On December 24, I met with a surgeon who specialized in colorectal cancer. When he sent me to his scheduler, I jokingly asked what she had available the next week. To our shock, the scheduler found an opening on December 29. We were elated because it often takes four-to-six weeks to schedule colon surgery. Yet two weeks after the diagnosis, I had surgery to remove the mass (and the section of colon around it).
When I met with my oncologist a week later, he was shocked that I had already had surgery. We scheduled my first chemotherapy appointment a mere four weeks after my surgery and six weeks after my colonoscopy. Though the oncologist gave me an official diagnosis of Stage III colon cancer, he also made it clear that if I had waited another year for my screening, my prognosis would be very different.
Here is what I know: Without an effective screening procedure, a skilled surgeon, an expert oncologist, and accessibility to time-tested and proven chemotherapy treatments, my prognosis would be much more dire. In God’s common grace, the amazing gift of modern medicine has saved my life and given me hope for a cancer-free future.
God has also worked in other ways. Without the community of believers that have surrounded me and my family during this time, I would be completely lost, no matter the successful treatment. The body of Christ has been essential to our entire family’s ability to navigate my diagnosis, surgery, and treatment. This includes the church local (shout out to Taylors First Baptist Church), regional (our wonderful North Greenville University family), and more widely dispersed (brothers and sisters literally across the globe).
People have provided us with meals almost every week since my diagnosis (sometimes several times a week). Folks have given us money and gift cards, which have allowed us to pay bills and worry less about financial uncertainties. Many who have traveled this road before have shared their stories with us: they have seen God bring healing and are praying that would be my story, too. And there have been lots of hugs, which I always enjoy (though currently in moderation because decreased white blood cell count means germs are very bad for me!).
Most importantly, we’ve been blessed with the constant prayers of both beloved friends and virtual strangers, which we can almost tangibly feel at times. God’s people have joined hands so they are ready to catch us when we fall, and they hold up our arms when we are just too tired and weary to raise them up any longer. Prayers have often been accompanied by other acts of kindness, including the examples above, but also kind notes, rides to the doctor, errands run on our behalf, flowers or gift baskets, and details taken care of so that we don’t have to sweat them.
I want to say one more thing about our local church. The saints called Taylors First Baptist Church have truly been a special comfort during this difficult season. It’s hard to explain how loved our family has felt, how covered in prayer we’ve been, how financially and materially we’ve been blessed, and how much we’ve been encouraged. Our church has stepped up and stepped into our needs. They have been the hands and feet of Jesus to us. We’re so thankful for our church. I know they’ll continue to walk with us every step of the way.
God was on his throne the day before I was diagnosed. He is still on his throne today. His character never changes. Whatever may come–and right now, by his grace, my prognosis remains good–I know that he is in control.
An Additional Thought from Nathan
I want to echo everything Leah has written . It has been a remarkable blessing to see the many ways God has been at work in the months since her cancer diagnosis. We’re so grateful to him, and to his people, who have helped us carry this unwanted burden. Praise God for the body of Christ!
The one thing I’ll add is that there have been so many spouses and other care-givers who have reached out to me personally. They’ve stood in my shoes before, and they’ve shared their stories and their wisdom with me. They’ve prayed with me, encouraged me, and challenged me. They’ve reminded me it’s okay to be angry that we live in a fallen world where cancer exists. They’ve reminded me that marital vows to love one another “in sickness and in health” aren’t just a nice sentiment, but are a love-driven, resilience-building, hope-bringing promise before God and men.
Please pray for Leah, as well as for our whole family (our four teenagers have been great throughout this process, all things considered). Pray that the Lord would use this season to make himself known, to us and to many others around us, and that he would work through this hard to conform all of us more and more to the character of King Jesus.
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