Very nice.
But at the risk of tossing some cold water at an emotional time... (time to duck!)
Resignation is fine. Acceptance is fine. Surrendering to God’s will is fine.
But Jesus never said that disease is good for anybody. He never told the sick who came to him for healing that their disease was a blessing in disguise.
If disease were God’s will for someone, then every hospital and doctor treating that disease would be in rebellion against God’s will.
Jesus destroyed disease wherever he found it; he healed everybody, not just the deserving. Disease was an enemy, from the Enemy, and not sent by God.
Everybody has as much right to ask Jesus for healing today as they did in New Testament times.
And anything else about disease being some kind of ‘blessing’ is just rationalization (no matter how much it comforts the sufferer). The church as a better message
to bring.
The lesson that I take from this is to accept the journey that you are given. No matter its duration. In the end, our earthly battle will end as does everyone's. But we should all make the most of our journey.
Illness reminded Tony Snow to make the most of his journey. If we watch his example, we may benefit from his journey without experiencing all of his trials.
Who created the Enemy?
However, I think the point is that He permits such things because He can use ALL things to accomplish the good, if we continue in faith and trust.
St. Julian of Norwich, who lived through the Black Death plague years in England (1348-50) believed that at the End of Time, Satan would be compelled to see and admit that, despite all of his efforts to drive us to despair, "All things" had indeed "worked together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."