“It’s like I’m riding a wave of prayer right now,” mentioned a beloved buddy battling cancer. The father of six was giving a journey update to fellow goofs gathered for our usual Friday morning fellowship.
It has already included surgery to remove a tumor from his neck. That left a scar running from behind the left ear, down the neck before taking a right turn and heading toward the Adam’s apple. I’ve written before about his kids joking, “It looks like Dad got in a fight with a shark.”
The fight against cancer is no joke and has entered a phase of intense radiation. The outstanding faith-based marriage counselor passed around a picture of him strapped into a Hannibal Lector-looking mask for the first blast of, we pray, cancer-killing radiation. For treatments to be effective he must remain perfectly still. A steel cage encircles his head and is bolted to a gurney-like apparatus. It ensures the noggin’ remains still and the laser can do its job. He cracks with a smile, “It’s a little bit uncomfortable.”
What’s been absolutely admirable is this man’s spirit. It comes from his faith. A belief that God has a plan. The tsunami of encouragement has certainly helped. “I received a wonderful hand-written card the other day from a guy I’ve never met,” offered this warrior. “He survived similar stuff and wanted to encourage me not to lose faith in miracles.”
The utterance of “encourage” warmed my marrow on this chilly and snowy Centennial State morning. Icy and slick roads kept attendance to a minimum. Usually there’s 10-12 dudes gathered around the large conference table. On this day, just four braved the elements to sharpen our faith. I’m damn glad to have been one of them.
Life a tad challenging right now? I would suspect the answer is yes. We all have “stuff” threatening our physical, emotional or financial health. We should never grow weary of encouraging one another to courageously confront the battles. Devoted Pep Talk readers know your scribe’s love for encouragement, defined as, “To give hope and confidence to.”
Can you imagine? What the heck would our world look like if we, empowered by encouragement, displayed more hope and confidence? Considering I’m running for political office, it’s impossible to resist: What would our country look like if we had more hope and confidence in our political system presenting candidates who truly represent the will of the people? A topic for another day.
Cancer-fighting buddy mentioned something else that still resonates. He talked of a preacher’s recent sermon about those who sniff out counterfeit money. “They only handle real money. They become experts in how it feels and smells. This way, they know what a fake looks like.”
This week, let’s not fake anything. Let’s be real and realize the importance of encouraging one another. It’s a shield of hope and confidence against painful forces blasting our world and well being. Miracles are welcome too.
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