In the nearly ten months since I was first diagnosed with incurable Stage IV metastatic colon cancer I have experienced blessings from God constantly. As a result, people are somewhat amazed at my walk through this cancer journey … they are amazed at my attitude … they are amazed at my endurance. Some have even told me, “You are such an inspiration” … “You are being so courageous.” And some have even offered, “I could never do what you are doing.”
Me neither!!!
What you might admire or be amazed at in the midst of my battle with cancer is NOT … let me repeat NOT … my works or my accomplishments – it is God working IN and THRU me by the power of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
While the world expects to see sorrow and despair in the midst of cancer, by faith IN Christ Jesus I constantly find God’s provision of hope, joy, peace, love and strength … God’s strength.
In the midst of this cancer battle, the Lord is TOTALLY and COMPLETELY sustaining me in my weakness … thank you Lord!!!
I encourage you to admire and be amazed by my journey thru cancer … BUT … ALL PRAISE AND GLORY for what you see belongs to God.
Between men there is a very fine line between encouragement and praise … admittedly, oftentimes the error is more in how the words are received … than in how the words are given. Believe me when I say I do need words of encouragement. Also believe me when I say all words of praise belong to God.
Lord, remind me, help me in the midst of this battle, to boldly and constantly remind people that You are the reason for my joy, peace and hope!
Bernie
Thank you for your inspiring blog–I stumbled across it quite by accident! I am also a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (my prognosis was very poor due to both the disease type and certain genetic mutations) in 2008, when my youngest son was 1 year old. The Lord sustained me through my journey, which included my initial denial of both the disease & treatment, eventual treatment (including chemo and a bone marrow transplant), and subsequent health issues as a result of the treatment. I think even my doctors are surprised that I am still around. The Lord truely does sustain us, day by day, through the valleys of life. We can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us, and He gives us a peace that truely surpasses all understanding–and leaves others who don’t understand scratching their heads. I love to use the word “sustain” when describing the Lord’s grace. It reminds me that He wants us to live one day at a time, and that we can find rest in Him through the most dire circumstances–after all, He is at the helm! The Lord knows that I never wanted to be at the helm regarding my cancer, let alone on the boat.
The Lord doesn’t remove us from the valley of the shadow of death, but He DOES walk through it with us, strengthening us with each passing day.
Bernie, you and your family will be in my prayers.
Hi Kim
Thank you for sharing your story and encouraging me in sharing my. I truly believe that our shared stories of how God has sustained us through our cancer and leukemia journeys can encourage others as they are faced with beginning that same journey and it strengthens our bond together IN Christ Jesus.
It sounds like you have had a much tougher go of it for a much longer time period than I and it is indeed good to know that four years later you are still around … and I imagine that is especially good news to your now 5 year old son.
Your story, your words, and your faith are a great encouragement to me Kim – thank you! Your prayers are greatly appreciated by my family and I – I don’t know about you but I find that God answers prayers in ways both small and big every day and it is such a huge blessing to know that people are indeed loving you through their prayers.
Keep up the good fight as a Christ sustained Cancer Warrior Kim – Abide IN Christ Jesus, His love and His words – and add a name to the list of those praying for you!
Bernie