This summer, a good friend told his family that I was scheduled for another stem cell transplant to fight cancer. That night his oldest child prayed: “And God, help Mr. Dana with what he’s going through. May he live to tell the tale.”
Five-year-old John prayed in church this past Sunday and thanked God for answering his most frequent request. “God, thank you that Dana’s mustache has come back and help him get all the way better.”
Tuesday we met with the doctor at Emory and learned that the cancer count in my blood is now zero! We praise God and thank the youngest to the oldest for all the prayers offered on our behalf. My parents were in town Tuesday to pick up my youngest brother and his family who were flying in from Africa for their missionary furlough. They all got to celebrate with us. A father and mother’s love never dwindles… no matter how old the child…
So I’m trying to figure out what ‘tale to tell.’ What does God want to do with us? The cool possibility is that ‘our tale’ can be ‘His tale.’ Will I give Him full invitation? Will I present myself to Him with no restriction? “Here I am. I have come to do Your will.” These were Jesus’ words to His Father as He came to earth. A perfect attitude led the Son to make “Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant.” Oh to be like Him…
Oswald Chambers wrote: “As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God’s interests. This can only be accomplished by giving up all of your personal plans once and for all, and by allowing God to take you directly into His purpose for the world.”
His tales are grander than anything we can even dream about… so let’s see what the future holds.
“This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true. Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” John 21:24-25