Moments..

"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." 

We are at MD Anderson this week checking on the progress of my treatment. On days like these you experience such a variety of moments. There is a lot of waiting, a lot of wondering, and a lot of talking to God.  I awoke this morning before the sun could peek through the curtains. In those quiet moments I prayed that regardless of what the day held I would have evidence that God was with me. I prayed for sight to see evidence of His work even when it didn't seem visible to the human eye. I prayed for strength to trust even if the path seemed uncertain. God was eager to show off.

 As I was called back to my first appointment, the technician commented on the cross ring I wear. I told her it was a reminder to me that God was always with me. For the next 30 minutes she spoke to me of God and faith and healing. She told me how God works miracles and examples of how she has seen that happen. She sat knee to knee with me and looked me in the eyes intently as she told me stories of what she had seen God do. Each new message began with, "I have a beautiful story of..." . It was as if she was reaching into a bag and drawing out a precious gift she wanted to unwrap and share with me. I received such evidence that God was with me. God answers prayer.

As we waited for our next appointment, we sat in the cafeteria of this immense hospital. I saw hundreds of people who are in various states of crisis and illness. There are medical needs, financial needs and huge spiritual needs. In these difficult moments, how do we trust there are enough miracles to go around? What separates my prayers from theirs? As I pondered that it occurred to me that with a limited, finite God this would be a crap shoot. We would all be competing against one another for a limited number of miracles. An answer to my prayer might mean there wasn't enough left miracle left for the person at the next table. But my God is not limited or finite. He has enough power to meet every need and still have plenty left over. In these difficult moments He calls me to seek Him and when I do, I will find him. He is faithful. God answers prayers.

As we arrived for our final appointment of the day, we received summaries of the tests that had been performed to assess the progress of my treatment. Lab work-- great! Pulmonary function--great! Tumors--significantly decreased after only two treatments! Want to talk about happy moments? That type of news will make you happy! Praise God!!!  God answers prayers!

"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God."  Each new day has a variety of moments. Some will be happy, some will be hard.  Some will be joyful and some will seem frighteningly silent. Know that God is in every moment, but also know that our response may be what allows us to see him --or not. The sun may be shining brilliantly, but if we don't open our eyes we can miss the brilliance of it. Spiritually speaking, The Son may be shining brilliantly, but if we don't open our eyes we may miss the brilliance of Him.  Praise Him. Seek him. Trust Him. Thank Him. God answers prayer.