Untangled
Untangled
Juggling the Yoyo of Cancer in Our Lives
My sister received the results of her PET Scan on the 14th anniversary of the 911 attack. Here is her text to me describing those results: Test results were mixed. In some sections cancer had completely resolved (Praise God!), in others they were worse (Confusion setting in….why mixed results, Abba?)! Detected a soft lesion on the sternum (My sister has been experiencing on going chest pains for over two weeks. In the emergency room, she was told she had fluid around her heart. She was sent her home with a drug to treat inflammation. The pain continues. The cardiologist said she did not have fluid around her heart. Her heart was perfectly healthy and functioning normally. CONFUSION…..what exactly is going on, Abba?) that wasn’t there before. Could be what’s causing chest pain (Thank you, Abba, for revealing the possible source causing the pain). Not exactly what I was hoping for, but it could be worse.
My first thought as I awoke today (September 12) was…….embrace the news of more cancer. I remembered there was a Jesus Calling Devotional on nicknaming your fears, embracing them, and introducing them to the Savior. I found the devotional I remembered next to March 6 where I keep my Prayer of Protection. March 6 is the anniversary of my father’s entrance into eternal life. Listen to the wisdom in the day prior.
Jesus Calling for March 5:
Make friends with the problems in your life. Though many things feel random and wrong,remember that I am Sovereign over everything (Even cancer, I bet). I can fit everything into a pattern for good (Romans 8:28), but only to the extent you trust Me (I believe..…help me remove my unbelief, Abba). Every problem can teach you something, transforming you little by little into a masterpiece I created you to be (I like the thought of being a budding Masterpiece). The very same problem can become a stumbling block over which you fall, if you react with distrust and defiance (The temptation is definitely there. Give me the strength to keep my shield of faith up to repel the fear darts hurtling toward me). The choice is up to you, and you will have to choose many times each day whether to trust Me or defy Me (Grant me the grace to choose TRUST every time, Abba. My father often commented that our main lesson on earth was to learn to trust God in ALL circumstances). The best way to befriend your problems is to thank Me for them. This simple act opens your mind to the possibility of benefits flowing from your difficulties (Ok, Abba, thank you for the new lesion on my sister’s sternum). You can even give persistent problems nicknames, helping you approach them with familiarity rather than dread (I name the new lesion, Duncan. My sister named the increasing nodules in her neck, Beacon). The next step is to embrace them in My loving Presence. I will not necessarily remove your problems, but My wisdom is sufficient to bring good out of every one of them (Ok, Abba, but I want to go on record that my vote is for removal of Duncan and Beacon…… You did, after all, invite us to ask for anything in Your name…..so I’m asking).
After reviewing the March 5 Devotional, I read the one for today and got further reassurance. See what you hear:
Jesus Calling for September 12:
Receive My Peace. It is My continual gift to you. The best way to receive this gift is to sit quietly in My Presence, trusting Me in every area of your life. Quietness and trust (Isaiah 30:15) accomplish far more than you can imagine not only in you, but also on earth and in heaven. When you trust Me in a given area, you release that problem or person into My care. Spending time alone with Me can be a difficult discipline, because it goes against the activity addiction of this age. You may appear to be doing nothing, but actually you are participating in battles going on in the spiritual realms. You are waging war- not with the weapons of this world, but with heavenly weapons, which have divine power to demolish strongholds (II Corinthians 10:4) (At the moment, demolishing Duncan and Beacon would please me greatly). Living close to Me is a sure defense against evil (I perceive Duncan and Beacon as evil so I will be snuggling close!).
Excerpts from Oswald Chambers’ Devotional for September 12:
……..It is not a question of right and wrong, but a question of God taking you by a way which in the meantime you do not understand (I definitely do not understand the continued presence of cancer in my sister!), and it is only by going through the confusion that you will get at what God wants (Ok I’ll keep “truckin” despite the confusion because I certainly want God’s perfect will accomplished in this situation). ……..When God looks completely shrouded, will you hang on in confidence in Him (Lord, in your mercy, grant me the strength needed to do so)? ……..If there is a shadow on the face of the Father just now, hang onto it that He will ultimately give His clear revealing and justify Himself in all that He has permitted (I am having difficulty fathoming God permitting cancer to inflict us). …..Will He find the faith that banks on Him in spite of the confusion (I am standing in faith, but I do wobble from time to time)? Stand off in faith believing that what Jesus said is true, though in the meantime you do not understand what God is doing. He has bigger issues at stake than the particular things you ask (I can’t see the Big Picture, Abba, but I choose to trust You).
While in California recently attending a Christian Concert, I read this scripture and received it as a love note from Abba. Earlier that morning I had found a black plastic heart shaped bracelet that deepen my experience of Abba’s love for me.
Isaiah 43:1-3 Sherry’s Translation:
I created and formed you, Sherry! Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I Am the Lord your God, the Holy One, your Savior!
As I wait on the Lord to reveal my next step on this journey with my sister, I am zapping Duncan and Beacon with the Light of Christ daily singing: This Little Light of Mine!
Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace as we trust in Him so that we may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit!
Written by
Sherry Fraser Somerville