Tragedy often presents itself as a great opportunity for the best of humanity to emerge. The greatest tragedy was suffered by Jesus Christ when he died for our sins (John 3:16). God also turned Jesus’ legacy on the cross into history’s greatest lesson in sacrifice, perseverance, patience and strength.
Jesus’ disciples wept at the event. However, the magnitude of their joy was something to behold at his resurrection. Their joy depended on believing the word of Jesus Christ, who told the world who he was when he appeared after his resurrection.
Many of us are lingering in different tragedies of our lives. We are unwilling to receive the comfort of Jesus. Most of us live that way for a long, and it is the feeling that was once shared by Bruce Leiter. He was not able to understand. The tragic passing of his son felt wrong in every way.
But after seeking refuge in God’s words and the Holy Bible’s supremacy, he soon realized that it was God’s way of performing a resurrecting and restorative action. It was God’s way of preparing Leiter for a greater purpose in life, one that he may find unfolded amid tragedies of life. But Leiter has never been more thankful and patient than he is; even if his dearest one was taken away from him, God restored his spirit with a greater gift, one that he continues to impart in the world.
At the age of sixteen, Bruce Leiter felt God’s call to become a pastor and follow Christ. Instead of the required Greek major for seminary admission, he chose to major in English and education at Calvin College.
Moreover, he earned a Master’s degree in English from Western Michigan University, where he refined his paper-writing skills, and then went on to teach English for eight years. When his second child, Keith, passed away from leukemia in his final year of teaching, it was a tragic and traumatic interlude in his life.
Then, after three years as a sales manager, both he and his wife, Winnie, felt God’s renewed call to the ministry through a series of ten distinct occurrences. For the next twenty-seven years, He served as pastor at seven different congregations. For a time in the early years of his ministry, he worked as a part-time outside editor for Kregel Books following a miraculous recovery from seven years of major depression in 1986.
As a result, he graduated from all three of his degree programs with strong writing skills. The Christian author benefited greatly from the feedback and encouragement of his peers. Moreover, after leaving the active ministry, he felt compelled to write books with a spiritual bent. Doubtbusters! God Is My Shrink! is a book about the real author’s imaginary friendship with two made-up atheists. What he has written is essentially a postmodern version of Mere Christianity. Furthermore, he considers the acceptance and publication of his second book, a devotional Bible study titled Be Bolder Growing Older, by the mainstream publishing house CrossLink to be a divine provision.
His third book, Pray and Play, is a devotional Bible study that encourages Christians to do what brings them joy while also serving God. Now, after extensive reading and research, he has joined the ranks of published authors with his introspective mystery novel, Divided Together 2084.
Bruce Leiter’s life story is the greatest testimony to the fact that Jesus is the Supreme Healer. He offers his healing and as a mere mortal, you can neither reject nor seek a different path than accepting his call. It remains true to the wisdom that time may heal one’s heart and help one carry the weight of sorrow, but only Jesus Christ can truly manifest healing in one’s heart.
Leiter’s chronicles exemplify that Jesus carries out healing in many ways; he does not undo what we go through. He corrects those wrongs and lets us bear the enriched fruit borne in the pain of suffering. The fruit of infinite wisdom and gifts that we must pass to the rest of mankind.
