I Love Devotionals by Wendy van Eyck

Want to create the life of your dreams? Ask yourself these 4 questions to determine how to move forward in any season

2017-10-23T11:25:00.001+02:00

Renee Fisher is one of the first people I connected with online. Her friendship has been a great source of encouragement. I've followed her ups and downs and seen how through it all she never stops dreaming or helping others achieve their dreams. She launched her tenth book, Unløved, a short but powerful eBook that empowers women to find freedom by embracing their inner critic last week. You can purchase it on Amazon for $2.99 here. I asked her if she'd mind me sharing a short expert and she kindly agreed. I hope you are encouraged by it.

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Seasons change. I never realized the spiritual significance of the changing of seasons until I learned how to cultivate a life of my dreams.

Jesus is quoted twice in the Gospels talking about spiritual seasons in Matthew 16:2-3 (NIV) and Luke 12:54-56 (NIV):

He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times”. He said to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?”

It doesn’t take much effort to walk outside and determine if it’s going to rain that day. It does, however, take time to learn how to pray and read the Word to determine which spiritual season you are in.

Your ability to praise the Lord despite your circumstances or unmet desires has the power to awaken your dreams, including the dreams of future generations.

Dreams, like seasons, change often.

If you are unsure how to cultivate a life of your dreams, ask yourself these four questions to determine how to move forward.

1. Summer: My dreams are ripe. Even in the heat of summer, we can relax and take a much-needed vacation. We can taste and see that the Lord is good (see: Psalm 34:8).

2. Fall: My dreams are harvested. We can mature and save up for the winter season knowing that we are rooted and grounded in love (see: Ephesians 3:17). We can choose not to be moved away from the hope of the gospel (see: Colossians 1:23).

3. Winter: My dreams are not dead. Winter brings a much-needed break, although it might feel like coming to a screeching halt. We may feel uncomfortable with the process of solitude and silence, but it will help us uncover what’s in our hearts. To admit, like Elijah, the answer to the question, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (see: 1 Kings 19:9, 13).

4. Spring: My dreams are newly planted. We may not understand, at first, that the storms and rain are actually a blessing to drive that tiny seed deeper and further under the soil to die so that it can come back to life. We can plant in tears knowing we will harvest with shouts of joy in a future season (see: Psalm 126:5).

Spiritual seasons can be tricky. It took me almost an entire year to realize I was in a winter season last year in Houston and to acknowledge that my dreams were not dead—just waiting for spring.

Now in Austin, I thought that my dreams were coming back to life, only to have a mound of dirt piled on top of me so these baby dreams can grow for a later harvest in a future season. It’s so complicated that I sometimes feel like giving up. Will my desires ever be met? But, if I’m honestly asking myself that question—I already know the answer. Of course they will! God has been faithful before and He will again.

I don’t know what season you are in or how freeing or frustrating it may feel. But don’t quit! Don’t run away! You can bloom where you’re planted.

“There will always be flowers for those who want to see them.” There will always be dreams for those who want to live them.

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If you'd like to read more of Renee Fisher's work buy Unløved now for $2.99 or visit her website reneefisher.com to find out how she can help you call your dreams to life.

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When you have to tell everyone what God has done (Hint: It's a quick update on Xylon's health)

2017-09-18T12:05:00.000+02:00

But the closer I am to You, my God, the better because life with You is good. O Lord, the Eternal, You keep me safe— I will tell everyone what You have done. Psalm 73:28

Xylon and I have grown so tired of hearing, “It looks like the cancer is back.”

It happens like clockwork every time Xylon has a PET scan. This year was no different.

He flew to Johannesburg for the scan in July. If called me from the airport with the results in his hand and fear in his voice, “I never should have opened them. They say it looks like the cancer is back.”

Usually, fear takes route in my stomach wrestling with my intestines. This time it didn’t. This time I replied to Xylon immediately, “I don’t think it is. The doctors who wrote that report are only looking at a tiny part of the picture. They are looking at one scan. If you look at the big picture, you are healthy.”

A week later, we sat in the oncologist’s room while we planned out the next steps. An operation to remove the lymph nodes that had grown followed by a biopsy.

We scheduled the operation for the middle of August. After Xylon would have completed his big cycling goal for the year: a 230 km mountain bike race.

With his muscles still tender after the race, I kissed Xylon and watched the porters wheel Xylon into surgery. I still felt peace. Usually, by this stage of the process, I am in knots and wondering what will happen to us if the cancer is back for the fourth time.

The surgery went well and the surgeon tells us he should have the results in about a week. We’re both still calm. Our mustard seed faith is still carrying us through.

The afternoon, before we are meeting the surgeon for the results, the phone rings while Xylon’s in the shower. I answer it. It is the oncologist’s rooms. They ask if we have the results of the biopsy. This time fear makes my stomach drop as I say, “Not yet.”

The nursing sister asks if I’d like her to share the results with me.

I have a split second debate about whether I should wait for Xylon to get out the shower and then think, ‘Let’s just get this over.’ I reply, “Yes, please.”

She says, “It’s not cancer. The doctor’s very happy.”

I’m sure she said something else but I didn’t hear it. I say goodbye and run through to the bathroom.

I scream at Xylon who is still showering, “It’s not cancer!”

Later, we go out to celebrate at Xylon’s favourite restaurant.

We celebrate because we know that life is a gift, and growing old is a privilege not everyone has.

We celebrate because we’re so thankful that God has healed Xylon. We don’t know why he healed him when others cries for healing go unanswered. We wrestle with that a lot.

My mom sent me Psalm 73 shortly after Xylon opened the scans in the airport. It helps me with some of the why doesn't God heal everyone questions I have, and I hope it will encourage you (I’ve included parts of it below, you can read the entire Psalm here):

Truly God is good to His people, Israel, to those with pure hearts.
Though I know this is true, I almost lost my footing; yes, my steps were on slippery ground.
You see, there was a time when I envied arrogant men and thought, “The wicked look pretty happy to me.”

For they seem to live carefree lives, free of suffering; their bodies are strong and healthy. They don’t know trouble as we do; they are not plagued with problems as the rest of us are.

But look at this: You are still holding my right hand; You have been all along.

Even though I was angry and hard-hearted, You gave me good advice; when it’s all over, You will receive me into Your glory.

For all my wanting, I don’t have anyone but You in heaven. There is nothing on earth that I desire other than You. I admit how broken I am in body and spirit, but God is my strength, and He will be mine forever.

But the closer I am to You, my God, the better because life with You is good. O Lord, the Eternal, You keep me safe— I will tell everyone what You have done.

I know so many of you follow this blog, and Xylon's story, and have prayed for us, so I wanted to tell everyone what God has done (again).

I hope that it will encourage some of you who are also living through impossible situations that God is still able.

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{You might also like these posts}

Do you need faith for God to heal? (This women didn't think so and she got healed)

Why I know God is real (Xylon writes his own health update)
When your season of healing is longer and more painful then you ever imagined

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals.

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5 bible verses that can help when you’re struggling

2017-02-06T06:15:00.000+02:00

A few weeks ago I asked you all to help figure out what I should write here and what happened surprised me.

For starters, almost 150 of you replied. I expected much fewer.

Then, when I began to read through what you’d said I was overwhelmed by how kind you all were, how so many of you shared stories of how the struggles I’ve shared here have helped you get through something hard.

And in doing so you’ve helped see the bigger picture here.

I always thought I wrote about “cancer” or about “doubt” or “depression” but what I realised reading your responses is that I write about things I struggle with and many times what I learn helps you to find hope.

I’ll be sharing some new material soon but in the meantime I wanted to say “Thank you” for taking the time to tell me what this online home has meant to you and share 5 bible verses that have helped me through when I’ve been struggling:

The Lord turned to [Gideon] and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” Judges 6:14(NIV)

Read my devotional about this verse here

If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, For He is not able to deny Himself. 2 Timothy 2:13 (VOICE)

Read my devotional about this verse here

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? Psalm 8:2-4 (NIV)

Read my devotional about this verse here

And that’s not all. We also celebrate in seasons of suffering because we know that when we suffer we develop endurance, which shapes our characters. When our characters are refined, we learn what it means to hope and anticipate God’s goodness. Romans 5:3-4 (VOICE)

Read my devotional about this verse here

When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Lamentations 3:28-29 (MSG)

Read my devotional about this verse here

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Words to pray if you need Jesus to be your strength today

2016-09-19T05:30:00.000+02:00

I don't make a living from blogging. It's a hobby. Something I do because I love writing and this gives me a reason to write consistently.

I've looked into turning this into a business but since I primarily write about finding hope in God when times are tough it just hasn't felt right. Every few months I make about $10 as an Amazon affiliate when you guys buy a book I've recommended. And I get all giddy because it means I've got a little stash of cash to buy a few books on Kindle sales.

A few months ago I signed up to webfluential (follow this link to sign up and I could get a bit more book money). I didn’t think anything would come from it and then recently I was approached by a pharmaceutical company to post a photo of me with my sourced strength written on my bicep (evidence of how weak I am physically).

I've never done a sponsored post on social media before but I thought, 'let me give it go.' I knew right from the moment of reading the brief that there was only one answer I could give to the question, what is your source of strength?

This is what I wrote:

When my husband, Xylon, was receiving treatment for cancer over the period of two years people who often come to me and said, “I don’t know how you do it, I couldn’t be so strong. Where do you get your inner strength from?” Much of the time I woke up each day and went through the motions in a blur but the only reason I had the courage to wake up each day was because of faith in Jesus that he redeems all things. My faith is my source of strength; it is what makes me a strong woman, and one who is not overcome by fear of what the future holds.

Originally I'd wanted to use a photo with "Jesus" written on my bicep. When I went to write the copy for it I put on my corporate marketing hat and went, "That will never get accepted." So I changed it to "faith" because I figured the story about Jesus helping me through my husband's cancer diagnosis and treatment were more important then writing “Jesus” on my arm.

I sent the picture to my Webfluential account manager and it took days to get an answer. She apologized and said it wasn't normal and that the post was with head office she wasn't sure why. I’m guessing that Jesus had something to do with that.

Right at the beginning, I decided that if I was going to do something for money it needed to fit in with what I believed and for me I really couldn't think of another way to answer a question about my source of strength. I tried to think of something else but I couldn’t because there is nothing, which is as strong when I'm weak, as Jesus.

These are some of the words I prayed when Xylon was going through treatment that gave me the strength to do the next thing:

Jesus you are our crutch and our hope. You hold us up when we’d rather curl up in a ball and rock ourselves to sleep. You make us smile when we feel like frowning. When we feel alone, Jesus, you remind us that you are still there with us. Even on the days when we don’t feel you are close we know that you are because you’ve promised to always be there. You have promised to give strength to the weary and change mourning into dancing – and we believe you do, you will, and you have. We ask that each day you will show up with new mercy, with enough strength for the next 24 hours.

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7 bible verses for tough times

2016-05-12T05:30:00.000+02:00

In the Bible I keep next to my bed there are 7 pink post-it's that stick out between the pages.

I remember placing each of them there in the days after Xylon's first cancer diagnosis. In my fear and dread of the future I put these little reminders in my bible so I could easily find reminders of God being for me on the days when I couldn't feel him near me.

I love The Message bible. There is something about the way Eugene Peterson writes that opens up the word of God for me so I'm sharing this version here but I know that no matter what bible version you enjoy God can still speak to you through these verse in tough times.

1. Psalm 23:6
Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.I’m back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life.
Read my devotional on this verse here

2. Isaiah 30:18
But God’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you.
    He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you.
God takes the time to do everything right—everything.
    Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
Read my devotional on this verse here

3. Lamentations 3:22-27
God’s loyal love couldn’t have run out,
    his merciful love couldn’t have dried up.
They’re created new every morning.
    How great your faithfulness!
I’m sticking with God (I say it over and over).
    He’s all I’ve got left.
God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits
to the woman who diligently seeks.
It’s a good thing to quietly hope
quietly hope for help from God.
It’s a good thing when you’re young
to stick it out through the hard times.
Read my devotional on verse 25 here

4. Zephaniah 3:16-17
Jerusalem will be told:
    “Don’t be afraid.
Dear Zion,
    don’t despair.
Your God is present among you,
    a strong Warrior there to save you.
Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love
    and delight you with his songs.
Read a devotional on this verse here

5. Romans 8:31-39

So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:
They kill us in cold blood because they hate you.
We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Read my devotional on this verse here

6. Ephesians 3:20
God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.
Read my devotional on this verse here

7. 1 John 3:18-20
My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality. It’s also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.
Read my devotional on this verse here

What are the Bible verses that get you through tough times?

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A word for 2016

2016-01-14T05:30:00.000+02:00

Where it all began

When I started this blog back in 2012, I wrote about finding God in the midst of cancer, but it's been almost two years since Xylon's last treatment and we're starting to peek out at the world and say, “Hey, is this what life is like after cancer treatment?”

This gap has left me wondering what to write here. I haven’t been sure how to write about God’s quiet presence through hard things when my life has been good. There have been the normal ups and downs but nothing like the darkness of those years of cancer treatment.

When all is said and done I've been trying to find my voice again. The post cancer treatment voice. You may have noticed that in the last year.

You may have picked up on how my writing didn’t flow so easily, how I lent heavily on things and experiences I’d had in the past, how I re-purposed writing for the blog instead of writing fresh about God in the midst of my mundane life.

Since I took a blogging break in September I’ve been praying about what to do with this blog. There has been no quick answer so I have just kept on writing while at the same time feeling that I needed to be writing posts that sound more like me (after all if we went for coffee I wouldn’t just talk about God and cancer all the time).

I didn’t know what these thoughts and prayers would look like on the blog, I definitely didn’t know how I would write it. And I didn’t know what the thread that would hold it all together would be.

Finding a thread

I was reading a book in December where the main character in the novel kept feeling that God was telling her to “Love well”. That really resonated with me. So I held it lightly in my heart and asked God whether it was something for me.

Most days when I went for a run I thought about this phrase, “Love well”. The more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea of “well”. I liked that it meant healthy and beneficial as well as good and thorough.

I loved the link to that old hymn, It is well with my soul, and the fact that things can be well in our souls even when outside circumstances are tough.

Over the last few days and weeks I started trying “well” on and I found that I wanted the word to define more than just how I love this year.

“Well” has become a thread that I’m winding through my whole life and it’s something I want to start sharing on this blog.

What does this mean for ilovedevotionals?

It means you’ll be seeing a wider mix of posts on this blog. I’ll still post devotionals, but like a conversation over a bowl of popcorn, I’ll also share about other things I care about.

I often write on other sites and I can't wait to share snippets of that here. The topics are wide and varied and I hope you'll like them.

I’ve also been longing to share more about books that I love, or point to other writers blog posts.

I want to share about my journey to run 21km. And what I'm learning as I attempt this.

I want to have space to speak up about things that need to change, things I think Jesus would be speaking up about too.

I’m also going to be opening this space up for guest posts on the theme of “well” if you’re keen click through here to find out more.

A new website and an invitation

If you clicked through to the website to read this you’ll see that the site has had a bit of a facelift but there is still some much work to do on it.

Like this website, this new journey I’m on with the blog is a bit unfinished, it’s rough around the edges but I’d love to invite you to join me as I try to do “me well” this year.

My hope is that by the end of the year you’ll feel like you’ve come to know me, (even the crazy parts of me that you’ll wish I’d never shared).

And my prayer for us (borrowed from Psalm 90:12) as we embark on this journey together is this:

Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!

What are your thoughts on some of the changes coming to the blog? What would you like to see more of?

5 devotionals to help you through hopeless situations

2015-12-17T14:46:00.003+02:00

I write most of the devotionals on this site myself however I love sharing the voices of others who have found Jesus is with them and likes them in the midst of something hard.

Sometimes I ask people who inspire me to write for me, and other times they ask if they can share something.

Here are some of the devotionals written by guests on my site that inspired me and challenged me the most in 2015. (If you'd like to see your devotional on this site in 2016 go here to find out how that can happen).

How I learned not to worry about tomorrow

There is a funny story about this post. I was sitting worrying about what to write on the blog tomorrow. I was thinking about how Xylon just arrived back from 2 weeks away, and how I wanted to spend time with him, and not write. Then I thought let me check my mail and I saw a mail from my friend Nelet with a guest post submission. Not any guest post submission but this one about not worrying about tomorrow. Felt like God was speaking write to me, saying, “See, you’re worth more than many sparrows. I will look after you. Here’s a devotional for tomorrow.” I hope it meets you right where you are just like it did me.

Read this devotional here

When God breathes life into a hopeless situation

This is another guest post that came to me at just the right time. Xylon and I had just heard that it looked like his cancer had reoccurred. This was bad news with few viable (in our minds) treatment options open to us. I was feeling pretty hopeless and then this devotional by Sandra popped into my inbox. May it breathe life into your hopeless situations too.

Read this devotional here

What to do when you no longer feel God’s presence

I loved the honesty of this post that Brett wrote for me. I think, if we’re honest, there are times when every person who believes in Jesus wonders where on earth he is. Brett talks about a time in his life where for 18 whole months he couldn’t feel God presence. Definitely, worth reading.

Read this devotional here

How to know if it is time to leave your past behind

I’m always partial to lending this space to another South African blogger. I hope you’ll enjoy Fran’s story (and feel challenged) about something as every day as a dining room table. I know it got me thinking.

Read this devotional here

What to do when life isn't going the way you want

Kelly asks hard questions in this post. I know for myself these are questions I have to get real and ask myself time and time again. If you’re in a place in your life where you’re wondering why life isn’t going the way you want, or the way you thought the Bible promised it would than this might be the post you need to read (even if you don’t want to).

Read this devotional here

I'm excited to announce the 5 winners of the NIV Bible For Women giveaway that I ran the last few weeks. Congrats to Liesl Amoruso, Tracy Purrington, Desiree van der Merwe, Stacey Betts and Cathy Zodda.

I would have loved to send all my readers Bibles but I'm excited to have more than 5 readers of this blog so I'm not able too! If you didn't win a bible you can either buy one here or download the book of Matthew as a PDF for free.

I’m taking a bit of a break from writing new devotionals over the Christmas season. But I’ll be back to my normal writing routine in the New Year in the meantime would you consider voting for me in the SA Blog Awards? Just click on the big red button that says "VOTE" (-->) and fill in your details. Thanks!

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Photo Credits: Creative Commons | Design: Wendy van Eyck

How to be a good friend during the holidays

2015-12-10T11:53:00.000+02:00

A guest post by Betsy St. Amant

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33 (NIV)

The holidays can sure be an exhausting mix of joy and despair, can’t they?

It seems like for every strand of twinkling lights, there’s a tear dripping down a cheek. For every plate of gingerbread cookies, there’s a bill on the table that can’t be paid. And for every Christmas carol sung with gusto, there’s a whispered lie of hopelessness.

Hard times, heartache, and grief are not prejudice and pay no attention to the calendar month. Pain hits who it will, regardless of it being a bright summer afternoon or a winter Christmas morn.

Jesus even told us “In this world, you will have trouble.”

Think about the people in your life—so many struggling with:

Infertility.

Death.

Grief.

Divorce.

Broken relationships.

Financial hardship.

Wayward children.

People searching for jobs, for freedom from addictions, for significance. People waiting for clear medical reports, for positive pregnancy tests, for their spouse to come home.

There’s trouble everywhere we look. In our backyards, in our bank accounts, in our relationships.

I’m so glad Jesus didn’t stop there when He talked about trouble. I love the rest of that verse. “But take heart…I have overcome the world.”

And that’s what our main goal should be when ministering to friends hurting this holiday season—ushering them to the Overcomer.

When someone we care about is in pain, we understandably want to fix it. But too often, in the heat of the moment, this attempt at fixing comes across as displeasure, frustration, or impatience toward our loved one. It can also express itself as judgment and actually serves as salt on the wound, rather than the intended Band-aid.

When I was going through my divorce almost three years ago, I had so many well-meaning people tell me things like “I know it’s hard, but just focus on you and your daughter right now.”

I know they were trying to comfort and point out the good I still had in my life, but it made me feel worse. Because not only did it not fix the fact that I was suddenly single after nine years of marriage, it made me feel like I was a bad Mom for not feeling like my daughter was enough. I felt like I was a failure because I missed my marriage.

I finally, years later, figured out that a wound doesn’t render a blessing null and avoid—and vice versa. (<— Tweet this)

I could love, appreciate, and be grateful for my daughter with every ounce of my heart. But that didn’t change the fact that I was at that time grieving the loss of my marriage and fighting a loneliness gap that I was used to having a spouse fill.

My daughter wasn’t meant to fill the void of a spouse. Just like being married doesn’t fill the void of infertility. It’s a separate longing.

Jesus alone fills those needs, in His ways, in His timing, and you know what? The process and the specifics look different for everyone.

That’s why we have to be careful when we try to fix our friends’ pain. Those people who spoke those things to me didn’t mean to heap guilt and shame on my head. Of course they didn’t. Just like we don’t meant to hurt when we say trite answers such as “It could always be worse” or “God has a plan” or “Just be grateful for what you have”.

Trite answers certainly hold a merit of truth. But in the whirlwind of pain, they tend to serve as splinters instead—nagging, irritating annoyances that do more harm than good.

The good news is, we don’t need to have all the answers. All we have to do to be the best friend possible is simply point our friend toward the One Who does have the answers.

Jesus.

This holiday season, if you have a friend who is grieving, look for tangible ways to direct them to Jesus.

Invite them to church.
Supply them with a new journal and their favorite color pen to vent their emotions.
Bake their favorite dessert.
Write Scriptures on cards and mail them.
Offer to go for a drive and promise to only listen and not say a word.
Surprise them with a giftcard for their favorite hot drink.
Pray for them.
Offer free babysitting.

In summary, be the Gospel. Be the hands and feet of Jesus. Be available.

And be quiet, so He can do the talking.

Ponder: Who do you know that is grieving this holiday season? How can you be the hands and feet of Jesus to them?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for being the overcomer of our troubles in this world. Help me to keep my mouth shut when I want to give trite answers in response to peoples pain and instead help me to reach out to them and be your hands and feet. Amen.

About the author of this devotional

Betsy St. Amant has a heart for three things – chocolate, new shoes and sharing the amazing news of God’s grace through her novels. She lives in Louisiana with her adorable story-telling young daughter, a collection of Austen novels, and an impressive stash of Pickle Pringles. A freelance journalist and fiction author, Betsy is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and is multi-published in Contemporary Romance via Love Inspired and Harper Collins (Zondervan). When she’s not reading, writing, or singing along to a Disney soundtrack with her daughter, Betsy enjoys inspirational speaking and teaching on the craft of writing. Find out more about her at betsystamant.com or say hi on Facebook and twitter.

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Photo Credits (Creative Commons): HubSpot | Design: Wendy van Eyck

When you need someone to acknowledge it happened (and it hurt!)

2015-11-23T05:30:00.000+02:00

You see all things;

You saw me growing, changing in my mother’s womb;

Every detail of my life was already written in Your book;

You established the length of my life before I ever tasted the sweetness of it.

Psalm 139:16 (VOICE)

My friend and I walked into the coffee shop at the same time. “Shall we sit here?” she said, pointing to a long table with a bench.

She ordered a cappuccino and I ordered water. Then my friend asked how my foot is.

And out poured this story. This story of why I didn't get stitches when I should have. How I didn't get stitches because the last time I was sick in December I was told I was dramatic. And I didn't want to be dramatic.

So instead I asked the people around me if they thought I needed stitches.

They thought I didn't.

And I didn't want to be dramatic so I listened to them.

I told myself, ‘the body is amazing it can heal itself.’

The cut can’t be as bad as you think.

Four days later, my foot turned pink, started to swell, and I could no longer bend my toes. I decided it was time to be dramatic.

I told Xylon to drive me to the doctor. Where a very kind physician did not lecture me on being irresponsible or even on the importance of self-care.

He simply lifted the bandage. Asked when it happened and said, “I'd expect it to be more healed by now.”

Then he felt my pulse and tested my blood pressure to see if the infection was systemic. Content that it wasn’t he prescribed me antibiotics and sent me home. Telling me it should start healing by Sunday.

On the Monday, I asked to be taken to the doctor again. My foot was getting better but it didn’t seem right to me. I had learnt my lesson. The doctor took one look and prescribed heavier antibiotics.

My friend sat across the table as I told this story and said, “It hurts, hey? It wounds our hearts deeply to be told our pain isn't real, that it doesn't matter?”

I nodded and the wound in my heart throbbed. It throbbed because it was being acknowledged. My pain was being seen.

We spoke about how healing only comes when pain is acknowledged. A wound cannot be treated if the person carrying it acts like it doesn’t exist.

My friend told me how she went to the doctor and told him she was slightly tired. He ran tests and told her, “I don't even know how you walked in here. You shouldn't have enough energy to do that.”

She spoke about how good (bad?) so many of us are at hiding how much pain we feel. And how that makes others think that we’re okay. And how because everyone thinks we are okay they don’t stop to say, “Wow, that looks sore. You were very brave but let’s get you some help now.”

Then she told me about her little girl. Adopted shortly after birth she struggles with her presence not being acknowledged.

The wound my friends' daughter carries isn’t visible, like the cut on my foot, but it is just as real.

My friend went onto tell how their daughters birth-mother never told anyone she was pregnancy. She hid the pregnancy - hid her daughter - shielded her from being known even while the in the womb. This little girl was unseen. Invisible.

And in then there in the coffee shop my friend quoted scripture:

You see all things;

You saw me growing, changing in my mother’s womb;

Every detail of my life was already written in Your book;

You established the length of my life before I ever tasted the sweetness of it.

There was healing in her words, a reminder that the God-who-sees-me knows every detail of my life. (tweet this)

She spoke the words she prays over her daughter but they began to heal my wound of being in pain with no one to take me seriously.

The last few days I’ve cradled that verse in my heart, wrapping it round my heart wound every time I change the dressing on my foot. Reminding myself that it is only when pain is acknowledged that it can be treated and the wound can be healed.

So I wind the bandage round-and-round and whisper: You see all things…

Ponder: As you read this what heart wound began throb? And say, “I’m real, it happened, it hurt.” What steps can you take to acknowledge the pain? Consider seeing a social worker or psychologist to chat through the pain.

Prayer: You are, the One who sees all things. You saw me growing, changing in my mother’s womb and right now you know the details of my life that causing my heart to throb with pain. God who see me show me how to acknowledge this pain I’m feeling so I can taste the sweetness of the life you’ve given me. Amen.

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{You might also like these posts}

3 reminders of God's love for the days you feel invisible, unwanted or held back by your past

When you feel invisible (or one way God reminds me he keeps his promises)

How does God see me?

One thing to remember when you are hurting

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Thanks to Unsplash.com and Gratisography | Design: Wendy van Eyck

How to choose joy in hard times

2015-11-16T05:30:00.000+02:00

I recently had the chance to read the book, Walk Through Fire, by Carly and David Bowers. Theirs is an incredible story of overcoming after David an accident at work that leaves David with third degree burns on 94% of his body. There were a few pages in the book where Carly speaks about choosing joy in the midst of hard things - her hard being her husband fighting a battle for his life in the Burns Intensive Care Unit - that really stuck with me. So I asked if I could share them here.  If you like this, I encourage you to buy the book. 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope. Romans 15:13 (NIV)

It was a lot easier to be strong, to stay grounded and fixed in hope, when David was lucid, joking with me and the nurses, making his signature verbal jabs. When he wasn’t, I had to make a choice. I had to choose joy in that moment. It was tempting sometimes to slink into despair, to allow the haunting questions that constantly churned in my brain, sometimes in whispers and other times in deafening lament, to overwhelm me.

Is David really going to be okay? 
And what does okay mean? 
Is he just one surgery away from taking a turn for the worse? 
Do my kids hate me for not being around? 
Are they even capable of understanding what’s happening? 

One of the verses in the Bible I often thought of during this time was Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope” (NIV). 

I began to understand the difference, the big difference, between joy and happiness. 

The two words are often confused or used interchangeably. 

Happiness is circumstantial. It can change depending on what you are going through or what you have in the moment. Many times we believe we will be truly happy when we get married, land that job, win the lottery, lose the weight, or when the kids are out of the house. Happiness is fleeting and typically evaporates in times of crisis. 

Joy, on the contrary, is not dependent on circumstances. It’s an attitude that requires courage, commitment, and strength. Deciding to live with joy, even seeking it out when we need to, allows us to face tough times head on. And not just to merely survive the experience, but to be shaped in an incredible way that changes us for good for life.

Many things helped me choose joy on a daily and even hourly basis. Sheila, a dear friend, had bought me a copy of Tim Hansel’s book You Gotta Keep Dancing. She had never read it, but just happened to be in a bookstore one day when her eyes landed on the cover. Something stirred in her heart. She felt nudged by God to purchase the book for us.

Hansel, who passed away in 2009, wrote about discovering the true meaning of joy while suffering a lifetime of chronic panic, the result of a tragic mountain climbing accident in the Sierras. I read the book cover to cover in one sitting, sometime in the first few weeks of David’s admission to the BICU. 

One thing Hansel wrote that struck me was, 
“Pain is inevitable but misery is optional. We cannot avoid pain, but we can avoid joy.” (tweet this)

If we choose to ignore joy, we allow ourselves to be as miserable as we want to be. And while there might be something familiar or comforting digging our heels into that wretched place, there is another option—joy.

I had to learn to choose joy. (tweet this)

It didn’t come naturally most of the time. It wasn’t an organic response when David was unconscious for the first forty-eight hours and doctors seemed pretty skeptical that he would survive.

I had to consciously and intentionally choose joy when every part of my being wanted to crawl deep in a hole and stay there.

I had to choose joy when my husband was in so much pain that taking as little as two steps left him barely able to breathe.

I had to choose joy when my kids were sick, or missing their parents, or questioning what was happening.

I found the more I chose to battle the urge to wallow in misery, the more habitual it became.

Ponder: Can you think of any times in your day today when you have avoided joy? What could you do to choose joy in those moments?

Prayer: God, I ask you to fill me with all joy and peace as I do my best to you. As I do this Lord, help me to overflow with hope.

Adapted from Walk Through Fire by Carly and David Bowers. Used with permission. Emphasis mine.

More about the book this devotional is adapted from:

On August 20, 1999, David Bowers was scheduled to be off work. However, plans changed and so did everything else that day when a horrific industrial gas plant explosion burned over 94 percent of his body and left him facing a 125 percent mortality rate. This unexpected tragedy turned Carly and David Bowers' comfortable world upside down. While this story does involve tragedy, that is not the theme of their lives or this book. Through darkness and shadows and many unknowns, they have found victory and hope. Their story is a message of healing and of growing closer to God and to each other. What emerges from this tragic accident is a unique perspective on hope, joy and faith in God. Walk Through Fire is a poignant reminder that you will find hope, even when you can barely see where the next step in life will lead. You can get the first chapter of their book for FREE from their website when you sign up to their newsletter.

Buy the book: Walk Through Fire

*This post includes affiliate links to Amazon that help to feed my book habit.

This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.*

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{You might also like these posts}

When you need to fight back with joy

One thing to do when you wish you were happier

We are not as happy as we look

3 truths to get you through the worst days of your life

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

3 truths to get you through the worst days of your life

2015-11-12T08:06:00.000+02:00

You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me,

for you, O God, are my fortress. Psalm 59:9 (NLT)

We were fresh off a plane from a six-week holiday backpacking round South East Asia when we heard words that would change the course of our lives.

The surgeon who just a few days before had biopsied a node under Xylon’s arm sat across from us and told us, “The results are clear. You have Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.”

We had so many questions. And so few of the questions that would give us the answers we desperately wanted.

Answers like:

Would he be okay?

Would he live?

Would cancer have the final say?

Doctors can’t give you answers to questions like that.

We left the office and I returned to work. Holding everything inside. Too afraid to speak the words, hoping that if I never said them out loud, they wouldn’t be true.

We heard those words, “The results are clear. You have Hodgkin’s Lymphoma,” or a variation of them, another four times since that first visit. The last time it turned out that the results weren’t clear, and Xylon has been cancer-free for 18 months.

Those are days – years really – that I never want to relive.

Many of those days were the worst days of my life.

Many times I wasn’t sure how I’d get through.

I only did because of God. I’ve written before about how I felt held by God. I don’t really know how to explain that but the feeling of being cupped in his hand was very real to me.

There was something else that got me through that was more than a feeling.

Many times feelings will not be enough to sustain you through dark days. (tweet this)

On those days you need to speak the truth even when you don’t feel it.

Here are 3 truths that helped me the worst days of my life:

God is with me

God is my strength

God is my security

There are many bible verses for each of these truths but there Psalm 59:9 helps me remember all three.

It starts with God, which makes me remember that he is always with me. Then it reminds me of his strength to rescue me, and his ability to protect and shield me.

I recently read a paraphrase of this verse, by Jennifer Rothschild, which I love:

God is your strength when you are weary.

He is your safe place when you are insecure.

Even though I'm no longer walking through the hard days of cancer I’ve been whispering this paraphrase to myself lately.

I’ve found speaking this truth when I’m feeling tired of having a hurting foot or when something happens at work that makes me feel insecure has helped me to remember that God is with me and with his strength I can do hard things.

Ponder: What gets you through the worst days?

Prayer: Lord, I’m feeling [name what you are feeling e.g. insecure, weak, afraid]. Help me remember that you are with me. Help me to lean on you when I feel weak and to remember that you are my security when everything is shifting.

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{You might also like these posts}

Why You Will Survive The Worst Day Of Your Life

How I learned not to worry about tomorrow

Can God change my life?

When your Prince Charming isn’t who you think he is

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

One thing to remember when you are hurting

2015-11-05T08:44:00.000+02:00

As a result of this encounter, Hagar decided to give the Eternal One who had spoken to her a special name because He had seen her in her misery.

Hagar: I’m going to call You the God of Seeing because in this place I have seen the One who watches over me. Genesis 16:13 (VOICE)

According to people who know me I'm dramatic when sick or hurt.

I would disagree, but really, what do I know when I'm arguing with someone (Xylon) who has had a bone marrow transplant and someone else (my mom) who has had their heart shocked back to rhythm multiple times?

On Sunday, I stepped on a piece of glass while walking on the beach.

The cut was clean, but pretty deep, and about 3cm long.

There was blood. I want to say there was a lot of blood but fear the aforesaid people might think I'm dramatic.

All I had was a tissue. And about 1km to walk across the beach to the car.

I asked Xylon for the drawstring on his pants, and tied it round the tissue and my foot as a makeshift MacGyver shoe, and then we walked home as fast as I could.

That’s it. Not dramatic at all.

Well, there was one slightly dramatic pause when I burst into tears and cried, "How will we ever make it to the car?"

But I'm blaming that one on shock.

To be honest, I know I can be dramatic when I’m sick or hurt.

But if it helps at all, I also know why I’m dramatic. I want someone to notice me. I want people to react in a way that signals that I matter, in a way that tells me, “I’ve seen your hurt.”

There’s a story in the bible that I strongly identify with.

It’s about a woman who was hurt in ways I can’t even imagine. Hagar, a slave, she was used by her mistress, made to sleep with her owners wife, and then when she became pregnant with his child was treated badly by her mistress.

Hagar finds herself out in the desert discarded, thirsty and pregnant. Genesis 16 tells us that the Special Messenger of the Eternal One found Hagar alone by a spring of water out in the desert.

The Special Messenger gives her all kinds of promises from God and at the end of it the Bible says,

“Hagar decided to give the Eternal One who had spoken to her a special name because He had seen her in her misery.

Hagar: I’m going to call You the God of Seeing because in this place I have seen the One who watches over me.” (tweet this)

I don’t identify with this story because of what Hagar went through. Her misery is way worse than any I have experienced. Cutting my foot on the beach is a really bad comparison.

I identify with this story because, every time I read it, I remember God is the One who watches over me, who sees my misery.

It reminds me that God not only sees me but he responds to me:

God doesn’t leave me broken. He brings to completion the work he starts (Phil 1:6).

God is my help in trouble. He is safe place to share my misery (Psalm 46:1).

God makes all things new. All. Things. (Revelation 21:5).

I think these things are true whether I’m speaking about physical pain (like my foot) or emotional pain (like Hagar).

These days as I’m (dramatically) limping towards wholeness I’m reminding myself that:

God sees me.

God responds to my pain.

God is present in my misery. (tweet this)

Ponder: What are you dramatic about in your life in the hope that someone will you see the misery you are hiding?

Prayer: Eternal One, thank you that you know you my name and see me in my misery. Help me to remember that are the God of Seeing and you watch over me. I can’t wait to see how you make all things new. Amen.

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I’d also love for you to connect with me on my Facebook, pinterest and twitter pages or if you're viewing this via email you can leave a comment by clicking here.

{You might also like these posts}

How to pray when someone hurts you

When God makes something out of pain

Why I know Jesus would do anything to take your pain away

How to pray when your heart is breaking

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

When your season of healing is longer and more painful then you ever imagined, read this

2015-09-30T05:30:00.000+02:00

I won’t be posting a devotional every Monday and Thursday while we’re travelling but from time-to-time (if you’re a subscriber) you will find a post like this one with a few posts that I’ve loved reading and sharing on twitter over the last few months. I'm expecting to be back to sharing new devotionals from 19 October.

I thought this blogging break would be a good opportunity to share some of the posts I’ve been loving over the last few months and maybe introduce you to a few new writers and bloggers at the same time. Until I get back I won't be posting with my regular Monday and Thursday rhythm but you can expect a mail with a few links to things I've been enjoying reading every now and again.

Here are a few good reads about healing, wholeness and finding hope in suffering because sometimes healing takes longer and is more painful then we ever imagined. So here is some hope for the times when you feel like you’re falling to pieces:

Why the season you’re in is so complicated by Margaret Feinberg // Because Margaret has been there. She’s had cancer, and fought back with joy, so when she speaks about healing, it’s worth taking notice.

A dirt path and the beginning of hope by Bethany Suckrow // Because a season of healing doesn’t rarely means keeping up appearances.

All Our Crooked, Half-Healed Places by Addie Zierman // Because we can do some healing alone, but not all of it.

Jeremiah 29:11 Doesn’t Mean What You Think by Mary DeMuth // Because God does have good plans for you and sometimes it’s hard to remember that thriving in difficulties is part of that.

When you have hidden hollow places by Amber Haines // Because Amber writes beautiful truth for all of us who have hidden hollow places (isn't that all of us?)
Trigger warning: This post deals with abortion.

The truth that could make all the difference for you today by Jennifer Dukes Lee // Because Jesus wept. He didn’t just cry. He wept.

The God of Lost Things by Alia Joy // Because Hope is hard.

One more push by Alise Chaffins // Because one day we will all be held by the one who made us.
Trigger warning: This post deals with baby loss.

The Value Of Suffering (Part 2, 3, And 4) by Erika Morrison // Because even though I don’t understand it, pain is part of the point and plan by which we are healed, saved and continuously made right. And Erika helps me understand that.

If you’ve read anything that you’ve loved (or written something) you think I or my reader would enjoy please share a link in the comments and I'll take a look when I get back.

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I’d also love for you to connect with me on my Facebook, pinterest and twitter pages or if you're viewing this via email you can leave a comment by clicking here.

{You might also like these posts}

Do you need faith for God to heal? (or the story of a woman who gambled for healing)

When you're confused about why and who God heals, do this instead
Hope for the times when you feel like you're falling to pieces

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

The one thing you need to make it through Monday

2015-08-31T05:30:00.000+02:00

May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope! Romans 15:13 (MSG)

I’m not a big fan of Mondays.

Not because I don’t like my job. I’m fortunate enough to have work that I enjoy (most of the time).

I'm not a fan of Mondays because I don’t usually know what the week holds.

Monday’s come with a lot of unknowns in my experience. And I’m not a big fan of unknowns.

For example last week Monday I only found out after lunch that I wasn’t taking a 3-day business trip from Tuesday.

Xylon teases me all the time that I like to be in control. It’s true. I like my life ordered and organized and predictable.

Yes – I need to be in control but even more than that I need to know that God is in control. The funny thing is I’m finding that the more I pray for God’s joy and peace to fill me, the more I believe that he is in control.

I don’t know what you’re facing as this week begins. But I'm guessing there are a lot of things you wish you didn’t have to do, a lot of meetings you would rather not attend, and a lot of people you would rather not encounter.

Maybe you feel like not just your Monday is out of control, but your life. And I wish I could come and make everything just fine but I can’t so instead I offer this prayer for you:

May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!

Because sometimes hope is all you need to make it Tuesday. (tweet this)

Ponder: Did your Monday morning throw you a curveball?

Prayer: I want to share a verse and pray for you from Romans 15:13 as we look forward to this week:

May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!

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{You might also like these posts}

God’s Grace Is Enough For Mondays, Biopsies & ________ [Fill In The Blank]

Are You Only Living 30% Of Your Life?

For the days when you feel like giving up

Hope for the times when you feel like you're falling to pieces

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

How to feel hopeful on your most hopeless days

2015-08-10T08:38:00.000+02:00

We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post as high priest for us... Hebrews 6:19-20 (MSG)

The sun had already set when I pulled out our driveway to visit Xylon.

As I reversed I noticed 7 large metal symbols hanging vertically from the wall:

❤
H

❤
❤

As I drove to visit Xylon in the hospital my heart felt lighter the whole way, a little bit of hope had entered the dark thoughts in my head.

It was a few months ago, and we were waiting for results from a biopsy of some suspicious cells the doctors thought might be cancer.

Most days during that time, my friend Monica texted and asked how I was doing in the hope department.

Most days I told her I felt sad, angry, and had very little hope.

So when HOPE appeared on my wall I texted Monica, "Were you the one who left some hope on my wall?"

She replied instantly, "Was just typing: You see I "vandalised" your property? I bought my hope sign during the time we were waiting for a baby. It stands for me as a real testimony/victory as we've had to fight hard for our hope and our future.”

She continued, “The sign fell off the wall the day Xylon came for supper and Jesus said I should pass it on. I feel the tangible presence and strength of hope over you both."

I hung the sign by my door: a tangible symbol of the hope we have because of Jesus.

Each day I walk past it and I'm reminded of Hebrews 6:19-20 which says,
"We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. (tweet this)
It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post as high priest for us..."

Even on my most hopeless days I feel hopeful when I remember that hope is an unbreakable spiritual lifeline reaching right to the very presence of God and that Jesus is still reckless with hope.

Ponder: Do you know God as the one who gives hope?

Prayer: Lord, you are the hope for hopeless so I'm running to you with both hands and grabbing on to you. Fill me up with hope and give me a tangible reminder today that hope is an unbreakable spiritual lifeline. Amen.

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{You might also like these posts}

The secret to finding hope
Hope for the times when you feel like you're falling to pieces
Five things to do when life is heavy and hard to take

When it’s hard to believe that hope is coming, read this

{Get my book - for free!}

In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | "hope sign" : Wendy van Eyck | Design: Wendy van Eyck

Why you can make it through the darkest days of your life

2015-07-20T14:21:00.000+02:00

“This is what the Lord says: As I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them. Once more fields will be bought in this land of which you say, ‘It is a desolate waste, without people or animals, for it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians. Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds will be signed, sealed and witnessed in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, because I will restore their fortunes declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 32:42-44 (MSG)

Our stories were written for God restore them.

I was thinking about this today as I commented to my husband that he needs a haircut.

It took months after his last chemotherapy treatment, and then radiation, for his hair to thicken and take on a healthy sheen again. It took months for it to grow to the point where it needed regular cutting again.

As I look at his head now I see there is life in follicles that seemed dead for good. His body is embracing life. Every cell is choosing to live.

I saw restoration in the bible today.

I was paging through the journal I kept when Xylon was first diagnosed with cancer.

I read through the words I wrote back in early 2012. There in my own handwriting I’d scrawled a promise in Jeremiah 32:42-22 I felt God gave me:

“This is what the Lord says: As I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them. Once more fields will be bought in this land of which you say, ‘It is a desolate waste…Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds will be signed…because I will restore their fortunes declares the Lord.”

My thoughts just before reading this had been on friends of mine, two sisters, whose mother lies in hospital with cancer that is most likely in the end stages.

I’d been wondering what I could say to them that would help them get through some of the darkest days of their life.

And then I read this promise from the first few days of Xylon’s diagnosis and I was reminded that God restores.

I still push against the start of this verse, where it says, “I will bring this huge catastrophe on this people but…” For me it doesn’t make any sense that God could have any part of cancer (or any other life taking disease) but I also realise that I’m very small, and God is very big, and maybe I just don’t get a lot of stuff about who he is.

I don’t understand how God can restore many situations yet I’ve seen him bring my husbands hair back from the dead. I know that sounds like a crazy analogy but it’s real to me. It’s something I can feel and see and understand when so much of God’s work is a mystery.

This promises reminds me that I can make it through the dark times because I can hold onto the hope that at the end of it all God will take our tears and give us laughter, he will take our grief and turn it into wild dancing and weave flowers into our hair.

Our stories were written for God to restore them. {tweet this}

And if today all you feel like doing is crying your eyes out - that’s okay. Or if like me you feel like yelling at God and questioning his ways, that’s okay too.

One thing I’ve learnt is that it won’t last forever, that the dark days will give way to days of laughter, days where you will see hair grow where there was none, and gratitude pour from your mouth because of the God who has brought you through.

Ponder: Where have you seen a practical example something that you can see, touch and feel (like Xylon’s hair growing back) of God’s restoration in your life?

Prayer: Lord, I’m waiting for your restoration. Come quickly and breathe life into my broken places. Amen.

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{You might also like these posts}

God? Do you care about me?

Cancer comes only to steal and destroy

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

When you feel unloved by God, try this

2015-07-13T01:54:00.000+02:00

I am my beloved’s,

And his desire is for me.

Song of Solomon 7:10 (NASB)

It's been a long time since I've read a book that wasn't a memoir or a novel.

Most non-fiction Christian books I read are full of lists of things to do or change about myself.

I became tired of finishing a book and feeling like I need to pray more, read the bible a certain way, go to church or tell one stranger about Jesus every day. So I stopped reading them.

This weekend I read a book by Brennan Manning called “The Furious Longing of God”. I only read the book because, well, it’s Brennan Manning, and since reading Ragamuffin Gospel in my teens I’ll read anything by him.

It’s the first book I've read in a long time that made me feel loved by God.

As I read it felt like God loved me.
No, like God actually liked me.
Exactly the way I am.
No need for extra prayer, or church attendance, or reading the bible.

In the book, Basil Hume of London England is quoted as saying: Christians find it easier to believe that God exists than that God loves them. {Tweet this}

It is so easy to forget that God loves us, isn’t it? It shouldn’t be, but it is.

Almost daily, bad things happen, people we love ache and dreams collapse. And most times even squinting doesn’t bring God into focus, yet alone help us to see or feel how much he loves us.

Brennan Manning tells a story of 78 year-old nun who was sexually abused by her father from the age of 5. This nun comes to Manning one night at tells him of all the hatred she has felt in her heart for a long, long time. She spoke about going through the motions of religion to keep up appearances. But her heart was so very, very broken.

After listening to her story, and praying for healing, Manning asked her to find a quiet place and pray this prayer every day for the next 30 days:

Abba, I belong to You. {Tweet this}

He explained that this prayer is exactly 7 syllables and corresponds to the rhythm of breathing.

Inhale-Abba. As you exhale-I belong to you.

And she did it.

Manning says her follow-up letter told of how her heart was being healed, how she had forgiven her father and how she knew inner-peace for the first time in her life.

As I fell asleep on Saturday night my breathing reminded me to pray.

Inhale – Abba

Exhale – I belong to you

It was a childlike, simple prayer, but I felt as I prayed that was trusting God with my life again.

As I prayed it felt like I was letting go of all the hurts, disappoints and fears, and telling my father God – my Abba – that I believe that he is for me, and his plans for my life will give me a hope and a future.

Ponder: I’m going to quote Brennan Manning from the "Consider This" section of The Furious Longing of God: “Prayerfully consider taking a few moments every day for the next month, closing your eyes, upturning your palms, and praying, “Abba, I belong to You.” Don’t make it anything more than that; trust me, it’s enough.”

Prayer: Inhale – Abba, Exhale – I belong to you.

** Affiliate links used. 

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{You might also like these posts}
If you feel unloved, unwanted or insecure
Does God no longer love me if I have troubles?

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

If you're wondering if your wildest dreams can come true, read this

2015-07-09T14:21:00.000+02:00

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Ephesians 3:20 (MSG)

I don’t know about you but sometimes I forget that God can do far more than I can ask or imagine.

I forget it even when I know throughout my life there are moments where things have happened that I never asked for, or never imagined and yet God has done them.

I’m learning that some of the best dreams you can live are the ones you can't even imagine right now. (tweet this)

My first “real” job as a TV producer is one of those times.

As a young teen I had crazy big dreams with God.

I thought I was going to be own a huge media empire.

Then my life took some twists and turns and this dream seemed stupid, naïve, adolescent.

A decade or so later I went to an interview and God reminded me of my media dream. It had revolved around a warehouse where young people and teenagers could hang out and discover that Jesus not only loved, but liked, them.

During the interview, I was told that the set for the TV show, which I would be working on, would be a warehouse.

On the drive home, I kept saying thanks to God and laughing.

I think God was laughing too.

My dream would have reached two or three hundred kids; God’s dream reached hundreds of thousands across the entire African continent.

My dreams were too small; God’s dreams were beyond my wildest imaginings.

That was the day I learnt God isn't limited by our small dreams. (tweet this)

Then there is my marriage. I never imagined being married to someone of a different culture and race to me. I never dreamt that within our first year of marriage we’d begin fighting cancer. It still seems unreal to me that a few weeks ago a biopsy on some lymph nodes that seemed cancerous came back with “NO cancer”.

I’ve been reflecting on some of the “wow” moments in my life. The moments when God has surprised me with something I never expected.

And it’s been growing my faith for the things that I barely dare to hope for right now, the things that seem far off.

Faith believes that impossible is just an opportunity for God to do something outrageous and beautiful and breathtaking.

I don’t know what the thing is in your life that looks impossible right now.

You might even burst out laughing at the thought of God doing something to change your circumstances.

I want to encourage you that even if it seems impossible God can still do it.

Even if right now you’re laughing. God can.

Even if you’re thinking there is no natural way it will happen. God can.

It is impossible…but God can do anything—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!

Ponder: Do you have dreams that you barely have hope for God to accomplish? I encourage you to write them down and then pray for them until you see God do more than you could imagine.

Prayer: God, you know those things in my heart that I barely dare to hope for, today I give them to you, I trust them to you, and ask that you because I know that you can do more than I could ever guess, imagine or request in wildest dreams. Amen.

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

If you’re falling apart, read this

2015-07-02T14:14:00.003+02:00

I call out to High God, the God who holds me together.

Psalm 57:2 (MSG)

This may come as a shock – or relief – to some of you but I don’t read my Bible every day.

I used to, for years. Then I got married and my quiet time in the mornings became less routine.

Depending on your point of view, this might sound like a bad thing but it has actually been quite freeing for me.

I’m a very structured person. I like staying within the boundaries, obeying the rules, doing what people expect so removing the "law" of reading the Bible has helped me to experience God in new ways.

Sometimes I’ve pulled out my Bible in the middle of the day anxious to hear what God has for me.

Other times, I’ll think of a verse I memorized years ago and look it up.

And sometimes I’ll be doing nothing related seeking God when a thought about how God is in everything and connected to everything will go through my mind and I’ll end up googling madly for a chapter in the bible that speaks to that moment.

I’m sure many of you are the same.

Now that I’ve shattered any ideas you might have had about me spending hours reading the scripture I’m free write what I found in the Bible this morning.

I’ve challenged myself to read the Bible everyday for two weeks. I'm doing my normal method of reading until God speaks to me.

This morning I started with a chapter about David. I read through the whole thing but I didn’t feel God was speaking to me there.

I flipped to the Psalms and started reading Psalm 57.

This one line caught my attention:

I call out to High God, the God who holds me together.

I loved that. I loved the way it made me think of how before my parents even knew I was there God was knitting me together in my mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13).

My mind went back to all the times I wanted to fall apart during Xylon’s cancer treatments the last few years but I didn’t. Not because I was strong but because God held me together.

Since I was reading the Message version of the Bible I was interested in what the other versions said. They mostly said something along the lines of:

I will cry out God most high,

to God who accomplishes/performs all things for me.

Then I dug a little deeper and looked at a few discussions around the translation of these verses. The one I loved the most was by Charles Spurgeon:

Our translators have very properly inserted the words, "all things," for there is a blank in the Hebrew, as if it were a carte blanche, and you might write therein that the Lord would finish anything and everything which he has begun.

More modern versions seem to have replaced “all things” with “his purpose”.

I wondered what would have happened if the translators had just written:

I will cry out to God Most High,

To God who performs [fill in the blank] for me. (tweet this)

To God who performs miracles for me.

To God who accomplishes job hunting for me.

To God who performs healing for me.

To God who accomplishes fighting for me.

I don’t know about you but sometimes I wonder if God finishes what he starts.

As I read this verse I was reminded that when God who begins good work in me is faithful to complete it (Philippians 1:6)

God who performs all things is holding me together.

When all things try to make me fall apart, God holds me together through all things.

Ponder: This is the bible verse that got my attention on God today. What bible verse have you read recently that did the same?

Prayer: Thank you Father, that when I’m falling apart I can rely on you to hold me together.

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

Why you don't need to be defined by your past

2015-06-29T10:48:00.000+02:00

A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of. John 10:10 (MSG)

It’s strange to think that two years ago, Xylon was ending a month of isolation in hospital after his stem cell transplant.

I remember how throughout that time I felt so helpless.

Every day I would leave him alone in the hospital. Lately, as Xylon and I went through the scare of possible recurrence (that turned out to be nothing) I’ve been thinking of those times.

And I’ve been thinking of this verse I memorized in my childhood:

“Cancer comes only to steal and destroy but I have come to so that you can have life, real and eternal life, more and better life then you have ever dreamed of.”

Okay, the bible doesn’t say cancer, it says thief, but cancer sure feels a lot like a cat burglar who takes what it wants and leaves destruction.

What I like about this verse is that it doesn’t end with the thief.

The words that come immediately after promise that Jesus has come so that we may life, and a better life than we ever dreamed of.

Every time I read these words hope shines through.

In this world, our troubles and sufferings might win but in God’s realm our story always ends with life.

Jesus wants you to know life as he imagined it. (tweet this)

I don’t know what that life looks like but I know that it is more joy, freedom, love and grace then I have ever experienced.

I love that Jesus spoke about life right after death because so often in the midst of suffering and grief I forget that the “thief” doesn’t have the last word.

The other night Xylon and I sat with a friend who recently went through a divorce. She related how for so long she felt that “divorced” defined her but she’s learning that isn’t who she is.

Xylon told me later how he sometimes feel defined as “cancer survivor” but that’s now who he is.

I don’t think that is how God sees our friend or Xylon as "divorced" or "cancer survivor" either.
I think God calls them:

Daughter

Son

Beloved

Redeemed

Captivating

Alive to live for God

I don't know what your "cancer" is, or what the thief has stolen from you, or what label you have begun to think defines you, but I do know that this is not how the story ends.

What you have lost is not the final word on your life, God has more for you. (tweet this)

I know because I’m realising that no matter how our stories begin, when Jesus is involved they always end with life, life and more life.

Ponder: What has happened in your life that has been a thief and stolen something from you? Do you have hope that God can restore what has been stolen with life, life and more life?

Prayer: Lord, I believe that you can give me hope where the thief has stolen from me. I thank you for life, life and more life that will spring out of places that I thought were dead. Amen

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In my free e-book Life, Life and More Life I share thoughts on how to make every moment count gleaned from my experiences of loving my husband through 18 sessions of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. If you would like a free copy please subscribe below to receive my devotionals every Monday and Thursday.

Photo Credits (Creative Commons): Unsplash.com | Design: Wendy van Eyck

7 reminders not to give up hope

2015-06-04T03:30:00.000+02:00

For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Romans 8:24-25 (NIV)

Hope is a fragile thing. (tweet this)

Hope is hard to wrap your heart around. Just when I think that I’ve got it, that hope has found a place right there next to Jesus I begin to feel hopeless.

The last few weeks there have been times when hope has been the only thing getting me through.

Xylon and I have been clinging to hope. He's been reading the bible for mentions of it and sharing them with me as he finds them.

Last night he told me about this verse he saw on my mom's Facebook page:

For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

I guess that’s why I write so much about hope on this site because I know that most days hope is what I need to see tomorrow. I imagine many of you feel the same way.

One thing I’ve learnt in the three years since Xylon’s initial cancer diagnosis is that when the rest of the world is saying there’s no hope, Jesus is standing there saying, “They’re wrong.”

When everyone else is questioning if Jesus really cares about the hard things we’re going through, I listen for his voice declaring, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me.”

When everyone else is saying, “You have no hope!” Jesus is saying, “I am your hope!” (tweet this)

As I listen to the whispers of Jesus I find hope rising in unexpected places.

If you need a whisper of hope today may you find it in one of these devotionals: (tweet this)

If you’re wondering if Jesus is still reckless with hope then read this.

If it’s hard to believe that hope is coming I wrote this for you.

If you can’t seem to crack the secret for finding and keeping hope then follow this link.

If you’re falling to pieces and need hope then this one is for you.

If curling up under a duvet seems like the best thing to do then I hope you read this post by Ruth Garner with your head on the pillow.

If you’ve made a mess of life and need hope then read the words my Dad wrote.

If life is heavy and hard to take then read this and discover 5 things you can do about it.

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When the only way out is a miracle (and an invitation to #prayforzero)

2015-06-01T04:30:00.000+02:00

In their distress, they called out to the Eternal,

and He saved them from their misery.

He gave the order and healed them

and rescued them from certain death.

Psalm 107:19-20 (VOICE)

This past week has been pretty crazy for me. Aside from dealing with all the emotions that come with the results of Xylon's last scan (you can read this post if you missed that update) I've also been traveling a lot for work.

I only have to travel half a dozen times a year for work but have 3 back-to-back trips in a 10-day period. Not. Great. Timing.

On Friday, I flew home for 24-hours to see the oncologist with Xylon and go through the scan results and treatment options in person.

Xylon sent this message out to family and close friends:

Just saw the oncologist. There is a 65% chance it's cancer and a 35% chance it's not. The next step is to see the surgeon who will cut out one of the lesions and test it. They will make an appointment for us next week. We fully trust God, so if you could too and pray, that will be great. Fully believe we are going to witness a miracle here.

I walked out the doctors’ office after hearing there is a chance this isn't cancer and said, "God, it's your time to shine."

I know that if this test comes back negative it'll be 100% a God miracle.

At the same time my faith feels so small right now. And I’m so glad that the burden of healing sits on God’s shoulders and not mine.

I’m clinging to the bible verses, like Psalm 107:19-20 that talk about how God heals:

In their distress, they called out to the Eternal, and He saved them from their misery.He gave the order and healed them and rescued them from certain death.

And at the same time struggling with the fact that God doesn’t heal everyone.

When I do find the words to pray they sound a lot like, “Lord, help me in my unbelief.”

We see the surgeon on Wednesday (in another 24-hour gap when I’m home) and then surgery will be scheduled. The lymph nodes they have to cut out are in awkward places this time and not palpable to touch so surgery is unavoidable to get a diagnosis.

Please join Xylon and I and #prayforzero (zero cancer) in this biopsy. {tweet this}

Here are four devotionals I’ve written in the past that I’ve felt the need to re-read in the last week. Maybe they’ll encourage you, if like me you’re struggling with worry, doubt and weariness:

When you can’t rely on your strength
When you’re hanging onto the end of the rope
Will everything be okay?
When worry clouds your vision

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When God breathes life into a hopeless situation

2015-05-28T05:30:00.000+02:00

{Guest post by Sandra Ng’ambwa}

Listen to me, family of Jacob,
    everyone that’s left of the family of Israel.
I’ve been carrying you on my back
    from the day you were born,
And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old.
    I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and grey.
I’ve done it and will keep on doing it,
    carrying you on my back, saving you.

Isaiah 46:3-4 (MSG)

This is the prayer I prayed months on end for my grandfather. I remember saying ‘Lord, thank you for babu (grand-father in Swahili); thank you that you are the One who keeps him and sustains him until his grey hairs.’

Time and time again when babu would get admitted into hospital for the past seven years, God remained faithful. He kept him. He preserved his life.

Only God can do this.

Only God has the power to breathe hope where the situation seems dire and hopeless. (tweet this)

Babu could not walk, and he could not remember much.

But God gave him life.

God kept him, according to his promise in Isaiah. Even when many of his friends gave up on him because he could not hold a proper conversation, God placed around him people that cared and loved him.

That’s what God does - when everyone leaves you because you no longer fit their profile, He comes along and brings the right people with him.

And for that I am grateful.

Now, two months since babu’s passing, I stand here, not in mourning, but in gratitude for the many lives that he touched. For the legacy he left. Being extremely generous to those who were less fortunate is something he practised. Encouraging families to stick together and be united is what he did. Standing up to educate female children in the 60s is what he believed in, especially when many in Africa didn’t approve at the time. And now looking back, I see how babu left an example of what Jesus would do.

And for that I am grateful.

I am grateful that God answered my prayers and remained faithful.

God will always remain faithful.

Although it hurts that babu is no longer here with us, I know that every time I practise generosity and compassion, I am not only living out his legacy, but also the legacy of my Father in heaven.

I would encourage you to keep holding on to God’s promises even when things seem to be going in the opposite direction. He is faithful and He hears every desperate word you speak to Him.

Ponder: Have you lost a loved one in the recent months? What legacy have they left that encourages you in your faith today?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus I ask you to help me believe you Word. Help me to pray and have faith when things are going in the opposite direction. Help me to trust that you know what’s best and to be give thanks in all situations. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

{About the author of this guest devotional}

I’m Sandi - a 20-something year old determined to live out all the dreams God has placed in my heart. I love anything to do with Jesus, cities, travelling and chocolate. I also enjoy encouraging people and cultivating my relationships through coffee, lunch or dinner dates. You can find me on twitter, facebook or on my website.

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How to pray when you can't change your circumstances

2015-05-14T08:07:00.000+02:00

Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that. Galations 2:20b (MSG)

Xylon's scan is coming up again. It's always hard.

It's the one thing no one told me about cancer that it never goes away. After 18 chemo sessions, a stem cell transplant, radiation, three relapses and now two clear scans I imagined it would be over. But it isn't.

Next Tuesday Xylon has his scan. A day or two after that the doctor will call with his results.

It is nerve wrecking.

I find myself praying constantly, "Lord, let it be clear." Part of me thinks I should be praying, “Lord, take me to the place of your greatest blessing” but I can’t find it in me to do that. So instead I’m just praying my heart out and trusting that will be enough.

Yesterday I was thinking about the scan when I read a quote by a writer and missionary I greatly respect, Elisabeth Elliot,

"The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.”

‘Okay, Jesus, I’m hearing you,’ I thought.

Jesus didn't promise rescue from hard things but his company through hard things. (tweet this)

As Tim Hughes wrote (and as I’ll now be singing till we hear the results) it has to be:

God in my hoping

There in my dreaming

God in my watching

God in my waiting

God in my laughing

There in my weeping

God in my hurting

God in my healing

Christ in me

Christ in me the hope of glory

You are everything

I know when it comes to this scan that there is nothing I can do to change the results, to manipulate the circumstances all I can do is allow,

Christ in me to be my hope in this set of circumstances,

Christ in me to be my hope in the midst of cancer results,

Christ in me the hope of Glory be my everything.

And when I can’t pray, Lord, let your will be done here, I’ll be using worship as act of war against the enemy of my soul, and singing

“Christ in me, Christ in me, Christ in me the hope of glory, you are everything.”

Ponder: Have you been hoping for a different set of circumstances rather than hoping in Christ in you?

Prayer: Christ in me the hope of Glory be my everything.

Other places I've been writing:

I'm sharing over at Brett "Fish" Anderson 's blog about my experience of being in an interracial relationship. Go have a read.

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How to know if God hears your prayers

2015-04-09T14:48:00.000+02:00

{NOTE FROM WENDY: I'm going on holiday next week so I'm going to break from this blog too. The next new post will be up on 20 April.}

While he was still talking, some people came from the leader’s house and told him, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher any more?”

Jesus overheard what they were talking about and said to the leader, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me.” Mark 5:35 (MSG)

I've often wished that I never heard the words, “Your husband has cancer.”

They are hope-sucking words.

Those four words were the ones we heard a few months after marriage.

And these are the words God has spoken into my heart time-and-again since then.

“Just trust me.”

I don’t think anyone likes hearing that phrase either. But sometimes, “Just trust me” is what I hear Jesus telling me.

When I’m worried about what is going to happen next, when I’m stressed out over what the doctors results will say, or just down because I can’t see my dreams ever being reality that’s when I hear it, quiet, firm, “Just trust me.”

They are the same words that Jesus spoke to Jairus in Mark 5:35:

While he was still talking, some people came from the leader’s house and told him, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher any more?”

Jesus overheard what they were talking about and said to the leader, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me.”

I can’t imagine how I would feel if I had just been told that my daughter had died. I’m pretty sure that I would have felt like the words, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me,” wouldn’t fix anything.

I would have wondered if Jesus really understood my pain.

And at the same time I would have known that Jesus was my only hope.

One thing I’ve learnt in the almost four years since Xylon’s cancer diagnosis is that when the rest of the world is saying there’s no hope, Jesus is standing there saying, “They’re wrong.”

When everyone else is questioning if Jesus really cares about the hard things we’re going through, I listen for his voice declaring, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me.”

Perhaps what I love most about this short encounter between Jairus and Jesus is that there is mystery. Jesus doesn’t tell Jairus that his daughter is in fact dead, or that he’ll have to raise her back to life.

Jesus invites Jairus to trust him in the mystery.

And Jairus does, and as he does, he finds hope. He does not know that Jesus will make everything better, unlike us he hasn’t read the end of the story, he can’t foretell that Jesus will bring his daughter back from the dead.

Jairus only has Jesus’ words to hope in.

When everyone else was saying, “You have no hope!” Jesus was saying, “I am your hope!” (tweet this)

Sometimes that’s all I have too.

Jesus’ words calling to me, as I hold my husbands’ hand in the oncology waiting room,

“Just trust me.”

As I listen I find hope rising in unexpected places.

Ponder: What in your life sucks your hope right now? How does the story of Jairus help hope to rise in you?

Prayer: Lord, help me to hear you saying, "I am your hope" over all the other voices.

This post originally appeared as a guest post on ChrisMorrisWrites.com in September 2013.

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