The Storms of Life

In the storms of life we see God work. In our weakness and helplessness, He shows Himself strong. In our doubts and uncertainty, He shows Himself wise. In our inability, He shows Himself all powerful. My husband and I learned to lean into God and His strength when Doug’s cancer diagnosis made us aware of our own powerlessness.

Stage 4 cancer created a storm in our life. The doctor recommended drastic life-changing surgery, including organ removal. As we digested the seriousness of the situation, we decided we needed a second opinion before we could move forward. But we didn’t even know where to go to get another perspective. We didn’t want to choose lightly. We prayed.

As we considered our situation and wondered about our options, a friend called. She knew of Doug’s diagnosis. She wondered how we were doing. When I told her our immediate concern of finding another doctor, she prayed with me over the phone. As part of her prayer, she asked that someone would just mention something that would give us some direction.

Within a couple hours we received separate phone calls from two other people close to us. They both suggested we go to Mayo Clinic. We didn’t know how to make that happen, but began by making a phone call to the clinic. Whoever answered the phone put us in touch with an appropriate specialist. We described the situation. The person we spoke with from that office said the doctor could see us the end of January. Our conversation occurred on a Thursday afternoon, just after Christmas. The cancer had been described to us as fast growing and aggressive. We didn’t want to wait a month to start treatment. The woman on the other end of the line sympathized. She seemed kind and helpful. She connected us to another office at Mayo. We heard the same story. The doctor in that office could not see us until the end of January either. As discouragement flooded over us, the first doctor’s office got back in touch with us. The doctor was scheduled to go on vacation the next week, but he had decided to delay his vacation. Could we be there first thing Monday morning? Unbelievable.

We made the trip. A team of doctors ran a series of tests. They concluded Doug would probably need the surgery, but first he needed to have chemotherapy. Because of the nature of the cancer, they said we could not delay starting chemo until he recovered from surgery.

We knew we were in God’s hands. We didn’t know the outcome, but we knew He did. We learned to trust Him, whatever lay ahead. At each decision point we prayed, and God led. In our discomfort, we learned of His comfort. In our fears, we learned of His soothing. In our shaky circumstances, we learned He is our solid ground. He reveals Himself in the storms of life.

At the end of the course of chemo, the tumors were gone. The surgery was no longer necessary. That was sixteen years ago. Doug has remained cancer-free.

Through that process, we learned about the faithfulness of God to lead us through the unknown. When we had no idea what to do, we prayed. He made our path clear, step by step. 

 

In the storms of life we learn to trust God more deeply, than in the easy times.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.                                                           2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV

 

Blessings,
Phyllis

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Copyright 2023 Phyllis L. Farringer