I Thank Jesus For The Really, Really Big Picture!

Uncategorized

This we week we thank God for all the blessings we have in life: family, friends, freedom, faith in God, a good home and good health care, and great food on Thursday! ( and many others blessings as well)  In our case, we are overwhelmed with gratitude for God’s hand in Claudia’s battle with cancer. About 8 months ago, CJ was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic cancer. We were shocked and unsure about the future. After 6 effective chemo treatments and an amazing, complex surgery, the doctors were able to say “we got everything we could see or touch”! Throughout that journey, we are convinced God’s hand was directing the treatments, guiding the surgeons, and keeping us hopeful and encouraged in our faith through some pretty rough moments. We know with certainly that God used our supportive family and a “vast army” of prayer warriors and your prayers to sustain us and enable us to get to this point. So, we thank God and we thank all our friends and supporters for all your love, support, and prayers!

Today, however, in spite of all that God has done for us, we still face an uncertain future! (And in reality, so does every one of you!) CJ will get her first post-surgery CT scan in a week or so. We are praying it will show no new cancer, but we just don’t know. We do know that this type of cervical cancer can reappear, and we know our surgeon views this more as a case of “managing” cancer, probably for the rest of her life. So, as much as I pray CJ will be and stay in remission, there is nothing I can do to guarantee that. My prayer to God will continue to be for remission and many more years together in this wonderful life we have shared! If I could describe, as a normal human being, the best thing that I would be thankful to God for, that would definitely be it. And every one of you would probably have a  similar prayer! We all hope and pray for good health, a loving marriage, kids that do well and succeed in life, and not too much suffering and tragedy in our life.

Throughout this cancer journey, I have clung to Jesus above all else! He has reminded me of the “big picture” as we have felt fear and doubt about our immediate circumstances. There are 3 major biblical themes that have sustained me and strengthened me, and leave me truly thankful:

1) Jesus knows this world is unfair and hard at times. But he has overcome the power of evil and helps us to do that as well!

33  “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33 (NIV)

This is a tough world under the influence of evil and the stain of sin. Jesus defeated Satan and evil on the cross, and offers us his own power to resist and overcome that evil ourselves. Paul reminds us in Romans 10 that there is nothing we go through here that Jesus has not already conquered, and that in Him, we are ALREADY conquerors ourselves!Romans 8:37-39 (NIV) :
37  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2) We are never alone. God is always with us!

20 And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” –  Matthew 28:20b (NIV)

God sends his own Holy Spirit to actually live within us when we put out trust in Jesus! This is a major blessing, if we will only allow him to help us.  He can strengthen us, comfort us, and teach us how to face the future with joy and peace!

3) Best of all, he gives us a great future to look forward to!  Jesus came to establish his new Kingdom, which would reverse all the effects of sin in our world. This gives us an unshakable hope for the future, something to look forward to that will be better than anything we can possibly imagine in this world!

In this new Kingdom, to be fully established when Jesus returns to earth, there will be no more sin, sickness, death, hatred, evil, and all the destructive things that keep us from God. And, we will have new bodies that will last forever! And, God himself will dwell among us! Wouldn’t you like to live in that world? Jesus promises that if you trust him with your life and accept him as your Lord and Savior, you will inherit that Kingdom with all other believers!

So, while I will obviously continue to pray for CJ’s healing & remission, I will especially pray for God’s presence, wisdom, understanding, peace, hope, and joy as we all navigate this uncertain and unfair world! I close with Paul’s prayer for the church in Colossae, and for all believers in every time:

9  For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10  And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11  being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12  giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13  For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.  – Colossians 1:9-14 (NIV)

This Thanksgiving, let us truly be thankful to Jesus above all else! Using the above prayer, I invite you to pray for family and friends, first of all, that they would come to put their trust in Jesus and surrender their life to his loving hands. Then, let’s pray this for each other as we navigate this tough world:

  1. Be thankful for their faith and changed lives (1:3).
  2. Ask God to help them know his will (1:9).
  3. Ask God to give them spiritual wisdom and understanding (1:9).
  4. Ask God to help them live to honor and please him (1:10).
  5. Ask God to give them more knowledge of himself (1:10).
  6. Ask God to give them strength for endurance and patience (1:11).
  7. Ask God to fill them with joy and thankfulness (1:11, 12).

Happy Thanksgiving, and remember the Lord Jesus is with you!

7 thoughts on “I Thank Jesus For The Really, Really Big Picture!”

  1. Thanks for the reminder about the “big picture” Tom. Proper perspective helps shape our thoughts and emotions and helps us stand strong in faith. Still praying for you and CJ and all involved.

    1. You are such an encouragement through all this. Your blog reminded me of a devotional I just read from David Jeremiah yesterday that I’ll share here: “in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Paul writes the word “in” instead of the word “for”: “In everything give thanks.” What would the difference be? If we were told to give thanks “for” everything, it could include thanking God for tragedies and disasters in which death and destruction reigned. But “in” everything—even in the midst of tragedies and disasters—we can thank God that He is in the midst of the storm with us. We can thank Him that He will use all things—good and bad, hard and easy—for good to those who love God and are “called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).”

  2. As I read Mark 3 this week, Jesus asked who are my brothers, sisters and mother? His answer was the fellow Christians. I am so blessed to have you and CJ as my brother and sister in Christ. You strengthen me with each blog I read. Thank you Tom for your insight and blessings.

  3. Thanks Tom – so glad to know you brother – you seem to often have the words that I need to heat at just the right time. Peace to you and CJ

Comments are closed.