Christmas Past

CHRISTMAS. The word is beautiful, conjuring up many beautiful memories and images in my mind. Although I know it's that time of year, it doesn't much feel like it since I'm not doing the "normal" Christmas activities of decorating (not even a tree!), shopping and baking. Nor are there any family members around and, truth be told, that's a huge factor to enjoying alot of the Christmas season in that "normal" way, right?

But I am reading Christmas devotionals and listening to Christmas music. A few years ago I had my first experience of  "a different Christmas" and honestly?...it's one of the best I've ever had. So I'm not depressed about any of this, this Christmas, because I discovered that it can be a wonderfully blessed time.

The purpose of this post was not to say all of the above but just to post some photos from Christmases of the past few years. I was reminded of that when I was searching for a certain picture and...wow!...I thought, I can't let those photos go to waste, sitting there not blessing anyone. So, yeah, I think most of them are pretty beautiful. Blame it on my friend the camera.

And one final one.

Merry Christmas!

I AM A SURVIVOR

 

This month I am celebrating 10 years since my diagnosis of stage 3 cancer. In fact on this day 10 years ago, on November 14, I had the surgery that removed the cancer.

According to the statistics that were given to me, printed out in black and white, I had a 50% chance of surviving 5 years if I underwent a certain chemotherapy regimen. All of the other choices were not as encouraging, with numbers of less value or with a more strenuous schedule. So guess which one I chose? There's something in every human that wants to survive as long as possible!

I won't enter here into the controversy that some people have regarding traditional versus alternative treatments for cancer except to say that, if I had known then what I know now, I would have chosen an alternative treatment. Perhaps I will post more about this at a later date.

Suffice it to say that I am just grateful that the Lord has His own set of statistics! I am convinced that He cured me purely by His own power and that He used the prayers of many (much more than I realize) to accomplish that. I am also convinced that I was cured, not because of, but in spite of the chemo. The body, if its immune system is strong enough, is capable of fighting off the deadly cancer as well as the toxic chemo. But now I'm getting into areas that I said I would not go...sorry.

Many thanks to my loving, understanding, patient and praying husband during those long six months of treatment; to my five loving and helpful children; to my ray-of-sunshine grandchildren, of which there were only three at the time; to the six or seven ladies who brought a meal (hello chicken casserole!); to a close friend who rearranged her international flight schedule to spend a few days with me; to a few other friends and extended family members who expressed their love and concern in simple but meaningful ways (we just don't know the high value of those little "simple" things!); and to the many, many people, churches, pastors...both known and unknown...who sent up many "fervent, effectual" prayers for me during that time. The Lord heard, the Lord answered and so from the depths of my heart I offer to you my Amazed And Grateful THANK YOU!!


But most of all I proffer my intense and heartfelt gratitude to my Lord, Friend and Savior Jesus Christ, without whose love, power and tender care I would not be here today writing this post.

What a great month to celebrate my 10-year survival...November, the month of Thanksgiving!