“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19 ESV).

Do you have any regrets? Is there anything in your life you wish you could change? Something from your past that makes you cringe?

If only we could wipe away our mistakes

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18 NIV).

Fears pervade the cancer experience: the fear of a cancer diagnosis. The fear of the unknown. The fear of missing out (FOMO). The fear of suffering and death. You may even feel like you are suffering from pantophobia, the fear of everything!

Fears can be as harmful as the disease itself. How do you manage and overcome them?

“I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Revelation 1:18 NIV).

Death. We hear, see, and read about it daily. We read about it in horror novels. We read about death occurring daily in mass media. Shootings. Car accidents. Recently, the coronavirus pandemic. We see death filmed graphically in Hollywood motion pictures, told through intricate storylines of incantations, gratuitous violence, and the like. Until we are faced with the likelihood of death closer to home, though, many times we don’t give death much serious thought.

Suddenly the unthinkable occurs. The announcement of cancer hits us like a ton of bricks. Now, the fear of death rises from being an afterthought to becoming a major thought. . . .

“To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, LORD my God, brought my life up from the pit” (Jonah 2:6 NIV).

Some of the most familiar Bible stories for children include David and Goliath, Noah’s ark, and Jonah and the whale. These scriptures have been read so often that the common human struggles addressed are often missed. Jonah heard from the Lord. We long to hear from God, but when we do, we may not like what we hear. Jonah sure didn’t. He was told to go to Nineveh and cry out against their wickedness. He didn’t like the assignment and headed to Tarshish instead. Not a good idea. He ended up in a dark place.

“When I was sick, you took care of me” (Matthew 25:36 CEV).

I grabbed the rail and tried to pull myself up in the hospital bed, but could not do it. Severe pain shot through my abdomen from the incision where the feeding tube had been installed a few hours earlier. I paged the nurses’ desk and begged for help.

A few moments later, nurse Jason dashed into the room. Quickly, he slid his arm behind me and placed his hand on my back. With his other hand, he took hold of mine. On the count of three, in one smooth move, he miraculously sat me up and turned me so that I was sitting on the side of the bed. As I started to stand, he stopped me and sat me back down. He had noticed my hospital socks had somehow slipped halfway off my feet. Not wanting me to fall, he knelt in front of me and hurried to pull my socks up nice and snug.

“‘I cannot do it,’ Joseph replied to Pharaoh, ‘but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires’” (Genesis 41:16 NIV).

The Scripture tells us God opposes the proud and that pride goes before a fall. But who doesn’t love to receive praise? Joseph has a gift of interpreting dreams. The Pharaoh learns of his ability and calls him to the king’s private chambers. The king flatters Joseph, saying that no one in his kingdom has been able to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams. The king appeals to Joseph’s pride, commenting that he has heard that he is the only one who can interpret the dreams.

“Then Barnabas came to [Saul’s] help and took him to the apostles. He explained to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and that the Lord had spoken to him. He also told them how boldly Saul had preached in the name of Jesus in Damascus” (Acts 9:27 GNT).

Cancer treatment and recovery are unpredictable. Yesterday, I felt good enough to mow the lawn or do a few loads of laundry—but today, I am good for nothing but lying on the couch. Couch-days can lead to the often-difficult task of asking for help. Do these days leave you wishing there was something you could do to add value, to be helpful, to be a giver and not always a receiver? It’s easy to forget that sometimes the simplest things can give more than you could imagine.

Before Mark and I were married, I went to church mostly every Sunday and Mark sometimes went with me. He grew up going to church, but for him, worshiping seemed more of an obligation/routine rather than free will worshiping, with people who treat you like family and welcome you by name. He was surprised and joyful about how loving everyone was at “my” church, and how Scripture resonated with him more than ever before.

As a child, I loved watching the flying trapeze. I’d strain my neck to watch the bejeweled lady release the bar just in time for the man to catch her. Would her searching fingers find the safety of his arms? Can you imagine trusting someone enough to let go of the bar, or trusting yourself enough to catch them? Maybe it would be easier to be a clown. But if you are going to experience the thrill of the catch, you have to let go of the bar.

Roughly fifty-three million Americans are serving as caregivers for their family members.1 That means probably about one in five Americans are feeling exhausted from: Cooking. Cleaning. Driving. Scheduling. Shopping. Handing out medications. Counseling. Cheerleading. This means around one in five may be: Restless. Worrying. Crying. Uneasy. Jealous. Angry. Resentful. Bored. Fearful. Frustrated. Scared. Caregiving is one of the most noble and most difficult ministries that a person can undertake. 

“But when they did not find [Paul and Silas], they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, ‘These who have turned the world upside down have come here too’” (Acts 17:6 NKJV).

My oldest brother died at age thirty-eight unexpectedly. I still think about our last conversation. We talked about coming to faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. He said, “I have to get some things together before making that commitment.” He knew inviting Christ into his life would change everything. He wanted to believe he could get his life in order before his journey with Jesus began. He was not ready for the transformation.

“God is love” (1 John 4:8b NIV).

As a kid, no Easter was complete without a chocolate bunny. Mom would get each of us identical chocolate bunnies, each wrapped in shiny foil with a colorful bow around their necks. At the earliest opportunity, I’d rip off the foil and bite off as much bunny ear as I could cram into my mouth. Although I anticipated biting a giant chunk of sweet milk chocolate, the result was splinters of chocolate exploding in my mouth and across my new Easter dress. You see, the bunny wasn’t solid chocolate. It was hollow. Just looking at that sweet chocolate bunny did not tell me that the inside was only air.

People can be like that. On the outside they look solid. They look like someone you can depend on when things get tough. Then the tough times come, and you discover who is hollow and who is solid. Cancer is one tough time that too easily reveals the staying power of our loved ones.

“For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you. Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation’” (2 Corinthians 6:2 NKJV).

If you are experiencing cancer, most likely the concept of salvation has crossed your mind. What is salvation? It is a simple process—as easy as 1,2,3. And, as today’s verse says, “now is the day of salvation.”

“A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy” (John 16:21-22 NIV).

Think about today’s verses. Often, God brings joy to our lives not by substitution, but by transformation. His illustration of the woman giving birth makes this clear. The same baby that caused the pain also caused the joy. In birth, God does not substitute something else to relieve the mother's pain. Instead, He uses what is there already—but He transforms it.

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27 NIV).

One of the tremendous joys of my life has been spending time with my grandchildren. They bring out the child in me. They also remind me of how inherently selfish and independent we are from an early age. What the younger grandchild is doing is suddenly what the older one needs to do immediately.

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23 NIV).

The big day had arrived! Usually, these words would mean I was excited about something. However, this day would be one full of uncertainty and anxiety. It was my first day of chemo treatment on my cancer journey. (I say “my,” because each person’s experience on this path is different.

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God” (1 Peter 3:18a NIV).

In the still of the night when all is quiet, so quiet you can hear your heart beating, your thoughts settle upon the pain. It may be pain from an emergency surgery, or a tumor spreading like a spilled glass of milk on a kitchen counter in your once unblemished body.

“So they asked him, ‘Who is this fellow who told you to pick [your mat] up and walk?’’” (John 5:12 NIV)

Thirty-eight years ago, I was thirty years old. How old were you thirty-eight years ago? John 5:2-12 records the story of a paralyzed man lying by a healing pool for thirty-eight years. That is a long time! It was said an angel would stir the waters, and the first one into the water when it was moved would be healed. Jesus sees the man lying by the pool. He asks, “Do you want to be healed?” Of course, the man did. But the paralytic explains that when the waters were stirred someone always beat him into the waters. Part of me wants to sympathize with the unfortunate man. The judgmental part of me says, “Come on, man!” It is hard for me to believe that after thirty-eight years he couldn’t find some way to get in the pool. I get lost in an avalanche of questions. Then, I realize this story is not about the paralyzed man. It is about Jesus. Jesus simply says to the man, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.”

“You are altogether beautiful” (Song of Solomon 4:7 NIV).

When Jill first came to work with us at Maple Tree Cancer Alliance, she had just been diagnosed and was literally days out of breast cancer surgery. At her initial appointment, she sat in our office and cried and cried. She was still trying to navigate this new journey she was on. We sat with Jill and listened to her as she vented through all the anger, frustration, and anxiety she was feeling.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field” (Matthew 13:44 NIV).

Ever heard the expression, “God’s got this!” in relation to your own prayer request?

As a pastor I’ve said it plenty of times to people asking for prayer, only to find that quite often they scarcely feel reassured. Faith that “God’s got this” when it comes to the results of their cancer test tomorrow, next week, or even next month may seem like a bridge too far.