I gave the following remarks at a community breakfast while I was in Amsterdam. We were instructed to bring our 'treasures' to give to the Lord in the presence of the community. God had been working on my heart about this for weeks, and when I asked Him what to bring to the breakfast, He asked me to share this with the group. Since I've been home, I've felt Him leading me to 'go public' to a larger degree, so I'm posting it here and also sending it to my prayer partners. Thanks for reading.
Around four years ago, my dad was diagnosed with cancer. It was in his throat and lymph nodes, so after surgery to remove as much of the growth as possible, he underwent chemotherapy and radiation. After that, he was in remission for something like 2 years before the lymph node that had been left behind in the original surgery was found to be cancerous. The cancer had spread down from his collarbone to his chest wall. He took two cycles of chemotherapy and was again declared to be in remission. A few months later, the doctors determined that the cancer had returned and was in his lungs, and so my dad started treatment again. Today, he is still in treatment, on the third or fourth (I've lost track) type of treatment since his last remission.
In all that time, I have just prayed, and asked for prayer, more times than I can count. I say 'just' not because prayer isn't sufficient--it is. But in Malachi, God accuses Israel of robbing Him of their tithes and offerings. I stand before you today to say that I have also robbed God--as Israel did not trust God enough to give Him things (such as livestock or first fruits) they were afraid they might need, I have not trusted God enough to stand up in a meeting like this and praise Him for what He's done. I've been afraid because when you tell people that God has intervened in a situation, they sometimes stop praying, and I was putting more value on the prayers of my friends than on the glory God was due.
So today, I want to offer God my praise--to say here, publicly, that He has healed my dad two times. He has preserved my dad's life every day for 4 years, when chemotherapy or radiation or their side effects could have taken his life. He has drawn me and both of my parents closer to Him through the struggle. Since I've been home, I've learned that God has done more than I even thought: my mom told me the other day that dad's doctors are literally amazed at all he has survived. My mom asked one doctor about the possible side effects of one of dad's treatments and the doctor said 'I don't know.' She asked how that could be, since he is the 'expert,' and he said 'because no one else has lived this long.' He knows of no one else who has been through the number of treatment cycles my dad has and is still able to go through more.
I want to join the psalmist in saying 'This (all of this) is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever.'
Please praise God with me--He is an amazing, healing, powerful God. I also want to ask you to continue to pray with me. Dad is currently taking daily chemo and radiation treatments that are really hard on him. Please pray that the treatment will be effective, and that God will continue to give he and my mom what they need to walk through this with Him. Thank you!
