For some years, my husband
and I lived in the beautiful Elgin Valley of South Africa, home of Elgin apples
and Appletiser®.
We often traversed the magnificent Houw Hoek mountain pass, about
an hour from the city of Cape Town. After leaving the valley with its acres of
apple trees, the road ascends at a fairly gentle gradient to the summit. Majestic
mountains tower overhead, casting long shadows across the road.
After negotiating a steep
U-turn, the road continues down a steep descent to a spectacular valley. It's
like entering another world. The farming landscape is dotted with small
buildings and grazing cows. And as the mountains slip into the background, the
road is often bathed in bright sunshine.
One sunny afternoon, my
life journey arrived at just such a pass, only it wasn't beautiful. One minute
I was enjoying life as a busy registered nurse and pastor's wife, and the next
I hit a U-turn.
"You have
cancer," announced a radiologist. "And I don't think they'll be able
to get it all out." My life spun out of control as I attempted to
negotiate this unexpected twist in the road. God promises in his Word that
"in all things God works for the good of those who love him" (Romans
8:28). I had often seen this verse in action, but I admit, I couldn't see how
he was going to do it this time.
With the use of a skilled
surgeon, an unconventional and courageous oncologist, a supportive family, and many
praying friends, God pulled me through a pretty grim year of treatment. At the
end of the year, I started the descent into the valley. My future lay spread
before me, but it was so different. I could no longer nurse, due to a weakened
immune system. What would I do with my life?
I hadn't anticipated being
blindsided by cancer, so I had made no plans. But then God had known about the
cancer long before I did. And he did have plans.
Suddenly doors opened for
me that I would never have anticipated. My hobby of many years turned into a
full-time occupation as I began to share in print some of the good things God had done in my life as a
result of cancer.
At the time my treatment
came to an end, I had no idea how long it would take for my life to get fully
back on track. Nor did I realize that when it did, I would be travelling in a
different direction. From nursing sister to published author. But then, isn't
that what a U-turn is all about?
Links:
Purchase
Strength Renewed (print or Kindle)
Purchase
from Barnes and Noble (print or
Nook)
Rise and Soar Website (encouragement for
those in the cancer valley)
GAINING PERSPECTIVE
About two years after my
cancer treatment ended, I attended a cancer survivors' seminar in Cape Town,
South Africa, with my oncologist and some other cancer survivors. Part of the
program included a panel of ladies sharing their cancer experiences. I listened
in dumbstruck amazement as one after the other gave praise for cancer. That's
right. For cancer.
The last woman to speak gripped
the mike and blurted out, "Cancer ruined my life!" She dissolved in
tears, and a couple of ladies rushed forward to assist her from the stage. One
of the leaders got up to explain that the poor woman was only a few months out
of her treatment regime, and that it took time to gain perspective on something
as drastic as cancer.
"Gain
perspective?" I said to my husband when I got home. "She's the only
one that made sense! The others are crazy. Sure, I'm thankful God brought me
through it, but to be thankful for
cancer? Never."
I knew of the promise in
Romans 8:28 that "in all things God works for the good of those who love
him." But honestly? How could that include cancer?
As I mentioned in my
previous post, once my treatment was over, doors started to open for me in the
writing field. At the age of 60 years, I flew unaccompanied from Cape Town via
London to the United States of America where I attended a writers' conference
in Baltimore. The Lord provided finances for the trip in miraculous ways. A few
years later, I started work on a book of meditations in which I shared 90
stories of how the Lord blessed and protected me through the journey of cancer.
In 2010, I flew from
Johannesburg to attend another conference, this time in Florida, USA. While
there, I met an editor who liked my book, and in 2012 it was published by a
mainline publisher in the States.
Today, I can see how much
richer my life has become because of cancer. I speak at meetings on a variety
of topics. But they all bring out the same point. I am thankful for cancer, the
lessons I learned and the blessings I received. Would I go through it again? I
pray daily that I will never have to. I hated every moment of the journey. Yet I
can honestly say I'm grateful for the experience.
I guess I have gained
perspective.
Oh . . . one more thing. When
Scripture says in Romans 8:28, "in all things God works for good to those
who love him"? Yes, that even includes cancer.
Links:
Purchase
Strength Renewed (print or Kindle)
Purchase
from Barnes and Noble (print or
Nook)
Rise and Soar Website (encouragement for
those in the cancer valley)
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