My Favorite Things About Cancer (So Far)

Yes, I know it seems like a nonsensical title. Our society's fear of cancer has given it a reputation as evil as Hitler, or rape, or maybe mental illness. Well, as nasty as the disease itself may be, God has amazing ways to bring blessing out of pain and despair.

A couple of weeks ago our daughter was diagnosed with epithelioid sarcoma that had metastacized from her foot into a lymph node near her groin. Of course this was a rude awakening for us all and we can only make educated, optimistic guesses right now of how it will end up. So we're just in the early stages of this journey, as we prepare for her first round of chemo treatment. And yet I can see already that God is blessing even in the midst of despair and difficulty. As much as I don't care for rollercoaster rides, I do realize what an instructive word-picture they can be for life. The most terrifying parts can also be the most exhilarating, but only if you have complete confidence in the ride. Everybody's life will have ups and downs of some sort, but the Christian should be able to have a certain confidence in the God into whose hands we have entrusted our souls.

So I'd like to briefly mention two ways that God has blessed me during this time. One was quite expected, and one has been quite a surprise.

The pleasant surprise has been the Children's Cancer Clinic at Blair Batson Children's Hospital (within the University of Mississippi Medical Center). The thought of going into a children's cancer clinic would have struck absolute terror and dread into me before, with thoughts of a hopeless, pitiful, place of desperation. On the contrary, my experience these last couple weeks has been that it's probably one of my favorite two places in Jackson. (The other is Stewpot, in case you're wondering.) The staff are the most wonderful, caring, cheerful, and honest people that I've ever come across in a medical facility. The rooms are a joy to look at, with brightly painted walls, a huge aquarium, nicely laid out seating, and so forth. But most of all, the children themselves are amazing. Although there are some who are clearly having a much more difficult time and nobody is there by their own choice, there is a remarkable strength and innocent joy of childhood that sets the atmosphere. The crying, unruly, and fussy children that show up in other medical facilities don't seem to make it to the cancer clinic somehow. Maybe the presence of cancer in a young family tends to produce a greater maturity, love, and love for life than is typically seen. In any case, I love being there among them, just to smile at them, pray for them, and learn from them. Yes, I actually love the children's cancer clinic.

My other favorite thing so far is the love and support of so many friends and family. Without wanting to be presumptuous or flippant, I can't really say that it surprises me, at least in a general sense. Yes, I do get surprised by some of the specific acts of kindness and support. But I had every confidence that our church and family and friends would be there to help us through this however they could. Whenever I get discouraged by another website quoting statistics and scary experiences, God brings another person to tell me about their experiences in overcoming cancer. I'm amazed at how many people I know have gone through cancer treatment many years ago and have gone on to live healthy lives, or have had close family members overcome cancer. In the vast majority of cases, I had no idea before that they had a cancer story to tell. It was also a blessing during our first four-day hospital stay how many people we came across that we knew, including one of the nurses who was a big help during the first couple days. I need to also mention that Facebook, CaringBridge, and other online ways of staying in touch have been a tremendous advantage for connecting us with friends, family, and even sometimes friends of friends.

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." (Romans 12:12)