don't waste your cancer

Many of you may know my mom was diagnosed almost a year ago with ovarian cancer. Those words rocked our world completely and turned our lives upside down. I was just a few weeks pregnant at the time, and I knew it was no coincidence that God would use Eleanor as encouragement for my mom through her treatment and recovery. We have been infinitely blessed that she is now cancer free (for all intents and purposes)!

About a week ago, one of my mom's dearest friends, Susan, received an almost identical diagnosis. Susan's support and love and encouragement sustained me through my pregnancy and my mom's illness, and to hear "cancer" again attributed to a woman I adore as deeply as my own mother was a total shock and a blow to my existence. She has recently undergone surgery and is in the recovery process before her treatments begin, and her family has rallied around her with the grace and comfort only God can provide.

Susan's middle son David recently posted this on her Caring Bridge page. If you or a loved one has ever faced cancer or any scary time in life, repeat these words to yourself. Even if you don't believe them at first, God will work in you.

Don't Waste Your Cancer

1. You will waste your cancer if you do not believe it is designed for you by God.

2. You will waste your cancer if you believe it is a curse and not a gift.

3. You will waste your cancer if you seek comfort from your odds rather than from God.

4. You will waste your cancer if you refuse to think about death.

5. You will waste your cancer if you think that “beating” cancer means staying alive rather than cherishing Christ.

6. You will waste your cancer if you spend too much time reading about cancer and not enough time reading about God.

7. You will waste your cancer if you let it drive you into solitude instead of deepen your relationships with manifest affection.

8. You will waste your cancer if you grieve as those who have no hope.

9. You will waste your cancer if you treat sin as casually as before.

10. You will waste your cancer if you fail to use it as a means of witness to the truth and glory of Christ.

 

"The Lord your God is with you; He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you; He will quiet you with his love. He will rejoice over you with singing." -  Zephaniah 3:17