His Way, Not Mine

“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” James 5:16b

There have been times I have not taken problems to God in prayer.

In hindsight, I can see that I was avoiding God. You see, when I place my problems before the Lord in prayer, I am submitting to handling my problems His way- not mine. My way often looks like pretending to be a strong person that does not need the help of others (even when I do.) God’s way often looks like me learning to accept help and guidance from the loving people that the Lord places around me (often necessary, but rarely easy.)

Look in the mirror; face your cancer head on. Then join me on my knees, as we lift up every attack by cancer in prayer and accept God’s plan, not our own, for handling them.

Check out this verse:
The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16b

Let’s face it. The righteous person is not minimizing their problems; they’re grabbing them with both hands and rushing to place them before the Lord. There’s no reason to minimize the impact of cancer - especially not to God. There have been times I have not taken problems to God in prayer. In hindsight, I can see that I was avoiding God. You see, when I place my problems before the Lord in prayer, I am submitting to handling my problems His way- not mine. My way often looks like pretending to be a strong person that does not need the help of others (even when I do.) God’s way often looks like me learning to accept help and guidance from the loving people that the Lord places around me (often necessary, but rarely easy.)

Look in the mirror; face your cancer head on. Then join me on my knees, as we lift up every attack by cancer in prayer and accept God’s
plan, not our own, for handling them. One way to see how minimizing can play a role in your cancer walk is to look at the ways people share or do not share about their cancer with those they love.

People diagnosed with cancer…
• Might protect the people they love from the difficulty of their cancer treatment.
• Might not share the severity of their discomfort, fatigue or pain.
• Might not tell of their fears for their future or the future for those they love.
• Might feel that “No one wants to hear about my cancer.”

Caregivers and loved ones…
• Might protect the person with the diagnosis by not sharing stressful topics affecting the caregiver and others.
• Might not share about struggles with finances, maintaining the household, their own fatigue or even the caregiver’s health.
• Might feel that “No one wants to hear about the cancer.”

Sharing on your Cancer Journey
What about you? Find Changes in Your Sharing Score
▶ Place an X to indicate how much you shared at each phase of your cancer journey. How much did you share about the difficulties in your life with those you love…

Before the diagnosis:
Very Little / Some Things /Almost Everything
1_______2_______3_______4_______5_______

Beginning of Treatment:
Very Little / Some Things /Almost Everything
1_______2_______3_______4_______5_______

Now:
Very Little / Some Things /Almost Everything
1_______2_______3_______4_______5_______

▶ Do you see changes in your Sharing Scores? How?

(Excerpt from Finding Hope in Your Cancer Journey)