God's Word to Me in the Valley -2 "Wake Up Call "

The wake up call. January 14, 2008, after a regular checkup -- I woke up from a colonoscopy and the doctor was there with a monitor showing pictures of colon cancer. My first thought was there must be some mistake. I do not feel sick. But as I looked at the pictures of my colon on the monitor, I could see the cancer growing inside. Can I thank God for this?

The first answer that came was in a song that went through my thoughts, “Through it All” the third verse. This song kept going through my mind over and over during that day and I knew that God had given this song for this time in my life.

I thank God for the mountains,
And, I thank Him for the valleys,
I thank Him for the storms He brought me through;
For if I’d never had a problem
I wouldn’t know that God could solve them,
I’d never know what faith in God could do.

Through it all, through it all,
I’ve learned to trust in Jesus,
I’ve learned to trust in God.
Through it all, through it all,
I’ve learned to depend upon His word.

I thanked God for this song, hidden in my memory, that He used that day.

I later questioned God, as David did, when I received word that I had cancer.
I was not as close to the Lord as I had been in the past.
And my first thought was my sin had caused this problem.
In my daily Bible reading on 1-24-08 I read the following:

Psalm 13:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? Forever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me?
v2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
v3 Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;
v4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
v5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
v6 I will sing unto the LORD, because He hath dealt bountifully with me.

Satan was exalted over me and he was winning. I was praying for God to forgive my sins.
I felt that Satan had brought me down and he wanted to finish me off. I felt captured by my sins and that Satan had set my mind on the things of the world and this was separating me from God. I knew that I must repent of all my known sin and place myself on the altar before God.

God revealed to me that He had not brought me this far to leave me-like in the song. He showed me He loves me more than I can ever love Him, with an everlasting love. I knew that if God wanted to get all my attention, He did a great job. Most of all I felt assured that God was not finished with me yet. I accepted the fact that God had already forgiven my sins when He redeemed me at Calvary.

The rush of testing and doctors appointments ended up in a scheduled surgery on February 1, 2008. The Dr removed about 14" of my colon and 8 lymph nodes. Also tumors were found in my liver, but not removed. These will be treated with chemo. I am thankful for the many family and friends who came to my aid with prayer support. That is when God gave us the Scripture- 2 Corinthians 1:9-11. God also gave me the verses- Psalm 4:3-5- where He says to trust in Him. This is what we are doing.

As I have learned through these two years, God is Faithful. He has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. Please pray with us as I am looking for some new options for treatment. Thank you again for standing with us.

Next is my Hospital Experience :(

GOD'S WORD TO ME IN THE VALLEY

What really matters in my living life is not how much I have left, but how am I going to use the time I have? "It is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgment." God has made us know that one day we will give an account of what we have done in our lives. The earthly tent is temporary for we have an eternal tent in heaven. Our earthly body is being changed into a heavenly body that is eternal. God has made us for this purpose and has given us His spirit as our guarantee of what is to come.

1 Corinthians 3:12-13.... "If any man builds on this foundation (Jesus Christ) using gold silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work."

Today, my desire is to please God, whether alive on the earth or in heaven. This song sums it up --"I'm yours Lord, everything I am, everything I'm not; I'm yours Lord, try me now and see if I can be completely Yours." Yes, I can say thank you Lord for the colon cancer and the times you brought me through. David faced a giant problem named Goliath and he said, "The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of the Philistine." 1 Samuel 17:37
My faith is in the hands of the Lord, He will deliver me from this giant in my life as I remember the times He has already delivered me from Satan's grip.

During the last 2 years, 2 Corinthians 1: 9-11 has been my lifeline to God's heart. "Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us. On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many."

This is the reason I have begun a blog...... to take you on a journey with me and to ask you for your prayers. God has promised to bless us as we trust Him-- no matter the outcome of our circumstances. He will bring joy and hope to our lives as we draw near to Him- daily.
I will share my wake up call with you next...
Gerald James
March 16, 2010