...the most JOYFUL news...

I wrote this after my post-op news:

December 4, 2018

338/365: as a rule, I don't typically post until after 8pm. I feel I generally need to eat dinner before I reflect about my day.

Today I stood in front of a Christmas Tree at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at Centerpoint Medical Center and prayed for all the names of current and previous cancer patients written on ornaments. Each one of those names represents someone who is or was loved deeply. Each one was someone who cried hearing the dreaded news: cancer.

I looked at the patients in the waiting room and said to my mom, "God's got a lot of work to do to redeem our broken world." We are a blessed people because God chooses us to partner with to do the work of redemption.

I know not every prayer brings good news. Not everyone gets to be cancer free.

But I am one of the fortunate ones who can say, "God heard my prayers, God heard all your prayers!"

Your collective voices, whispers, energy was woven into the universe - you all helped bring this good news. You helped bring peace to my heart, mind, and soul. You prayed for cruddy appendixes (which wasn't the culprit), you prayed for a healthy me, and that's what you get! Even if the news would not have been ideal, I know your prayers would sustain me throughout.

I'm incredibly thankful and I want to ask you all to keep praying. If cancer is something we want to eradicate, I believe the energy that connects us can make it happen. We aren't all called to be doctors or scientists, but we have a role we can play.

Pray, my friends, pray for a redeemed world - that all of creation would be made whole. Pray for that day when there will be no more tears. Together and through the power of an Almighty God, who chose to walk alongside us and experience the human condition, we are capable of bringing about miracles.

I chose 11 years ago to follow Jesus because there was something about him. It wasn't because he walked on water, but because he believed in our goodness. He believed that we're all worthwhile and loved. I believe fully that God is doing something new through me. I hope and pray I can follow faithfully and help others know that I also believe we're all worth loving - that we are all good, even though we mostly see the broken. God is at work, all the time, creating all things new. Praise be to God.