Beauty for Ashes: God's Grace for Cancer SurvivorsSample

Be Still

My diagnosis happened on February 1st and my mastectomy was scheduled on February 19th. Talk about a fast turnaround!! Looking back, I’m amazed at how fast, yet powerful those 2.5 weeks were! Once I finally picked my face up from the ground from the initial shock and put on my armor of faith through declaring and truly believing for my healing without a doubt, it was like I encountered God’s reassurance at every turn. On the radio, during praise & worship at church, at the fitting for my post-surgery garments, it was so clear that the Holy Spirit was speaking to me and letting me know that I was covered. I remember reaching out to my sister in Christ again because I needed to make some important decisions as it related to which route I’d take for treatment and she told me point-blank: “Whatever God says, listen and DO IT.”

In expectancy, I prayed for guidance to help me clearly identify which path to take, basically looking for some sort of sign and was humbled by God’s sense of humor. Do you know what His response was to my plea?? “Be still, and know that I am God.” If I didn’t hear His whisper so clearly, I would have gone back to my prayer closet for a do-over, but by that point, I was out in the desert surrendered to wherever He was leading me. Isn’t that just like our Father, though?

This makes me think of the story when Jesus and His disciples were on the boat during an intense storm. The disciples, much like me in this moment…and us all in human frailty, were frantic. Panicking, they woke our precious Jesus out of His precious slumber and I just imagine Him giving them that stare of death that we give when people mess with our sleep. “Where is your faith?” is the question He asked…it’s like He says to us in storms, “don’t you even know who I am?” Psalms 46:10 is a scripture forever etched in my heart. Storms can’t outlast Jesus. Storms don’t even stand a chance of waking Jesus up from a nap. Stormy moments don’t require me to fret and panic and pace; they’re an opportunity for me to demonstrate my faith in Him and His mighty power to calm the storm with two words: “Be. Still.”