Planning for a Baby, February 7
Daily Reflections from Inside the Cancer Journey
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Written by Karen Tripp
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37 NIV).
The big question when you’re expecting a baby is, “How are you going to fit a baby into your life?” You change your living space by getting rid of your stuff to make room for baby stuff. Your budget shows that you are spending less on vacations and more on baby stuff. And then there’s time. Somehow you will have to fit time with the baby into your already busy schedule.
After all this planning, when the baby is maybe forty-eight to seventy-two hours old, you realize you had the wrong question. The question is not how to fit the baby into your life, the question is how to fit your life around the baby. You understand this the first morning you wake up exhausted, or you show up at work with baby spittle on your shirt, or you’re changing a three-wipe diaper and you only have one wipe left. Babies have a way of being the center of your life, whether you planned it that way or not.
Ironically, the same is true about cancer. Cancer has a way of working itself into being the center of your life—whether you want it that way or not.
What about God? Babies and cancer push us to focus solely on them. You may find that God quietly cares for your needs—and waits for you to notice.
Is God someone you try to fit into your life, or is He the One you build your life around? Too often, cancer can relegate God to being an accessory in your life. I know God has become an accessory in my life when …
My focus on things I need or want increases, as my thoughts of God decrease.
My indecisiveness increases, as my seeking clarity from God decreases.
My worries increase, as my awareness of God helping me decreases.
My self-absorption and dependence on myself increase, as my dependence on God slowly drifts away.
Yuck. When cancer creeps into the center of your days instead of God, things can become a mess. So, how do you build your days around God and not cancer? One day, some Pharisees asked Jesus which of God’s commandments was the greatest. In Matthew 22:37 Jesus replied, “'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” He didn’t say show up to church, read a daily devotional, or begin your day with prayer. He said, “Love God.”
When you walk through each day focused on loving God, you see more of the things He’s doing in your life—and less of the things you’re worried about. When you shower God with love, you’re living each day waiting to see what He’ll do next, instead of worrying about what you’ll do next.
Don’t let cancer creep into the center of your life. Make God the center of your days—and be amazed how beautifully all the important things in life begin to fit.
Pray: Dear Lord, there are days I cannot get my mind off of the cancer. Forgive me. Please give me a hunger for You to be the center of my life each and every day. Amen.
Your Turn: Look at the list of indicators that God may not be the center of your life: Focus, Indecisiveness, Worry and Self-absorption. Rate these in order of 1 (least struggle) to 4 (most struggle). Pray about what you discovered.
Karen Tripp, MS, LMFT, Cancer Caregiver
Karen is the Executive Director of Cancer Companions, the premiere national Christian cancer ministry (https://www.cancercompanion.org). Her roles have included authoring several Christian books including God is Bigger Than Your Cancer and working as a licensed marriage and family therapist. She is a daughter of a colon cancer survivor. Karen uses her experience to teach how to step into another person’s struggle to help build their faith while strengthening your own.
Cancer Companion’s vision for the future is for every person impacted by cancer to know the hope, love, and grace of Jesus and that every oncology team has included faith in their treatment toolbox. By 2033, Cancer Companions will provide 5 million engagements through cancer prayers, scriptures and interactions to those impacted by cancer. Engagements include; social media outreach, e-newsletters, prayer team requests, 30 days of Cancer Prayer event, and volunteer connections.
To learn more about our ministry and the services we provide visit our website by clicking here.
