Cancer is such an ugly word....

Cancer is such an ugly word.  I truly believe it should be a curse word, a word that is not suitable to use in public company.  The word itself brings to mind unbearable sadness and despair to most people.  It brings those to mind for me, but I am also reminded of a never ending bravery, a never failing faith, and a beautiful smile and voice. 

I’ve known numerous family members and friends who have suffered with cancer.  None of them ever gave up their fight, even when the battle was lost.  My great aunt, Doris Jo suffered from breast cancer, brain cancer, bone cancer, and liver cancer. She eventually succumbed to the disease but she never quit fighting.  My cousin Linda battled with non-Hodgkins lymphoma a few years ago.  She is Gran to thirteen grandchildren and she gave those kiddos the greatest example of how to be a fighter they will ever know.   She has been cancer free for two years now and her grandchildren and the rest of her family will agree that she never gave up until she kicked cancer’s butt.  My great aunt, He-He, also suffered from breast cancer.  She fought the battle and won and through it all never lost her sense of humor.  My great aunt Zoe lost her battle with breast cancer.  Cancer has hit my family on both sides.  We have lost great pillars of faith to it, but we’ve also won some battles. 

I mentioned that I have friends that have suffered as well.  At 31, a lot of my cancer experiences are with people who are older than me.  But not all.  I went to camp for seven of the best summers of my life.  For a whole month every summer I got to swim in the river, play games, sing songs at the table, and spend nights around a campfire on top of a hill making and sharing memories with some great friends.  One of those friends was a year younger than me.  She was always a leader at camp and eventually she became the program director (big wig in charge) many years later.  A few months ago, she was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.  Her friends immediately started a fundraising page on GiveForward.  She continues to fight back against cancer and is lucky enough to have a great group of friends and family to walk with her through this battle. 

My friend Paul suffered from bladder cancer.  Paul was a giant of a man with an unshakeable faith in God.  After his diagnosis, someone started a CaringBridge page and Paul and his wife Susan would post updates on that page.  I remember one journal entry, written around the time of his diagnosis.  Paul wrote “I know God is good so I trust that however this journey ends I will still believe that He is good and does whatever He pleases. I'd rather have God do whatever He wants for my life than for Him to do what I want because He knows what is best and it is all about Him anyway and not about me. From HIM, through HIM, and to HIM are all things.  To Him be the glory forever.”  Paul went into his fight knowing that God had a plan and that he would be ok regardless of the outcome. 

Finally, there was/is Lisa.  I’ve known Lisa my whole life.  For most of it, she was just my friend’s mom.  But eventually, she was my friend.  You couldn’t ask for a better friend.  She knew when to listen and let you vent, and she knew when to tell you to suck it up and get over it.  She began her battle in 2007 and kept fighting until the end.  Lisa never lost her faith in God, she never wavered in her hope for a cure.  She continued to work with the youth of the church and sing with the worship team.  A generation of young people were strengthened in their faith in Jesus through watching Lisa’s battle.

Last week at small group someone asked why miracles don’t happen anymore.  I commented that I believe miracles happen every day, we just don’t see them. We always prayed for the miracle of healing for Lisa.  That miracle didn’t happen with earthly healing.  We know that Lisa was healed in death.  But maybe that’s not the real miracle.  Maybe the real miracle was the strengthening of faith of so many by seeing Lisa’s unending faith.  Maybe the real miracle was that Lisa’s life and example impacted so many people that others, who never knew Lisa, will come to faith because of her impact on the life of someone else.  Maybe the real miracle is that because of Lisa’s love for her community and Jesus, other cancer patients in Lamar County will be helped during their battle.  We all wish Lisa was here with us today.  But maybe God’s plan is to use her memory to bring hope to others so that others don’t have to worry about the little things when they are fighting for their lives.

Erin Barbee