We all have favorite Scriptures—ones that speak to us, ones that have brought us comfort, or have given us wisdom and direction when we needed it most. Sometimes the verse is one that we learned as a child in Sunday School, while some are from lessons learned in the storms and valleys of life. Whatever the context, we know that God speaks to us, encourages us and guides us through His word. A few of these favorite Scriptures for me are:
- “And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
- “For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.” 2 Timothy 1:7
- “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.” Revelation 21:4
- “This is what the Lord God of your ancestor David has said: ‘I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will heal you.’” 2 Kings 20:5
Verses from 2 Kings may not make too many top ten lists but this verse has more meaning to me than just about any other verse in Scripture. King Hezekiah, one of Judah’s faithful kings, had become ill and was at the point of death. Isaiah told him to get his house in order because he was going to die. Hezekiah wept and prayed to the Lord. God then told Isaiah to return to Hezekiah and say, “This is what the Lord God of your ancestor David has said: ‘I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will heal you.” This is great news for King Hezekiah but what does that have to do with me?
Twenty or so years ago my life was a mess. Both of my parents had died, just two weeks apart from each other, and Gary was at the height of his addiction to alcohol and prescription drugs. My life was spinning out of control and I was struggling. I was reading a book about faith and how to get my life back on track when I came to a section that said God was big enough to handle my anger and frustrations and He wanted me to be honest about what was happening in my life. That day I really let God have it. I poured out all my anger and frustration, my hurt, my grief and my disappointment. It took a while. When I was done I felt better, not because of any miraculous change in my circumstance, but because I had finally admitted the hurt I was feeling. Still, I was not yet ready to admit to anyone other than God what was going on in my life.
That week before class began, my Sunday School teacher, Mrs. Carol, said she felt like God wanted her to share a verse that had absolutely nothing to do with the lesson for the day. She shared “I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will heal you.” Then she went on with the lesson. I knew that verse was for me, that God had impressed it upon Mrs. Carol’s heart to encourage me! All through church I thought I would go home and Gary would be healed from his addiction! It didn’t happen quite that fast, but it did happen. And when the dark days would come, I would remember this verse and it would give me the strength and courage I needed to continue to fight for my family, for my marriage and for Gary to be healed. I knew healing was going to come.
Since I have passed the half-way mark with this part of my treatment regimen, scans were done this week to asses the progress. My tumors have shrunk 52% since the first scan in February, with 41% of this shrinkage coming from the new therapy. When my doctor shared the results I was disappointed. Based on the very scientific “poke tests” I had been doing, I felt the tumors were almost gone. After 16 of 21 long weeks of treatment, I had hoped my tumors would be more than just half-way gone. I threw a little pity party right there in room 407 of the Rotary House Hotel.
Gary pointed out the fact that the new treatment was working, progress was being made and if it continued at the same pace, in six more weeks it could shrink another 41%. Looking at the numbers from my previous scans I was reminded that the tumors had actually grown between treatments 2 and 4 of the A/C. At least now they seem to be shrinking significantly. I began to feel a bit more positive, but the disappointment was still dancing around the edge of my thoughts.
Then came Saturday morning and a friend shared a Scripture in a group text of cancer Warriors, “This is what the Lord says: I have heard your prayer and I will heal you.” 2 Kings 20:5. She hadn’t heard my story about this verse, or why it was significant to me. But getting a text with that verse, at just this time in my journey when I was discouraged, was a reminder from God that it was going to be okay. Like He was telling me not to worry about this, that I would be healed. Maybe not today, but in His time. God’s Word, and the friends who share it with us, are a precious gift of encouragement. I am so grateful for both.
T.S.CONLAY 