An Amazing Example of Christian Love and Hope in Suffering

It’s not often that reading a story online makes me cry, but Singing Man: Story Behind the Viral Video of Ben Ellis on The Gospel Coalition did yesterday.

Ben Ellis was a teacher at a Christian school in Nashville diagnosed with an advanced stage of cancer. He loved Jesus and loved singing to Jesus. Recently, a video went viral when 400 students and staff from Ellis’ school filled his lawn and surprised him to serenade him (or more appropriately, worship with him). (Watch the video here.)

It was tear-jerking and profoundly beautiful, making me cry and reflect for a number of reasons:

My family lost my mother earlier this year to cancer. :'(
It beautifully reflects the love we are to have for one another.
Seeing Ellis’ frailty and thinking about his death on September 16 remind of the brevity of life and encourages me to live more with eternity in mind.
Ellis’ story is a beautiful example of faith and suffering for the glory of God.
Major news outlets (Good Morning America, CNN, Fox News, The Telegraph) all shared this video, showing a secular world what true Christian love is and broadcasting our reigning Lord’s praises to millions.
A reminder of how, in Christ, we can be “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing” (2 Corinthians 6:10).

Read the story yourself with a tissue box handy or watch the video below.

“So, it is not well with my body. But it is well with my soul.”

Thank you, Jesus!

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Kevin

I serve with Unlocking the Bible. I blog for the glory of God, to nourish the church, and to clarify my mind. A lover of Christ first, people second, and random things like coffee, books, baseball, and road trips. I wrote When Prayer Is Struggle. Soli Deo Gloria