning of his writing, in verse one, John helps us see what this means:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” In verse 5, more is explained, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it.”

The Lord came to save us from our sins, but also to teach us how God wants us to live. While here on earth, His message was received exceedingly well at first, based too, on the miracles He performed. But because of Jesus’ growing influence, those who despised Him for His growing popularity with the people built a case against Him. They used their sway with the Romans, who were the governing principal in Jerusalem, calling for Jesus’ execution. This was a practice the Roman hierarchy frequently used in their thrust for political order.

He knew it was coming! He told his disciples what would happen. He told them that He would be killed and buried, yes, but rise again in the resurrection–and that He would come again to receive us to himself for eternity. Let’s be clear as to who gets this great gift.

In only a couple of sentences, John answers that question: “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God . . .”

Jesus knew what His work would be. And, He knew He would die for what He came to the earth to accomplish. He knew that the purpose would be to shed His blood to provide a covering for the sins we commit. He taught us how to live in a kingdom that is different from the kingdom of the world—one of “righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit,” (Romans 14:17). Here, we are children of God. “And, because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ,” (Galatians 4:6-7).

We gradually learn how to live into the freedom this spiritual kingdom provides. No longer slaves to our sins, we move forward into our potential of becoming more fully human, fully alive.

The purpose of Jesus’s sacrificial death is clear. It was a rescue mission! Open to all who want the light of Christ, which leads us to the Father, Creator God.

I like the caricature because this artist, a stranger to me, put in words what seems so true. I was “born to be good.” Weren’t we all? But, please note that’s a trike I’m on—with trainer wheels.

Brandon Bowers, Publisher of Today’s News-Herald, asked me to introduce this column by telling why I serve the community in the ways I feel to do. A difference for me aligns with the fact I was introduced to what the artist drew as “the good book” when I was just eight years old. It was then that I found “a greater love.” Although I have only been a chaplain for 23 years, a friend who has known me for a very long time said recently, “Joy you have had a chaplain’s heart throughout your whole life.” So, where does one’s heart of compassion come?

While at work recently, I heard myself speaking of love. After all, when we are sick, in a strange bed—and out of control, a bit of love can help a whole lot. In a few minutes at that bedside I was able to succinctly put into words my “love philosophy.” We come into this world with a great capacity to love. Love is the most healing entity in the universe. And, the more we love, the more we become like our Creator who is love (1 John 4:8). Forgive me, please, for shortening the verse! There is a point to make: The first part of that quotation includes a preposition—“because.” Put it all together and you have, “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” It’s something to ponder. (Forget the double negative—this is from “the good book,” after all!)

I recently asked an ICU patient to tell me what love has meant to him within life. He thought for a minute then remembered a stitchery his wife had made for him years ago that reads, “To love and be loved is the greatest joy on earth.” Upon researching this quote, for an author to credit, I found this writing came from an ancient fable, yet was notably employed in a speech by Abraham Lincoln before he became the sixteenth President of the United States.

As for what I shared above, I also want to say that the opposite of love is fear. For a human the fears of not being lovable . . . not being good enough . . . or, not doing enough” are some of the worse of all fears. Fear carries a load of torment. So, what makes us “born to be good” is the fact we are created with a conscience . . . which so often prods us to “do the right thing.” And, why is conscience needed? I believe that is simply because we are here on terra firma to learn. We make mistakes—and it just happens those mistakes usually become our best teachers, helping us to “wise up.” I have certainly made my share of mistakes . . . have had to turn around and go the opposite direction, at points, which is the definition of “repentance.”

I have read “the good book” from beginning to end many times and see a clear and perpetual message, “’’Man’ sins, God redeems . . . ‘Man’ sins, God redeems.” Eventually (hopefully) we get the point—that we “are “enough.” We are loved—and that love of God, self and others is what it’s all about. Off come the trainer wheels—making the trip more worthwhile. The Maker intends for us to love the ride.