Lord Make us Courageous

If you ask most women what the most important day of their life was, a big majority would reply the day their child or children were born. We were designed for nurturing. I read a survey a few years ago that asked men what they based the value of who they were on and the same question was posed to women. Men responded the amount of money they earned from their job and women responded how their children turned out as adults. Big difference between the two and yet both are very important for the survival of the nuclear family.

I am blessed to still have my mother and my mother in law. Both have loved me and have been supportive of me during the most difficult challenges I have faced in this life. Tomorrow my husband and I travel to Michigan to visit with my mother inlaw for a week to celebrate Mother’s Day with her this year so I will not be posting anything next week. I have friends who no longer have their mothers. It is very important to me to celebrate with the “two moms” that I do have in this life. If you are a mother, I hope you feel very blessed this weekend by your children and your husband. If you have your mother still or a faithful and kind mother in law, I hope you spend some time celebrating them. Be blessed and courageous!

There is much to be concerned about in this world. I am a news hound. I believe that interest started with my paternal grandmother and continued through my dad and my sister. If you are like me, you realize that our country is in a downward spiral. There is not much argument against that notion but there is hope. The hope lies in our Lord. The courage to face what comes each day lies in His strength and the knowledge that one day He is going to make everything right.

I’m not sure about any of you but for me the above knowledge is what gives me the courage to get up each morning and read each new disaster or concern facing our nation. We have troubles in our health, our families and our jobs. Then there is the constant concern of what we see happening in our nation and realizing that it has moved farther and farther away from serving God and acknowledging His holiness to becoming more and more secular and “each man doing what is right in his own eyes.” Do not be discouraged! Hang on to God’s Word to strengthen you each day. Live in a way that is pleasing to the Lord and trust in His judgment to come.

Isn’t it amazing how much we gain wisdom as we age? We go from teenagers thinking we know everything to truly understanding that as a young person, we knew nothing at all. Paul the apostle wrote all those centuries ago that each of us must learn to be content. In our own selfishness that is probably one of the hardest things to do. There is so much that draws us in this world. Desiring the best health is no exception.

My own cancer experience allowed me to grow tremendously in my relationship with Christ. There was a need there that even I was not aware of until I walked through it. I’ve known many others diagnosed with cancer who said the same thing. This disease actually ended up being a blessing. Even as dire as my diagnosis was, the spritual growth was tremendous. I have even wondered if I was even saved from eternity in hell before the diagnosis. I thought I was. Then I really began to examine God’s Word and there was much growth and understanding that still needed to come. God has indeed been very merciful to me.

If you are facing cancer or some other type of major health scare, take a look at your relationship with God. Read your bible. Take notes from your bible. God is speaking to you through His written word. Grow in understanding. This may also be your opportunity to discover for sure if your eternity is truly with Him or not.

In this life we often focus on the negative things that touch us. It’s amazing how often one “awh shucks” can eliminate so many “great job” moments. I am grateful this morning for surgery that went well for my sister yesterday. She was such a blessing to me with my own cancer diagnosis. She stayed with me and went to chemo treatments with me. She encouraged me each time I called her for support. I am so grateful to God for all she did in my life and the closeness we established as sisters.

Many of you may be fighting battles as well. They do not have to be just physical battles. Mental battles can also be debilitating in so many ways. Being “heartsick” can be just as devastating as physically sick. Trust God with what you are walking. Rely on Him. Choose to be grateful for each person in your life who builds you up and supports you. Focus on the great job moments or blessings and less on the awh shucks. Everything in this life is about choice and each of us has one to make. Choose God.

The book of Ecclesiastes records thoughts of King Solomon at the end of his long reign and long life. It is a reflection of all he has learned and is quite the contrast of how he started his reign in his thinking and in the “conclusion of the matter.” If you have not read it, I highly recommend you do. There is quite a bit of wisdom found in his words. One of his ongoing phrases is “there is nothing new under the sun.” This is quite true. Human nature does not seem to change. The same sins that plagued of old are still plaguing societies today.

There is only one cure for all of these sinful thoughts or habits or natures that can be destructive in so many ways. We have to focus on something greater than ourselves. Our society of plenty has taught us in a carnal sense that we can have all we desire. This is what leads to envy, jealousy, strife and in some cases murder. It is what dulls our minds and makes us contentious and greedy. Not very nice traits to have. If you find yourself rumenating on some of these thoughts, surrender to Christ. Cast those arguments aside and choose to love God more. Be courageous in your independence from your own self ambitions. We are all subject to it because as Solomon wrote all those centures ago, there truly is nothing new under the sun.

Be encouraged for the Lord thy God is with you wherever you go. I love those words. I meditated on them and several other scriptures that spoke of God’s promises while going through the entire cancer experience. I knew then as I know now that the only way I would have victory against cancer was through God’s mercy which scripture records is new every morning. That is another amazing promise.

Our walk with Christ can be difficult for many reasons. One of which is not understanding what we are asking for and committing to. I worry that myself in the past and many today look at God as some type of santa claus who gives us what we want or what we perceive will make us happy. We don’t concern ourselves with what makes God happy because it is all about us. We in essence use His love or what we see as His love. This type of narcissitic attitude does not carry us to the narrow gate but keeps us on the broad path. If you don’t know God, get to know Him. Desire to please Him. Surrender to Him. Don’t choose to follow Him when times are great in your life and flee Him when things turn bad and you lose “all faith.” My argument would be that you never had true faith to begin with.

I am always humbled when the Lord shows another kindness to me. Monday I had my usual 4 month scan. My situation is not necessarily an enviable one. The type of cancer I had is the kind that is aggressive and typically comes back though usually in one tumor at a time. The scan from Monday showed no recurrent disease! I have cleared over two years since the last tumor began growing back. Recall that both lungs were filled with hundreds of tumors. Chemo was used to kill all of these tumors. If one small part survives, it has the opportunity to grow back and wreck havoc.

Not only did I receive the joyous news that there is still no regrowth of cancer, my doctor decided to graduate me an additional month. My next scan will be in 5 months instead of 4. That is huge for this type of cancer. I am humbled and grateful and there are not words to describe the grace that has been given to me. What is exciting to share with you is that same grace can be extended to all of you. God is merciful and I give Him all the glory. Trust Him. Walk with Him. Trust your very existence to Him and not for the things of this world but for the glory of the things to come!

Scans come around for me every 4 months. My abdomen graduated many years ago but my lungs experienced two tumors regrowing, one in 2019 and the other in 2021. That is not unusual for the type of cancer I have. Both tumors were surgicially removed in their respective years. Today is that day for the next scan. One of the most difficult aspects of a scan for me besides the starvation period prior is the color contrast dye. Today it is required and I am allergic to it. I have to take steriods and around the clock Benadryl. I confess to all reading this blog that it is no fun.

Often we have to go through things we wish we didn’t, even simple things like a CT scan with color contrast. I suppose that is what keeps life from being boring although I have come to understand the blessings of “boring.” Thank you for your prayers for me. I never take these things for granted. Lord make each of us courageous as we go and do what we have to do.

Currently I am in the book of Proverbs for my daily Bible readings. There is so much wisdom and practical teaching held within those words especially the three verses that deal with a nagging wife. One reference states that a nagging wife is like “drip drip drip” from a leaky faucet. I paraphrased that just a tad but you get the idea. So much speaks to our lives and our character that we really don’t pay any attention to unless it is pointed out to us.

That is like daily life. So much we often don’t pay any attention to until some event grabs our attention. For me reality set in with Zach’s diagnosis. Then came his earthly death at the age of 17. Then came my own diagnosis. It’s kind of sad to me that it takes something traumatic in our lives to get our attention and remind us of what is truly important. There are so many things out of our control but maintaining a relationship with Christ and trust Him in all things is a great place to exercise control. I will be doing just that on Monday. I have my quarterly scan. For those of us with a cancer past, these scans are very important. Depending on what is found they have the potential to majorly change our schedule. Another lesson. Another reminder of what is truly important in this life.

The contrast of it all. Over the last 8 days, I have been stunned by the number of deaths in my community of women that I knew who are not what I consider to be elderly. There have been four deaths, one was from dementia and two from cancer and the fourth I do not know the cause. The fourth was the youngest of these women, 10 years younger than I am. This Saturday I will be attending a baby shower for a first time mother. A week from Saturday I will be attending a second baby shower also for a first time mother. The contrast really struck me this morning. For four, their journey on this earth ended. Where their souls departed to, I do not know. That is the saddest and most frightening statement I am writing this morning. In the same time frame, a celebration of new life and so the cycle continues.

The most important decision we can make on this side of eternity is the one to trust and follow Christ. The greatest testimony that can be given at our funeral is the one that states this is a person who loved God and trusted Christ more than this world and all it had to offer. The greatest compassion ever shown was by our heavenly Father who gave His only son to take our sins on Himself at the cross. Such compassion. Such mercy. Don’t let that gift evade you because you choose this world. There is another world coming. Choose wisely.