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Friday, January 14, 2011
Strong in the Lord
"There are no fair weathered soldiers in God's army. All must endure difficulty. Our courage must be tried and proven. God's ships never go to sea without being tested, and only when their seaworthiness is proven do they go on longer voyages. Unless you have been through a great trial, you cannot help those who are in great difficulty.
If we were placed in a glass case, we would not grow. If we were never injured, there would be no forgiving grace. Without suffering, we would not have patience. We grow in grace only when the stormy winds of trials blow. It is through harsh experiences that believers grow "strong in the Lord and in the power of His might " (Ephesians 6:10). Christian, when Satan tests and tries you, hold the world loose but firmly grip the invisible things of God.
It is possible that God might use you to scatter His seed with a hand that was never wounded, but He will not use you to minister to the brokenhearted until trials have made you tender and sensitive. Your present, painful experience is a necessary preparation for something that will give you tenfold joy. If we are not tested, we cannot be victorious. The rule of the kingdom is: no battle, no crowns; no conflict, no conquest." - C.H. Spurgeon
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. - I Peter 1:6-8 (NIV)
Thursday, January 13, 2011
He Will Be With You
"Jesus Christ is in every pang that rips your heart and in every pain that tears your body.
Every stormy sea that has tossed you has roared around His boat too. There is no adversity so dark, so deep, or so apparently pathless that you cannot discover the Crucified One's footsteps when you kneel. In the fires, in the rivers, in the cold night, and under the burning sun He cries:
Fear not I am with you, O be not dismayed,
For I am your God, I will still give you aid:
I'll strengthen you, help you, and cause you to stand,
Upheld by My gracious, omnipotent hand.
When through the deep waters I call you to go,
The rivers of sorrow will not overflow,
For I will be with you, your trials to bless,
And sanctify to you your deepest distress.
When through fiery trials your pathway shall lie,
My grace all-sufficient shall be your supply
The flames shall not hurt you, I only design
Your dross to consume and your gold to refine."
- C.H. Spurgeon
Read Isaiah 43:1-3
Every stormy sea that has tossed you has roared around His boat too. There is no adversity so dark, so deep, or so apparently pathless that you cannot discover the Crucified One's footsteps when you kneel. In the fires, in the rivers, in the cold night, and under the burning sun He cries:
Fear not I am with you, O be not dismayed,
For I am your God, I will still give you aid:
I'll strengthen you, help you, and cause you to stand,
Upheld by My gracious, omnipotent hand.
When through the deep waters I call you to go,
The rivers of sorrow will not overflow,
For I will be with you, your trials to bless,
And sanctify to you your deepest distress.
When through fiery trials your pathway shall lie,
My grace all-sufficient shall be your supply
The flames shall not hurt you, I only design
Your dross to consume and your gold to refine."
- C.H. Spurgeon
Read Isaiah 43:1-3
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Healing is in Your Hand sung by Christy Nockels
This morning, I'm enjoying a worship song based upon Romans 8:37-39. "In all things, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us...." Let this truth wash over your soul as you listen to it.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Through the Valley
Yesterday, I was struggling with fear and dread about my upcoming surgery, scheduled for Tuesday, October 19th. Fearing the surgeon will find more cancer in my body while he's performing my hysterectomy. Fearing that ovarian cancer will be discovered before my ovaries are removed to prevent the disease. Crazy I know, but once you've had cancer the lens in which you view your health is changed forever.
I sought the Scriptures to combat my dread and fear. This morning as I was reading from a devotional by C.H. Spurgeon, I read four of his writings about the 23rd Psalm.
This is a familiar Psalm known as the "Shepherd Psalm." It's one often used at the end of life. I've heard it read at funerals to reassure the grieving who gather to remember a loved one.
What struck me today, was in verse 4, where it says, "Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect me and comfort me." (New Living Translation)
C.H. Spurgeon writes, "Although this promise is applicable to the dying, it is also for the living. If you are depressed by any difficult trial, then you are walking through the valley of death-shade." Notice the words are not in future tense; they are present - for TODAY - this very moment.
In 'The Twenty-third Psalm, An Interpretation,' by Charles L. Allen, "The valley of the shadow of death" refers to more than the actual experience of physical death. It has been translated as "the glen of gloom." It may be applicable to every hard and terrifying experience in life."
Are you dreading a forbidding journey? Are you in a dark place in life that you must pass through? Are you anguished because sickness is undermining your health? Death is certainly one of those forbidding journeys, but what about disappointment, loneliness, depression, trauma and pain? There are several others.
Wherever our pathway leads, we need not fear. Why? "For He is close beside us." There is power in Christ's presence. Let's not reserve this verse for our last day, but use it to combat our present day fears. He IS with us through every valley in life as our protector and comforter.
Psalm 23:4 - "Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect me and comfort me." (New Living Translation)
I sought the Scriptures to combat my dread and fear. This morning as I was reading from a devotional by C.H. Spurgeon, I read four of his writings about the 23rd Psalm.
This is a familiar Psalm known as the "Shepherd Psalm." It's one often used at the end of life. I've heard it read at funerals to reassure the grieving who gather to remember a loved one.
What struck me today, was in verse 4, where it says, "Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect me and comfort me." (New Living Translation)
C.H. Spurgeon writes, "Although this promise is applicable to the dying, it is also for the living. If you are depressed by any difficult trial, then you are walking through the valley of death-shade." Notice the words are not in future tense; they are present - for TODAY - this very moment.
In 'The Twenty-third Psalm, An Interpretation,' by Charles L. Allen, "The valley of the shadow of death" refers to more than the actual experience of physical death. It has been translated as "the glen of gloom." It may be applicable to every hard and terrifying experience in life."
Are you dreading a forbidding journey? Are you in a dark place in life that you must pass through? Are you anguished because sickness is undermining your health? Death is certainly one of those forbidding journeys, but what about disappointment, loneliness, depression, trauma and pain? There are several others.
Wherever our pathway leads, we need not fear. Why? "For He is close beside us." There is power in Christ's presence. Let's not reserve this verse for our last day, but use it to combat our present day fears. He IS with us through every valley in life as our protector and comforter.
Psalm 23:4 - "Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect me and comfort me." (New Living Translation)
Saturday, September 25, 2010
So...How's Terri Doin?
My husband, Rob has grown to dislike the question, "So, how's Terri doin?" It's such a loaded question. You'd think it would be pretty easy to answer since it's been nearly 18 months since I finished my chemo therapy for breast cancer.
Well...part of my treatment plan includes a drug I take daily for five years. Because the breast cancer I had was estrogen fed, I have been prescribed an estrogen blocker called, tamoxifen.
Upon my return to Mayo Clinic in recent weeks, I shared with my oncologist the struggle I was having with fatigue and depression. Come to find out, some of the side effects from tamoxifen can be fatigue and depression. For a small percentage of women who have preexisting depression, it causes depression to worsen. I have discovered I am in that small percentage. This summer has been rough. The fatigue and depressive state I've been in has clouded my view of life.
Thankfully, my oncologist has allowed me to take a reprieve from this drug for a few weeks. In a matter of 10 days off tamoxifen my energy level has improved and my view of life is brighter. I am thankful to have an explanation for the way I was feeling. I was beginning to worry I had cancer lurking somewhere else in my body due to the fatigue & depression that was weighing me down.
Also, during my visit at Mayo Clinic on September 14th, I met with a surgeon about a second opinion for a hysterectomy. The surgeon put it this way, "You're a walking time bomb. Since you've had stage 1 breast cancer, you have family history of breast AND ovarian cancer, plus a BRAC gene mutation, you're at the highest risk factor for ovarian cancer. It's not a matter of IF you should have the surgery, but WHEN to have it done. The sooner the better." How's that for a clear direction?
My hysterectomy is scheduled for Tuesday, October 19th. It will be laproscopic surgery so my surgery recovery will be shorter, however it will throw me into menopause abruptly. My GYN warned my husband and I of the hormonal jolt that will occur. Please pray for my adjustment to this next phase of my treatment plan to reduce my risk factors for breast & ovarian cancer.
That's the long, honest answer to the question, "How's Terri doin?"
Breast cancer treatment doesn't end with chemo or radiation for many women. The road can be long. The road can be steep, but there is hope because of the progress that has been made in the treatment of this disease. Early detection, is a key. I'm a living example of that. October is breast cancer awareness month, it's around the corner. Schedule your annual mammogram, ladies. It could save your life, it did mine.
Well...part of my treatment plan includes a drug I take daily for five years. Because the breast cancer I had was estrogen fed, I have been prescribed an estrogen blocker called, tamoxifen.
Upon my return to Mayo Clinic in recent weeks, I shared with my oncologist the struggle I was having with fatigue and depression. Come to find out, some of the side effects from tamoxifen can be fatigue and depression. For a small percentage of women who have preexisting depression, it causes depression to worsen. I have discovered I am in that small percentage. This summer has been rough. The fatigue and depressive state I've been in has clouded my view of life.
Thankfully, my oncologist has allowed me to take a reprieve from this drug for a few weeks. In a matter of 10 days off tamoxifen my energy level has improved and my view of life is brighter. I am thankful to have an explanation for the way I was feeling. I was beginning to worry I had cancer lurking somewhere else in my body due to the fatigue & depression that was weighing me down.
Also, during my visit at Mayo Clinic on September 14th, I met with a surgeon about a second opinion for a hysterectomy. The surgeon put it this way, "You're a walking time bomb. Since you've had stage 1 breast cancer, you have family history of breast AND ovarian cancer, plus a BRAC gene mutation, you're at the highest risk factor for ovarian cancer. It's not a matter of IF you should have the surgery, but WHEN to have it done. The sooner the better." How's that for a clear direction?
My hysterectomy is scheduled for Tuesday, October 19th. It will be laproscopic surgery so my surgery recovery will be shorter, however it will throw me into menopause abruptly. My GYN warned my husband and I of the hormonal jolt that will occur. Please pray for my adjustment to this next phase of my treatment plan to reduce my risk factors for breast & ovarian cancer.
That's the long, honest answer to the question, "How's Terri doin?"
Breast cancer treatment doesn't end with chemo or radiation for many women. The road can be long. The road can be steep, but there is hope because of the progress that has been made in the treatment of this disease. Early detection, is a key. I'm a living example of that. October is breast cancer awareness month, it's around the corner. Schedule your annual mammogram, ladies. It could save your life, it did mine.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Rest
This morning, I read this quote by Kay Arthur that I could identify with. It said, "Even when I've been weak, to the place of tears, I've found rest. Rest in the promises of our Father. Rest in the assurance that nothing depends on me. It all depends on Him. I'm simply to trust and obey, to be still and know He is God.
In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for you souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Pastor John Miller, once gave a sermon on this topic of rest, using the text above. He defined rest as a relationship with God, established by a lifting of a burden. He added, "Rest results in love for Christ which entices us to listen and respond to God's commands and faithfully live them out."
I take that to mean, resting is a releasing of my burdens to the One who is able to carry them all. Resting requires the desire to know God, to listen to His Word, then respond and live out His promises so that the world may know Him through us.
Psalm 46:10 - Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for you souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Pastor John Miller, once gave a sermon on this topic of rest, using the text above. He defined rest as a relationship with God, established by a lifting of a burden. He added, "Rest results in love for Christ which entices us to listen and respond to God's commands and faithfully live them out."
I take that to mean, resting is a releasing of my burdens to the One who is able to carry them all. Resting requires the desire to know God, to listen to His Word, then respond and live out His promises so that the world may know Him through us.
Psalm 46:10 - Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Waiting Time Is Not Wasted Time
This morning, I read a poem titled, 'Waiting,' from the book, Satisfy My Thirsty Soul by Linda Dillow that reinforced a comment a friend of mine made to me in recent weeks, "Waiting time is not wasted time."
Waiting by Linda Dillow
Desparately, helplessly, longingly I cried
Quietly, patiently, lovingly God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate.
And the Master so gently said, "Child you must wait!"
"Wait? You say, wait!" my indignant reply.
"Lord, I need answers. I need to know why!
Is your hand shortened? Or have you not heart?
By faith I have asked, and am claiming your Word."
"My future and all to which I can relate
Hangs in the balance and you tell me to wait?
I'm needing a yes, a go-ahead sign,
Or even a no to which I can resign."
"And Lord, you promised that if we believe
We need but to ask, and we shall receive
And Lord, I've been asking, and this is my cry,
I'm weary of asking! I need a reply."
Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate
As my Master replied once again, "You must wait."
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut
And grumbled to God, "So I'm waiting ....for what?"
He seemed then to kneel and His eyes wept with mine,
And he tenderly said, "I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run.
All you seek, I could give and pleased you would be
You would have what you want,
but you wouldn't know Me.
You'd not know the depth of my love for each saint.
You'd not know the power that I give to the faint.
You'd not learn to see through the clouds of despair.
You'd not learn to trust just by knowing I'm there.
You'd not know the joy of resting in me
When darkness and silence were all you could see.
You'd never experience that fullness of love
As the peace of my Spirit descends like a dove.
You'd know that I give and I save...(for a start).
But you'd not know the depth of the beat of my heart.
The glow of my comfort late into the night
The faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that's beyond getting just what you asked
Of an infinite God who makes what you have last.
You'd never know should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that 'My grace is sufficient for thee.'
Yes, your dreams for your loved ones overnight would come true,
But, oh the loss! If I lost what I'm doing in you!
So be silent, my child and in time you will see
that the greatest of gifts is to get to know me
And though oft may my answers seem terribly late.
My wisest of answers is still but to wait."
Micah 7:7 - But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Waiting by Linda Dillow
Desparately, helplessly, longingly I cried
Quietly, patiently, lovingly God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate.
And the Master so gently said, "Child you must wait!"
"Wait? You say, wait!" my indignant reply.
"Lord, I need answers. I need to know why!
Is your hand shortened? Or have you not heart?
By faith I have asked, and am claiming your Word."
"My future and all to which I can relate
Hangs in the balance and you tell me to wait?
I'm needing a yes, a go-ahead sign,
Or even a no to which I can resign."
"And Lord, you promised that if we believe
We need but to ask, and we shall receive
And Lord, I've been asking, and this is my cry,
I'm weary of asking! I need a reply."
Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate
As my Master replied once again, "You must wait."
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut
And grumbled to God, "So I'm waiting ....for what?"
He seemed then to kneel and His eyes wept with mine,
And he tenderly said, "I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run.
All you seek, I could give and pleased you would be
You would have what you want,
but you wouldn't know Me.
You'd not know the depth of my love for each saint.
You'd not know the power that I give to the faint.
You'd not learn to see through the clouds of despair.
You'd not learn to trust just by knowing I'm there.
You'd not know the joy of resting in me
When darkness and silence were all you could see.
You'd never experience that fullness of love
As the peace of my Spirit descends like a dove.
You'd know that I give and I save...(for a start).
But you'd not know the depth of the beat of my heart.
The glow of my comfort late into the night
The faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that's beyond getting just what you asked
Of an infinite God who makes what you have last.
You'd never know should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that 'My grace is sufficient for thee.'
Yes, your dreams for your loved ones overnight would come true,
But, oh the loss! If I lost what I'm doing in you!
So be silent, my child and in time you will see
that the greatest of gifts is to get to know me
And though oft may my answers seem terribly late.
My wisest of answers is still but to wait."
Micah 7:7 - But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Friday, August 20, 2010
What's So Good About Suffering - Part 5
This week I've had interactions with two young women (both in their 20's), one is battling hodgkins lymphoma, while the other is dealing with crohn's disease. They both are struggling with the limitations from their illnesses and the "new normal" of their lives. They are learning how to live life with the rude reality that comes from these diseases. I can empathize to a degree, given my recent battle with breast cancer, but not entirely. Each of our experiences with suffering is unique. Yet, we share one thing in common - our diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and future are in the hands of Someone greater than us. Our hope is in Jesus. We have a guaranteed promise that when we put our hope in Him, we will not be disappointed, as it is written in Isaiah 49:23 - Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.
Suffering has a way of causing a person to look beyond the pain to a time and place where there is no more suffering. No matter the impact these dreadful diseases have on our mortal bodies, we can cast out fear of death because of our eternal hope through Christ. None of us may have yearned for heaven as readily or frequently if we had escaped the pain of these diseases. Yet, we can set our hearts, minds and souls on Heaven with this confident assurance:
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." - Revelation 12:4
Until that day comes, Lord Jesus, I pray each of us will grow in our yearning for You, the Creator of life, who has intimate knowledge of every cell in our bodies. May we trust You with our medical treatments. Guide us and help us to make wise choices that feed our bodies, minds and spirits for Your glory. Keep us from putting our trust and hope in anything but You, the Giver & Sustainer of our lives. May we yearn for You more and more, as we await the day when we join you in heaven. In Jesus Name I ask this. AMEN.
Suffering has a way of causing a person to look beyond the pain to a time and place where there is no more suffering. No matter the impact these dreadful diseases have on our mortal bodies, we can cast out fear of death because of our eternal hope through Christ. None of us may have yearned for heaven as readily or frequently if we had escaped the pain of these diseases. Yet, we can set our hearts, minds and souls on Heaven with this confident assurance:
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." - Revelation 12:4
Until that day comes, Lord Jesus, I pray each of us will grow in our yearning for You, the Creator of life, who has intimate knowledge of every cell in our bodies. May we trust You with our medical treatments. Guide us and help us to make wise choices that feed our bodies, minds and spirits for Your glory. Keep us from putting our trust and hope in anything but You, the Giver & Sustainer of our lives. May we yearn for You more and more, as we await the day when we join you in heaven. In Jesus Name I ask this. AMEN.
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