June 1, 6:00 p.m., the day after surgery. All went well yesterday, but won't know until next week if it is cancer or not. A little tired/sore of course, but feeling very good all things considered. Not near as bad as when I had my gall bladder removed 21 years ago.
So, I started these "Some Day" blogs saying that being told I may have cancer started me thinking about the BIG questions - what if death isn't someday, but today? What do you do when death and today come knocking at the same time? Do all things really work for the good? Is it all real? Is He really there? Does prayer work? and if so, how? I think after walking with the Lord for many years we (or at least I) have a tendency to believe I've put these issues to rest, the questions are behind me, and doubt is a thing of the past. So it was bothersome when they entered my mind. I did not like it at all.
But what has stuck out in my mind most these past few weeks is how, after a few days of pondering these questions, everything began to unexpectantly fall into place and a peace came over me that I can only explain as from God. It started on Friday night, May 6, three days after visiting the doctor. Connie and I hadn't said a lot about the situation before then. But we were eating KFC Original Recipe that night when I finally asked her, "Well, what do you think?" That started a long conversation and I finally mentioned money. I had done a little doodling earlier that day and concluded that if God does take me Connie would be okay financially. When that became clear to her, she said with such a sincere and honest innocence, "Well that's not so bad!" that I just had to laugh, then she did too.
I tell this story because the moment we both laughed is the moment when things began to clear up in my mind, the peace began to come over me, and I knew with an assurance deeper than ever before that He is there, IT is for real, and that if death is today for me, God will make it turn out for the good of all who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
Now, I have to say here that while I obviously do not know what I will find out next week, I feel very positive I am going to be around for some time still.
No matter what happens, though, I am left asking myself, why did such a simple thing as laughter begin the overcoming? and just how does prayer work? Most of all, what makes prayer so powerful that it makes things better even if circumstances themselves do not improve? And why is fellowship so healing as well?
This is just my opinion, so take it or leave, but I've concluded lately that it has to do with the Holy Spirit living in each person who loves the Lord and who is called according to His purpose. Let me explain. Now this might get out there in the ozone a little, but stay with me, please. First, God lives in every saint through the presence of the Holy Spirit. Second, the sense of brotherhood and unity we saints feel when fellowshipping together is actually the Holy Spirit in all of us coming together as One, forming a divine, unbroken circuit if you will, between believers. Its what we call the unity of the body of Christ. Third, through that divine, unbroken circuit linking believers, fellowship becomes a divine battery charger and by plugging into the body/fellowship those who are down are revitalized by the Holy Spirit.
The same idea follows with prayer. The reason the words of sincere, Godly prayer have a power over and above the mundane verbage of everyday life is that words spoken in humility and dependence on our Lord form a conduit for the Holy Spirit to reach out from one believer to another. And I believe through that conduit the Spirit actually delivers real power, confidence and healing; just as real as the cable signal coming into our homes through the phone lines.
As I have mulled these ideas over in my mind it has also occurred to me that there is a real and practical aspect to prayer and fellowship we should all strive to understand and master. They are not some highly elevated, etheral concepts that only the most devout or holy among us can hope to attain to. Fellowship of the bretheren in all its many forms and Godly prayer are strategic for the health of the body of Christ. But they are also as simple and easy as coming alongside a brother or sister in need and listening, really listening, and then in sincere humility lifting them with your words into the presence and love of our Lord.
In the past month I have experienced the absolute reality of the power of prayer, fellowship and the activity of the Holy Spirit in my life. There is no other explanation for why the questions came and went as they did. I did nothing but share my situation with the body and receive much prayer from the same. It was just a matter of words being spoken. But the sincere prayers of the righteous change much. I am glad the questions came. They drove me back to my foundations. In fact they made me dig my foundations deeper and stronger. I don't know what's coming next week. But God does and I will rest in that.
Thanks to all who lift me now and in the future. David
So, I started these "Some Day" blogs saying that being told I may have cancer started me thinking about the BIG questions - what if death isn't someday, but today? What do you do when death and today come knocking at the same time? Do all things really work for the good? Is it all real? Is He really there? Does prayer work? and if so, how? I think after walking with the Lord for many years we (or at least I) have a tendency to believe I've put these issues to rest, the questions are behind me, and doubt is a thing of the past. So it was bothersome when they entered my mind. I did not like it at all.
But what has stuck out in my mind most these past few weeks is how, after a few days of pondering these questions, everything began to unexpectantly fall into place and a peace came over me that I can only explain as from God. It started on Friday night, May 6, three days after visiting the doctor. Connie and I hadn't said a lot about the situation before then. But we were eating KFC Original Recipe that night when I finally asked her, "Well, what do you think?" That started a long conversation and I finally mentioned money. I had done a little doodling earlier that day and concluded that if God does take me Connie would be okay financially. When that became clear to her, she said with such a sincere and honest innocence, "Well that's not so bad!" that I just had to laugh, then she did too.
I tell this story because the moment we both laughed is the moment when things began to clear up in my mind, the peace began to come over me, and I knew with an assurance deeper than ever before that He is there, IT is for real, and that if death is today for me, God will make it turn out for the good of all who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
Now, I have to say here that while I obviously do not know what I will find out next week, I feel very positive I am going to be around for some time still.
No matter what happens, though, I am left asking myself, why did such a simple thing as laughter begin the overcoming? and just how does prayer work? Most of all, what makes prayer so powerful that it makes things better even if circumstances themselves do not improve? And why is fellowship so healing as well?
This is just my opinion, so take it or leave, but I've concluded lately that it has to do with the Holy Spirit living in each person who loves the Lord and who is called according to His purpose. Let me explain. Now this might get out there in the ozone a little, but stay with me, please. First, God lives in every saint through the presence of the Holy Spirit. Second, the sense of brotherhood and unity we saints feel when fellowshipping together is actually the Holy Spirit in all of us coming together as One, forming a divine, unbroken circuit if you will, between believers. Its what we call the unity of the body of Christ. Third, through that divine, unbroken circuit linking believers, fellowship becomes a divine battery charger and by plugging into the body/fellowship those who are down are revitalized by the Holy Spirit.
The same idea follows with prayer. The reason the words of sincere, Godly prayer have a power over and above the mundane verbage of everyday life is that words spoken in humility and dependence on our Lord form a conduit for the Holy Spirit to reach out from one believer to another. And I believe through that conduit the Spirit actually delivers real power, confidence and healing; just as real as the cable signal coming into our homes through the phone lines.
As I have mulled these ideas over in my mind it has also occurred to me that there is a real and practical aspect to prayer and fellowship we should all strive to understand and master. They are not some highly elevated, etheral concepts that only the most devout or holy among us can hope to attain to. Fellowship of the bretheren in all its many forms and Godly prayer are strategic for the health of the body of Christ. But they are also as simple and easy as coming alongside a brother or sister in need and listening, really listening, and then in sincere humility lifting them with your words into the presence and love of our Lord.
In the past month I have experienced the absolute reality of the power of prayer, fellowship and the activity of the Holy Spirit in my life. There is no other explanation for why the questions came and went as they did. I did nothing but share my situation with the body and receive much prayer from the same. It was just a matter of words being spoken. But the sincere prayers of the righteous change much. I am glad the questions came. They drove me back to my foundations. In fact they made me dig my foundations deeper and stronger. I don't know what's coming next week. But God does and I will rest in that.
Thanks to all who lift me now and in the future. David
LORD Kept you in Testing period, Nothing more,, You Live Long time for HIS Glor.y in Jesus name
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