The Daily Devotion for Wednesday, 8 August 2018 from The Great Plains United Methodist Conference in Topeka, Kansas, United States
Today please be in prayer for
Lincoln St Mark's UMC
Blue River District
Lincoln St Mark's UMC
Blue River District
Lincoln St Mark's UMC
Blue River District
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This Week's Lectionary
11th Sunday after Pentecost in Kingdomtide-Green
- 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13
- Psalm 51:1-12
- Ephesians 4:1-16
- John 6:24-35
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The Upper Room Daily Devotional from The United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Wednesday, 8 August 2018 "New Hope" by Danielle Ripley-Burgess (Missouri) 1 Peter 5:6-10 As the day for my annual colonoscopy approached, I was filled with anxiety that my cancer might have returned. Just one year prior, the doctor had found and removed several non-cancerous polyps. Though I had “beaten” colon cancer twice before, the “what-ifs” overwhelmed me. Finally, I’d had enough. I was tired of feeling defeated.
I began to pray in a different way. I got really honest with God about how angry I was over my cancer diagnosis at age 17 and the high risk of cancers I face because of a rare genetic condition. I let myself grieve the loss of my health, my fertility, and my carefree teen years. The tears flowed and flowed — until one day they stopped. I began to sense God’s presence in my grief and started to notice how negative my thoughts had become. I resolved not to let negativity dominate me and instead focused on the positive things around me. They had been there all along, but I had needed God’s help to see them.
When the day for my colonoscopy came, I looked for blessings. I found many: words of admiration for my strength, a warm blanket in the exam room, the blueberry scone I ate on my way home, hugs from family after the procedure, and a sense of freedom to openly share my story once again. Sometimes anxiety is inevitable, but when we recognize negative thoughts and let God show us the positives, our fears can be replaced by new hope.
TODAY'S PRAYER: Dear God, help us to trust you with our negative thoughts so that you can help us to see the blessings all around us. Amen.
TODAY'S READING: 1 Peter 5:6 Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that at the right time he may lift you up. 7 Throw all your anxieties upon him, because he cares about you.
8 Stay sober, stay alert! Your enemy, the Adversary, stalks about like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand against him, firm in your trust, knowing that your brothers throughout the world are going through the same kinds of suffering. 10 You will have to suffer only a little while; after that, God, who is full of grace, the one who called you to his eternal glory in union with the Messiah, will himself restore, establish and strengthen you and make you firm. (Complete Jewish Bible).
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: God helps me replace my anxieties with hope.
PRAYER FOCUS: Cancer survivors
READ MORE:
- How to Get to New Hope
- How to Get to New Hope
RELATED DEVOTIONALS: NEW HOPE
The Burgess Family
Every year I get a colonoscopy. It’s a fact of life that I’ve grown to accept. Although some years bring the anxiety and fear I wrote about in today's meditation, when I continue to recognize negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones, things get better. I find peace despite so many unknowns.I’m happy to report that I am currently in good health. I’ve had clear scans for many years, and my blood work is normal. There are no signs of cancer, and I praise God for healing me. He led us to understand the genetic syndrome behind my multiple cancer cases, Lynch syndrome, and I’m under the careful supervision of doctors working to prevent another diagnosis.
Purpose in Pain
A common phrase I hear both in patient and faith communities is “you find purpose in your pain.”
I’ve been a cancer survivor for half of my life now (I was diagnosed at age 17 with colon cancer), and that phrase challenges me each time I hear it.
Would I wish this disease on anyone? No, absolutely not. Yet would I be the same person had I not been diagnosed? The answer is the same — no, absolutely not.
I look at my beautiful daughter whom we adopted, a path set for us because of my cancer, and I am grateful that cancer led me to her.
I hug my husband tightly, and memories of when we first hugged after I was diagnosed flood into my mind. We were just 17 and 19 years old, facing issues of “in sickness and in health” years before we ever said our vows. Would we have stayed together had we not fought cancer side-by-side? Would we be so close now? It’s hard to say, but I’m certain cancer had a big role in showing us what we wanted in a spouse and helping us recognize that a person like that was holding our hand.
From close friendships to opportunities to travel, speak, and write — cancer has brought a lot of blessings into my life. But it’s taken me a while to see them.
The healing process
It’s easy as believers to feel pressure to be optimistic, even joyful, when we’re first diagnosed with a scary disease. We know the verses telling us to rejoice in suffering (Romans 5:3), reminding us of the promises that God works for the good of those who love God (Romans 8:28), and assuring us that God doesn’t give us temptation beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13). If we don’t know the verses, well-intentioned people will try to remind us.
People hate seeing us suffer as much as we hate suffering.
And although the verses are true, it often takes a healing process to receive them as a blessing and to really believe what they’re saying.
Cancer (or any disease) is bad and brings hard, painful, and unhappy thoughts and feelings. We must let ourselves get angry and upset if we want to heal. Grief can be a good thing, although it is uncomfortable. Jesus promises us, “Blessed are those who mourn” (Matthew 5:4). We must take our frustration to God. God can handle it.
Through our mourning, we will find God.
It will start as a little light, a tiny sliver of hope. But with prayer, counsel, scripture and time, the light will get bigger. In “secret place” encounters, we will meet God and experience God taking on our pain so we can live free.
That’s what happened to me, and it’s why I can find divine purpose and new hope because of cancer.
Danielle Ripley-Burgess is a two-time colon cancer survivor first diagnosed at age 17. She lives in the Kansas City area and writes about cancer survivorship, baking, faith, and everyday adventures of life with her high school sweetheart-turned-husband and beautiful, mixed-race, adopted daughter. Learn more at DanielleRipleyBurgess.com or follow her on Twitter at @DanielleisB.
Contact Information
Great Plains Conference Office
1207 Southwest Executive Drive
Topeka Kansas 66615, United States
(785)272-9111
(877)972-9111
info@greatplainsumc.org
Today's Devotional: 1 Peter 5:6 Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that at the right time he may lift you up. 7 Throw all your anxieties upon him, because he cares about you.
8 Stay sober, stay alert! Your enemy, the Adversary, stalks about like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand against him, firm in your trust, knowing that your brothers throughout the world are going through the same kinds of suffering. 10 You will have to suffer only a little while; after that, God, who is full of grace, the one who called you to his eternal glory in union with the Messiah, will himself restore, establish and strengthen you and make you firm. (Complete Jewish Bible).
Great Churches. Great Leaders. Great Disciples. Transformed World.
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