Ready . . . .

My middlest brother, Joel Emerson, has a heart of gold! He also has a passion for helping others. One way he demonstrates his passion is by participating in the annual St. Baltrick’s Shave to raise awareness and funds for research in the fight against childhood cancer. Last year, and again this year, he honored me by asking me to “do the honors” of shaving his head and chin! And last year I shared a little of what that means to me. With a few updates, I’d like to share my thoughts again after yesterday’s shave!

Set . . . .

Like my brother, Joel, I’m a cancer survivor. And like everyone, I’ve had friends and family touched by cancer, either by a glancing blow or a fatal encounter. My brother, aunts and uncles, grandparents, father, in-laws and friends have all fought the cancer battle. Some have overcome, others won the ultimate battle and were rewarded with heaven. I refuse to say “They lost their battle with cancer!”

Done!

Few escape this life without an encounter with cancer. The difference for each of us is how we face the enemy. How we fight the battle. The war is already won. Jesus paid the ultimate price, fought the deciding battle, and won the war. Next weekend, as we celebrate Easter, we remember His sacrificial death on our behalf, we are reminded of God’s love for us in sending His one and only Son to pay our penalty, and we are grateful for the guarantee of our victory over death, even death by cancer.

Sharing the shave . . . .

So how do we face the enemy? My strategy was to fight with all the resources God had given the medical world. Not because I fear death, but because I believe God has provided those resources to give us more days in this life to do the work that He has for us to do. I believe that when God is ready to take me home, He will … and if that time had been 10 years ago, then all the medical knowledge and technology in the universe wouldn’t have overcome His plan. However, I also believe that He has gifted researchers and doctors and other medical professionals in order for them to discover medicines and cures to help cancer-stricken people win the battle and go on to serve and minister in His name.

Double Done . . . .

I’ll be honest, cancer was an awful experience, but at the same time, it was one of the most blessed times of my life. Thanks to cancer, I came to a richer, deeper, and fuller relationship with God and with my family. Thanks to cancer, I had to slow down and savor the life that I had begun to rush through and take for granted. Cancer is terrible, the side effects of treatment are horrific, but looking through the lens of HOPE, I could see God’s Hand leading me through that dark valley of the shadow of death, onto a new path.

Having experienced cancer myself, I was better equipped to be a care-giver for my dad during his year of cancer. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t all-wise, all-knowing, and super-strong … I was just “experienced” and compassionate due to my own journey. Now as we face my husband’s cancer recovery, I’m a little more experienced not just as a cancer survivor, but also as a care-giver. God works things out that way … preparing us to be the instruments of His love as we minister to others in His Name.

Having said all that, I want to make two things perfectly clear:

First, I don’t believe for one second that God causes cancer! Cancer is the consequence of a sinful, fallen world. Our society throughout history has lived in rebellion against God and His laws. Laws put in place to protect us, but which we have ignored. I believe that rebellion has created the atmosphere in which cancer has flourished. And the result is an epidemic of cancers that plague even the young and innocent. Could God wipe out cancer with a flick of His hand? Of course, but He has given us the gift of free will, the privilege to choose to follow Him. And even when we abuse that privilege, He won’t force us to change. Therefore, we have to live with the consequences of our bad judgement, our wrong choices, our SIN. And children, as well as adults, have to bear the burden of those consequences, including the burden of cancer.

Second, even though I have found my own cancer experiences to be laced with blessings, I don’t wish that children should have to suffer cancer. Just as God allows us to experience the consequences of our sin, He also gives us the wisdom to discover cures and remedies for many of those consequences. I remember the plague of polio when I was a child. And I remember the joy of the world, when a cure was found. We hear of fewer and fewer cases of many of the childhood diseases that I grew up knowing about and being vaccinated against, because medical technology has found cures. I know that God is pleased that mankind is seeking a cure for childhood cancer. I know that He blesses the efforts of the medical world as they research and experiment until they find ways to alleviate the effects of cancer, and someday eradicate all traces of the disease in all its forms. And I’m sure His is pleased at the efforts of lay people whose hearts are touched by the faces and stories of children and their families ravaged by cancer; and who are motivated to do whatever they can to help erase the threat and fear of childhood cancer.

I am humbled to have the opportunity to contribute, even minutely, to the cause of eliminating childhood cancer.

And I am so proud of Joel for taking up the cause to raise awareness and funds to defeat childhood cancer.

And I’m grateful that an organization like St. Baltrick’s is in place to raise awareness and funds to fight the battle for the beautiful, innocent children who are caught in the grip of cancer and all its ugliness.

In 2 Chronicles, God’s prophet tells the king who is facing insurmountable odds, “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” God is on our side. He will win the battle and the war against cancer. But as we see in the passage, He expects us to work with Him. Listen to what He tells the king, “Tomorrow march down against them.” In other words, He didn’t tell them to sit back, step aside, and let Me do this for you. He went with them into battle. They fought the battle together, with God. So I encourage others to join the battle in whatever ways God leads – shaving or sharing!

For us, the message is this: trust God to win the war against cancer, but in the meantime, “march down against” cancer with all we’ve got to do battle with – whether that’s science, or medicine, or money, or whatever else God has given us to use in this war! The battle is God’s, but the army is us!

In His presence,
bb