Mountaintop Musings

My wife Lisa and I were just talking to some fellow missionaries from Kearney, Nebraska. Jim and Teri are the same age as us, they have been with InFaith for around 24 years, roughly the same as us. Like us they have had several major health situations involving Teri. For us it was two bouts with cancer for Lisa. Teri has had a major pancreas problem that almost killed her a few years ago. Unfortunately, around two years ago just as they were emerging from the pancreas battle, Teri was diagnosed with a severe cancer infection. She has literally dozens of tumors on her body, from head to toe. Just recently tumors have appeared on her internal organs, liver, kidneys, etc.

She has been involved with some clinical trials in Denver hospitals. They have not had much success until just recently. She has been overdosed with a variety of chemotherapy drugs. Many of you can relate to this. Either you, or someone you love has had cancer and has had to endure the agony of the drip, the infusion. You have spent hours and days, like Lisa and Teri, watching poison drip into your body, praying to Almighty God for the drugs to do their work of finding those pesky cancer cells and killing them before they kill you. Or maybe you have sat in an adjacent chair watching your loved one ingest those powerful drugs that rob your life mate of vitality, energy, appetite, muscle mass and for some hope.

It is at times like that when Lisa and I, and Jim and Teri, must decide if we really believe what we say we believe about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the power of prayer and faith towards God the Father in the name of His Son. Recently Teri has found success in the clinical trial she is in, but the doctor has told them from man’ perspective, the ability of the medical world of men to heal her of this formidable foe is basically zero. The doctors have told them, like they told us in 2003, that her cancer is uncurable. That is a horrific thing to hear. It will shake the foundation of your faith, and world.

At times like that a person will press into God or they will shrink back. Jim told us Teri was reading in the book of Romans the other week and found verse 15:13, and said this will be my verse to stand on in the days ahead. That verse states, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Wow what a verse for the dark days of the cancer ward. Our God is the God of hope. This word hope is “elpis”. It has to do with an expectation of good. Hope in the Christian sense is a joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation. It also means we can have absolute assurance in the author of hope, God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ.

Along with having hope, the expectant certainty that God is in control, and will perform His perfect will in her life, Teri has also decided she will praise the Lord every day and trust Him. In looking at Psalms 147 through 150. These poetic verses tell us to always praise the Lord, that He is worthy, powerful and in control. As we have all been told, when life throws you a lemon make lemonade! Well better yet, when facing difficulties why not praise the One who made the lemon? Praise the Lord every day this year and read His word. It will change your outlook, and if you receive Christ as Savior by placing your faith in him, it will change your destiny!

Dave Carroll is an area missionary with InFaith, America’s oldest Christian home mission agency. He is also pastor of the Wolf Creek Baptist Church. You can contact Dave at 406.459.8935 or [email protected]