When I was about ten years old, I had an old desktop clock radio that I bought at a garage sale with money I earned from helping my brother with his paper route and from mowing lawns in the neighborhood. It was analog, not digital. You had to manually turn the tuner to find a station. The clock had hands on it, not backlit led numbers or even the kind that flipped to change. It was old, in an off-white clamshell housing. The thing about this radio that made it fascinating for me was that it had a mechanical sleep timer button on top. Each time you pushed the button, it would add about ten minutes to the timer, so the radio would turn off automatically. I say about because it was not exact. There was a “tooth” on the end of that button that would engage a gear wheel and manually spin it to add time to the timer. Sometimes it slipped a bit, so the amount of time it added was not exact. It also had vacuum tubes inside. I know all of this because shortly after I purchased the radio, I took it completely apart. I wanted to know how it worked. And, yes, I was able to put it back together to where it was still operational. In fact, I figured out how to wire my bedside lamp to the timer as well, so that it would turn off when the radio did!

I’ve always been curious about how things work. Over the years I have learned quite a bit and tried to fix things when they break before just replacing them. I think I got that from my grandpa Mattil. I’ve had a lot of success doing so. But not always. There are some things I cannot fix, no matter how hard I try.

When daughter Bethany was about four, she had a toy that broke. She asked me if I could fix it. It was obviously beyond repair. I told her that I was sorry, but daddy could not fix it. By this time in her life, she had made a lot of visits to our doctor for ear infections and stitches and a wide variety of ailments. So she said, “Let’s take it to Dr. Rob! He can fix anything!”  He was a member of our congregation, and I told him what Bethany said the next Sunday. He thanked me for not bringing the toy to him.

I know I can’t fix everything. But I know the one who can. And, no, it is not “Dr. Rob.” It is the maker of all things. The Creator and Redeemer and Sanctifier. The one who revealed Himself to us in His Word. He knows the inner workings of everything, including us.

“[God] forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,” (Psalm 103:3)

“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.” (Matthew 9:35)

“A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by evil spirits were cured,” (Luke 6:17-18)

That’s a pretty impressive resume. But that is just the tip of the iceberg. While we tend to focus on the here and now, Jesus was most concerned with eternity.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

Jesus earned our eternal life. He paid for our sin so we would not have to do so. He gives us what He earned. That is the best news ever. But wait. There’s more. He was not one and done. He still cares for us and wants to help us. He provides the things we need for this life.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

While Jesus may not “fix” everything broken in your life the way you want Him to, He has fixed it so that you will have what you need, including eternal life with Him.