Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Unfortunately, far too frequently these days I’m hearing of another person battling cancer. My heart goes out to each and every one of you (both the patients and the care-givers), especially after all of the trials my family endured a couple years back with my Dad and Grandmother.
At the height of the battle, I remember sitting in a church service during one of my trips to New Jersey and being completely lost in despair. I had just left my Dad’s hospital room and it was becoming all too clear that the odds of survival were against him. As I was sinking lower and lower in my seat, the service closed with two songs that shared a common theme: ‘Only Grace’ and ‘Your Grace Is Enough’. I normally love to sing along with the worship team, but that day as the tears overflowed, all I had the strength to do was soak in each word. As I did, I was reminded of these powerful words from the apostle Paul - to rejoice even in the hardest of times; for when we are weak, He is strong.
I left that service with a renewed focus to keep my eyes fixed on the Lord, and He proved yet again how strong and faithful He was to carry me through it.