Count It All Joy

03/14/2006

What are you holding onto, dragging around, clinging to-is it something that fills you up, or something that leaves you empty? This week I want to share three stories with you. The first is of an emptiness that was filled, the second is of a burden that was lifted, and the third is about giving back to God what has freely been given! Count it all joy!

I have had a week that has astounded me! If I were ever to think that God is done, that the great stories in the Bible have passed on by, that miracles were for the days of old and only mediocrity is left now, I would be sorely mistaken. This week has certainly proved that God is alive and well on planet earth!

I will write these stories today, and then I will ask permission to share them from those they are about before sending them out--because they are not my stories, but the stories of God at work in lives of those He has brought into my life. I have been privileged to be there with these people, to get to share in God's goodness to and through them, and see His miracles and His wonders in their lives.

When I saw these stories unfold, up close and personal, I thought to myself, "Somebody should be writing about this!!" I guess I am that somebody for now, so I only hope that I can do them justice, and that God will give me the words to pass on His awesomeness to all of you through these experiences.

Shall we begin with story number one?...

I come from a large family of six children. I have four brothers and a sister, and the reason I have one sister is because my parents decided to not have another boy! The way boys run in our family, they made the decision, after having five children, to adopt my sister! What a wonderful decision that was!

Through the years, it has been no secret that my sister is adopted, and she and I laugh when people say we look alike because we know we do not. At least not in the way it is meant. Almost ten years separate us in age, but as we entered into our adult years, those years melted away and we became closer and closer, good friends as well as sisters. We can talk up a storm, as evidenced by the fact that once we were on a car trip heading south and our dad called to tell us something. We had been on the road for hours. He asked us if we had solved all the problems of the world yet? We laughed. We knew if we kept driving, as far down as Mexico, we would only have touched the tip of the iceberg with all the things we could talk over. He knew that too!

Through the years, my sister never seemed to have a great, overwhelmingly interest in finding her birth mother, but I have to admit, I was the curious one. We talked about it from time to time, but the years kept passing on by, and she never made any attempt to find her mom...until last week.

My sister, Karen, called me and said she had started to investigate where her birth mother might be. I have to tell you, I was happy but a bit shocked and nervous...I didn't want to be held responsible for what she might find. I started back peddling as quickly as I could, as we laughed together about this not being my idea!!! She assured me it had nothing to do with my curiosity, but oh by the way, if it did backfire, she was holding me to blame. We laughed...and her search continued.

Karen would call me with updates, as she was getting closer--she now knew what her original name was on her birth certificate and she was waiting for further news...it was not long in coming...she was given a name and number of her birth mother within a week, and she wasted no time in dialing that number and asking the woman on the other end of the phone if she had put a child up for adoption the year she was born--and if she had, would she be interested in having that person contact her?

By the time I talked with Karen again, she had had an extended conversation with her birth mother, who excitedly exclaimed,
"Praise God! I've been searching for you for years!"
Now, that's a "Welcome home!" if I ever heard one!

In reading Matthew in the Bible this morning, I could not help but think of Karen's birth mom when I read the words:

Keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for.
Keep on looking, and you will find.
Matthew 7:7 (NLT)

How many years had Karen's birth mom prayed and asked and looked for her only child, wondering if God was hearing her prayers? Wondering if they would ever be answered? Wondering if that phone would ever ring, and if she would ever hear the voice of her daughter on the other end of it?

Almost forty years...that's a long wait. She said she had started looking the very first year she had given her up for adoption.

As Karen shared with me this morning, Psalm 27, she said it has always been one of her favorite Psalms because of being adopted. But as I read it to the end, I thought also of how her mother might feel in reading this same Psalm. Down in verses 13 & 14, it says, "Yet I am confident that I will see the Lord's goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous Yes, wait patiently for the Lord."

For years, her mother has had an emptiness inside. You wouldn't think when something is missing that it could be that heavy, but it surely is. It weighs on your mind, on your heart, throughout each day, until the missing piece is found. Each day she thought of Karen, she saved things to give to her, she thought about her on her birthdays, she longed for what she could not have, and God brought them back together when the time was right. When He had prepared both of their hearts for this reunion, He opened the doors that separated them for so many years. The phone number that Karen called, that reconnected her with her birth mother, had only been installed recently. She had not had a phone number in her name in fifteen years!

God also prepared the hearts of our parents to receive this news with gladness, that their daughter had made contact with the woman who had given them a child-a child that had brought them great joy through the years.

It has been an amazing thing to see! To walk through this with my sister, or should I say "run" through it, because this happened so quickly, has been so thrilling! To see God work through this process is pure fun! To know that even when something takes as long as 40 years, it will be accomplished in God's perfect timing, can give us all hope that whatever it is we are asking for, whatever it is we are looking for, God is listening, and He is watching. He has a plan and a season for all things. We cannot know how it will turn out...some do not have fairy tale endings like this story, but whatever the ending may be here on earth, God's eternal plan for all these things will be a fairy tale ending beyond our wildest imaginings. We have to trust our Lord in all of it, and know that through it all, He only has our best interest at heart.

Keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for.
Keep on looking, and you will find.
Matthew 7:7 (NLT)

Which brings me to the next story...about my new friend Sara.

Sara was also an adopted child, but this story is not about that part of her life. Her adoption story is more complicated, more difficult, and it would be hard to see God in some of the things she has had to live through, right up to the present day. Sara lost her dear son just over a year ago, and shortly before that sorrowful day, she had been diagnosed with a rare form of Lymphoma. A tough life, grown tougher, to say the least.

But Sara continues to search for God, through all the complications, and recently God has brought the two of us together in a sweet new friendship. As we spend time in the oncology clinic together, I find it is a place that is much too familiar. I know ports, I know blood tests and shots and baldness and tiredness and all that goes with long days in clinics. Phil spent many a long day going through what I see my friend, Sara, going through right now. She asked me just yesterday if it makes me sad to be there. I had to honestly say, "No. It doesn't. What makes me sad is that you have to be going through this."

I'm comfortable in a place where there is much discomfort. It is a place with people of all ages, which I find interesting. I'm used to a children's oncology clinic, seeing the parents there with their children, overseeing their care, taking care of their medications, making the next appointments for them. This clinic is very different. I see young men with their wives, I see older women with their sisters, I see every different race and age gathered in one place all fighting the same battle, cancer. One lady we talked to yesterday said she gets through it by looking at it as a business. She used to own her own business, and she deals with this in the same way...like coming to work and getting the job done. She was there alone.

It is work, believe me. These people are in a battle for their earthly lives, and some are very wounded. No one should be there alone, and yet some are. Many days Sara would travel there alone, spending long hours getting through all the tests and consultations that were required, and driving herself back home after an exhausting day. It breaks my heart to think of those that need help, that need a "mom" there to care for them while they are sick, and sometimes that help is not available.

I did that for Phil, helped him, took care of him, made his decisions for him when his head was too foggy to think straight. I refilled his meds, made future appointments, let him sleep on the drive there and home...he needed to rest--and so does my friend Sara. I am so thankful that God has brought us together so she can rest a bit. I'm so glad for all that God has brought me through so I can understand what He is bringing her through now. We can talk about our boys, and share a mother's heart that misses. We can talk about lab reports and follow-up care, and work together to get the "job" done. I can be her partner when her husband has to be at work to cover all the expenses that cancer can incur. God is good, in the midst of all of it!

And in the midst of it all, we can see God's miracles!! We can ask for His help, have many who are praying for the situation, and be amazed at all that God is doing in our lives to help see us through the toughest battles. Friday with Sara, was no exception! Many were praying for her on this day.

Here's her story...

With an early morning appointment, we were in the city of San Francisco by 9:00 a.m. It was to be a long, long day. Two doctors were out, and people were waiting for hours to be seen. Sara had her blood drawn, and then she waited, and waited and waited...the hours passed and we grabbed some coffee, ate the sandwiches we had brought, talked of many things, and from time to time, she would doze off for 30 seconds or so, which I have seen to be a pattern with her. I knew she needed some rest, but the seats there in the waiting area are not very conducive for sleeping.

Sara looked at me after a while and asked me if I would be her pillow--of course, no problem, so she leaned over on me and quickly went to sleep, and she slept, and slept...longer than I had ever seen her do. I had a little devotional there with me, so I read it, trying not to wake her as I turned the pages. As I read through what was written there, I would pray for Sara, for her healing, for her to know how much God loves her and cares for her...and I told God that I know I don't have the gift of healing, but He does. I was asking, and I was looking for Him to touch her life in a special way...

Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside.
Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached Jesus. He knelt before him,
worshiping. "Lord," the man said, "if you want to, you can make me well again."
Jesus touched him. "I want to," he said, "Be healed!" and instantly the leprosy disappeared. Matthew 8:1-3 (NLT)

As long as I have known Sara, she has been on oxygen. She has had to carry around a tank with tubing, never being without it. As we move around together, I have witnessed how restrictive that can be, and I have seen what happens when the hose gets kinked or the tank runs out...quick changes need to be made to get the air flowing again! On Friday we laughed because we were starting to become a real team in maneuvering through places with the tubing running from her, to the tank(s) that I was carrying for her. It was sort of like a dance at times, and we were getting better at it.

I continued to read the devotional I had with me, while Sara slept, and I came to a page with the Scripture out of 2 Corinthians 4:17, "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all." As the author, Joni Eareckson Tada went on to write, "Oh, how often we feel chained to our problems. Wouldn't it be glorious if we could consider all our trials to be as light and as momentary as cobwebs? We can!" She continued on, "Whatever troubles are weighing you down are not chains. They are featherweight when compared to the glory yet to come. With a sweep of a prayer and the praise of a child's heart, God can strip away any cobwebs."

As I am writing this just now, I am utterly amazed at this once again, and even more so because of God's timing--because while reading along in the devotional, I had noticed that Sara's oxygen tank was no longer "puffing" as it does when she takes a breath. It was silent, and I wondered if she was okay. I watched her, and she seemed fine--she was breathing, she was sleeping soundly, but no puffs..."Her tank must have run out," I thought, or "maybe she's breathing through her mouth." I'm not sure how all that works.

And then all of a sudden, it seemed, "With the sweep of a prayer and the praise of a child's heart," Sara awoke!! She looked at me in astonishment, realizing that her oxygen was off; she then took stock of the situation, smiled, and said that she felt good! I told her that she had been asleep for a long time, and sometime during her sleep it had stopped working. She checked it, and sure enough, the tank was empty. She asked me if this was a miracle? I don't even remember exactly what I said because I was as astonished as she was as I watched her take the tubing off and toss it aside! It was a moment we will not soon forget!

We begin to thank God for what He had done, and she called to tell her husband. Then she walked over to where they have a little finger monitor to check oxygen levels, and even though hers was a little low, it was not near a dangerous level at all. She came back, and we sat there in awe, as we watched her continue to breathe free of the chains that had been weighing her down. A half hour turned into an hour, into two, and by the time we left the clinic that day, she walked all the way to the car breathing on her own. She looked so free!! God had stripped away what was weighing her down, and it seemed a miracle had taken place right before our very eyes.

Now, I'm not used to seeing miracles of this sort. In all honesty, we prayed and prayed for God to heal Phil, and although there were many miracles along the way, Phil's disease still took him Home in the end. I believe in God's complete physical healing, even to this day, but I know that prayers are not always answered in that way, and I truly trust God for whatever His answers are. But I have to tell you, this was fun!! To see Sara unhindered, able to walk free of what she has dragged around with her for the past few months since her operation, was an amazing thing to witness!

The enemy is vicious though, and he made it the toughest day possible at the clinic, with delays and frustration in getting answers about tests that were scheduled, and nurses who were stressed and overworked not being as kind as they normally are, etc...anything the enemy could do to distract us from what God was doing, he did.

It certainly makes me think of the Scripture, "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the one who falls and has no one to help him up!" (Ecc. 4:9-10) Once again I'm thinking, no one should be in an oncology clinic alone!! Ever! Pray for all those who have no one to be there with them, and if possible, volunteer at the Cancer Society to drive if you can. It will bless the hearts of those who are fighting this battle.

I just got a note from Sara while writing this, and she wrote: "I got home last night and went right to bed. Today...It's 2 p.m. and I'm going to finally go downstairs and get some work done. I had to wear the oxygen awhile today but am doing much better with it off...Just think, next time we go out, I won't have to drag around the tanks. Yay."

Keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for.
Keep on looking, and you will find. (Matt. 7:7)

Which brings me to:

Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened. (Matt. 7b)

And the last story for today...

If you wonder what God has for you to do, what He has placed you on this planet for, look deep inside to the things you love to do the most, and then do them!! God has made you that way for a reason! If your kitchen is stocked with all sorts of cookies cutters and recipes, and the church you are attending is looking for someone to make cookies and deliver them to those who are attending your church for the first time, volunteer! They're looking for you!!

Serving in the Kingdom of God on earth doesn't have to be a chore, and in fact, when God calls on us to use the gifts He has given us to serve Him, there is no burden there. It feels as light as a feather because His burden is light.

I stopped by to see a friend this week and she was in the middle of baking cookies, and the excitement for the task she had been given was quite evident. She could not wait to get them decorated and to deliver them to those on her list for that week-to knock on their door and see if it would be opened to receive this gift for them. It was! She wrote to me and told me that the woman she met upon delivering the cookies "...explained about her visit to the church, and she said she realized it was time to focus on her faith." My friend went on to say, " We all have stories to tell don't we? I caught her after just finishing her dinner so dessert came right on time."

The door was opened when she knocked, and God was busy at work in the hearts of His children on earth! There is no greater joy than to serve Him as He has designed us to!!

We do all have stories to tell, and when we take the time to focus on our Lord, to put our faith into action, we will see prayers answers, we will see miracles unfold, and we will see doors opened that will expand our world way past our own stories and into the hearts and stories of those God brings across our path in this life.

It's fun!

It's exciting!

There are blessings beyond measure!!

Because God is good, all the time, even on the toughest days!

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
James 1:2-4 (New King James Version)

Amen!
Diane