PSALM 112:7
Few people make getting cancer a New Year’s resolution. Its presence is never by invitation, and nobody daydreams about the possibility of cancer growing inside a loved one. I had seen it distress families around me, but I never did more than say a halfhearted prayer, share a sympathetic sigh, or lend a listening ear. When the words “Dad has cancer” left my mom’s lips, they fashioned the course of my entire year, resulting in a soup of fear, dependence, and relief. I had no idea what gravity the words held until they sunk in moments later as I stumbled into my room. With every step I took toward my bed, new thoughts seared the reality. Stomp. Dad will have to take chemotherapy. Stomp. I will have to face my peers. Can I handle that? Stomp. Will I cry during my classes? Plopping onto my bed with these flooding thoughts, the big one hit me: Will Daddy die? I cried for hours as this question replayed itself. I began to call out to God, “Stay with him and protect him!” I was not in the mood to offer polite requests. I was screaming at God into my tear-dampened pillow; I wasn’t angry at God, but I felt such passion and needed to yell. In the following months, I saw my father’s joy. He was weaker in a physical sense, but his spiritual strength inspired everyone. Seeing this helped me cope with all of my questions. I felt that I could make it through anything if I just carried a positive attitude, believed in God’s faithfulness, and trusted Him for a happier New Year.
Sonja Mindrebo, 17, Houghton Christian Academy, Houghton, NY
Lord, I want my faith to be strong enough for everyone
to see—no matter what my circumstances. Amen.