Good morning…
On Easter Monday, I blogged about Caregiving For A Loved One.
“Sue, I read your blog,” texted Jennifer DeShetler, mother of Audrey, who has journeyed with cancer for over fourteen years. “It’s funny. I wrote about myself as a caregiver yesterday on Facebook.”
Knowing that I am not on any social media, Jennifer shared with me personally her touching words.
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God’s Healing by Jennifer DeShetler
On this Easter Sunday, I want to share my testimony of God’s love for all of us. This is for anyone who thinks you they are not important/deserving enough for God’s healing.
Did you know, I have never prayed for myself in the last 14+ years since Audrey’s initial cancer diagnosis?
When we went to King Jesus Church in Miami in January for prayers and healing over Audrey, the first thing one of the pastors asked me was, “I can see you are carrying such a heavy burden. You are going to break at any minute.” I remember in my mind thinking, “Well, yes, but we are here for Audrey, not me.” The pastor said to me, “I need you to promise, to put down all your burden and give it all to God. Only God can carry this heavy burden and resolve this.”
For the first time, I closed my eyes and said, “Yes, I believe and accept God’s love for me. I will lay all my burdens down for God to take.” In just these several short seconds, my heart immediately felt so light, as if I had oxygen in my heart for the first time in a very, very long time.
When Audrey had her liquid biopsy in February and scan this Thursday, I honestly did not worry. I even asked myself, “Shouldn’t I be more worried? Shouldn’t I talk to Ben about plan B? Shouldn’t I consult the internet for the latest trial?” No. Instead, all I felt was joy and thankfulness that God had broken the bondage of fear, anxiety, uncertainty that had tightly controlled me for so long. God healed my heart, even someone like me, who has never prayed for myself and was just a caregiver. For just those several seconds, I completely submitted to God and accepted His healing, and my bondage was broken. I would never go back to that fear and bondage again, now when I had tasted the freedom God had given me.
And Jesus said unto them, “Because of your unbelief; for verily I say unto you, if ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, ‘Remove hence to yonder place,’ and it shall remove. And nothing shall be impossible unto you.” – Matthew 17:20
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“I am not good at writing,” Jennifer humbly followed up. “I am trying to get three things across.”
1. God knows and loves each one of us. No matter how insignificant you think you are, you play a part in His big plan.
2. Jesus said it only takes a mustard seed of faith to receive God’s healing.
3. Never limit the supernatural power of God.
“Jennifer, your writing is raw, real, honest,” I replied. “Your words mirror the way you live, humble and wholehearted. I love what you have written. Your are describing an indescribable experience with our supernatural God. No words can capture completely, but your incredible awe and gratitude shine through. I know that God loves this, and I trust that people will be deeply touched when I share your words on our blog.”
“Audrey and your family are such beacons of hope in our community, and you identifying these three bullet points gives each one of us God’s living seeds to plant in our own gardens,” I concluded. “Thank you so much, my very special friend.”
…Sue…
