Fortunately, through relationships at our church, God has connected me with one of the leading oncologists in South Florida but also, the world's leading oncologist for my particular type of cancer (at New York's Sloan Kettering Cancer Center). They were able to restore my health and diagnose the problem. The internal chemotherapy pump which profuses my liver with potent chemo drugs for two weeks at a time was profusing some of those drugs right into my stomach. I will be traveling to New York at the end of the month to have a procedure (pray that it is not extensive surgery) which will repair the leak. I will also be having another CT Scan so please pray that the results come back and I continue to be cancer-free!
While all this was going on, I was thinking of my blog and all you who actually read these posts. I didn't think many were reading until many of you started asking when the next post was going to be written. Sorry, it's been too long! I will now commit to post some sort of update and devotional thought at least every week. As God instills my heart and soul with precious wisdom from His Word as I go through this trial, I will attempt to pass it onto all of you. Or as I say to my church family at Christ Fellowship all the time, as God hits me over the head with a two by four of truth, I will be happy to extend the same to you! Sometimes it takes a two by four like cancer to get my attention!
God tells us to watch our weight, believe it or not. And I am not referring to the passages on gluttony (which tends to be a weakness of mine by the way). I'm speaking of our spiritual weight. As we continue our look at Hebrews 12:1, Paul (remember, I think he wrote it) says, "let us lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely," (ESV). Runners and racers of any kind attempt to increase their chances for victory by being as light as possible. As we find ourselves in this arena of life, surrounded by a crowd of heroes who have competed before us, we are encouraged to lighten up and remove excess baggage.
I've never seen a marathon runner with a back pack of equipment. I've never seen a NASCAR competitor towing a U-haul trailer behind his race car. Yet we do this in the race of life...sins and spiritual clutter can weigh us down and exhaust us. When we are carrying sinful habits with us, we cannot become the champion God wants us to be. God's grace gets us in the race...hey I like that...but once we are forgiven, we decide how much glory we can give our Savior by running to win! It's hard to bring positive results for your sponsor if you are pulling a U-haul around the track. I love that he refers to two different types of baggage...outright sin and just weight. Some things are not sin but still weigh us down. Our priorities can get out of alignment and we can become less streamlined. Our attitude can be less than ideal and we can stop performing at a high level.
One way this terrible disease has richly blessed me is in getting streamlined and shedding excess weight (both physically and spiritually!). My priorities are clearer then ever before...my God, my wife, my kids are the most important things in life. My attitude is not based on what I am called to run through in this life but Who I am running it for! People constantly seem amazed by my positive attitude...its because of Hebrews 12:1-2. If you are struggling and weighed down in this race of life: remember what we've covered: (1) You're not the first to run this race and experience hardship...there is a "cloud" of spectators who have gone through the same stuff before you, (2) lighten up...if you are feeling overly fatigued, it may be that you have a sin habit, priority misalignment, or bad attitude backpack that is weighing you down. Throw it off and run with me for the glory of our Sponsor!
I love you guys! Thanks for reading, praying, and just joining me on this road trip! I promise to give you more frequent updates and posts! Sorry, but I didn't think there were that many interested. Glad you are!
