First, I’ll share that we got a great report from the hospital regarding the tests that were done last week. There is still no sign of cancer in my blood or bone marrow and I thank God!
As I share such good news about myself, my heart breaks for close friends that are fighting cancer or facing other trials. We probably all have friends that are suffering. We wish we could help some way. We wish we could do something. We know we can pray and we believe God hears us, but there is often a helplessness we feel as we see friends struggle.
The thing we know we can do is love. The Lord instructs us to love fervently from the heart. Let us be creative in our love for one another. Ask yourself what would bless you if you were in the shoes of your friend… then bless your friend that way. As I lay sick last year, I knew there was nothing any person could really do outside of prayer. But how my spirits were lifted when someone showed love to me or my family! The thing I most needed was God… and I saw God through the love of His children.
The other thing we can do is trust the Lord. He has blessed my family through the whole time of difficulty. He has brought about good things that never would have happened apart from the trial. Our close friends, Joe and Sybil, have communicated supernatural peace and joy as they are in the midst of the fire. How can this be? No one wants to suffer, but we can trust that God is greater than any hardship. Though we may feel the enemy is destroying us, God can reverse the tables and turn our trials to gold.
Now our dear friends, Perry and Suzette Price, are entering a similar battle. Suzette has recently discovered she has breast cancer and will have surgery next week. As I have just gotten a good report and Suzette has received such difficult news, guess who is encouraging who? She sent me a note this week that reminds us all of our hope. Let us praise the Hands that carry us through!
May the HANDS that formed the earth touch your body and heal it… May the BREATH that moved over the waters fill your soul with life… May the HEART that sacrificed to save you surround your heart with comfort… May knowing that you are in the Hands of an all powerful, all loving God bring you peace.
“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.” Isaiah 40:29