God Has Gone Before You, December 22
By Karen Tripp
When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15 NIV).
Cancer treatment typically begins with a plan. Your oncologist tells you when you will start treatment, when you’ll finish and how frequently you’ll receive a treatment. Looks like a solid plan, but you know how plans are—they change.
Cancer treatment often brings the unexpected. Treatment every two weeks can turn into every three weeks, taking away your hope of being finished before Christmas. Your side effects may take you by surprise. Or perhaps you assumed you’d lose weight, but you’re gaining.
Cancer treatment would be so much easier to endure if they could just make a plan and stick to it. Is that asking too much? It seems that with cancer, it’s just one thing after another. Many cancer patients and their loved ones are tempted to wonder, “What’s next?”
When I look at the first Christmas, my heart really goes out to Joseph. Here was a man whose plan seemed to be consistently changed by powers bigger than him.
Plan #1: Marry sweet Mary and live happily ever after in Nazareth.
Then God shared a new plan with Joseph:
Plan #2: Take Mary as your wife (who happens to be an unwed mother) and raise the Son of God as your own son. (That’s unexpected.)
The Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus changed the plan again:
Plan #3: Take your very pregnant wife to Bethlehem for the census. (That’s unexpected, too.)
This might have been the point where Joseph was asking, “What’s next?” Sure enough, God changed the plan again:
Plan #4: Take your wife and young child to Egypt in the middle of the night to escape from Herod who will search for your child to kill him.
Really?!
Cancer treatments can at times get a certain rhythm to them. If this rhythm changes, it can be hard to ignore the accompanying disappointment and frustration. Each change in the plan can drive our thoughts back to the yucky uncertainty of, “What’s next?”
When things are not going the way we expected, it’s hard to remember that this is not true for God. God has expected each thing that is happening on your cancer walk, and He’s ready for “What’s next.”
Check out this verse: “I will go before you and make the rough places smooth” (Isaiah 45:2a NASB).
God is not sitting back thinking, “Yikes—look at that rough place. I hope that works out for them.” No. God is not a spectator of your life. He is actively involved with you. God is great at showing up, especially at the rough places.
What a relief to know that God has even gone before you, to prepare your way. I love the raw honesty of this. Clinging to Christ may not eliminate the struggles, but there are no rough places that He has not already gone ahead of you to smooth out.
So, the next time you are pondering that yucky question of “What’s next?” in your cancer journey, use this verse as God’s answer:
“What’s next? I will go before you and make the rough places smooth.”
Pray: Sweet heavenly Father, thank You for going before me. Thank You for making the rough places smooth. Teach me to cope with the unknowns of cancer by resting more in what I can depend on—YOU. You are my rock and my fortress, and in You I place my health, my loved ones, and my life. Amen.
Your Turn: Looking ahead, what are three rough places that you can see coming, for which you need God to go before you? Now lift a prayer thanking God for going before you—for these rough places you can see, and especially the ones you cannot.
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.
