Remember!

As I sit in a friends kitchen in Tampa this morning, having been stuck in Tampa on business due to the whole eastern part of the country's air schedule being shutdown due to bad storms yesterday, I read Dr David Jeremiah's email devotional which is about being delivered from Egypt.  Certainly, being delivered from the airports and the fate of sleeping on those really comfortable airport chairs or floors, along with over-priced mediocre food, and of course grouchy people all around, is something to really appreciate.   ...And having it be with friends (Misty and John) in one of my favorite cities in the world is a pretty cool twist.

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"And Moses said to the people: “Remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out of this place.”
Exodus 13:3a

Recommended Reading
Deuteronomy 7:17-19
One of the advantages of keeping a diary is that it helps us remember significant events in the past. And keeping a spiritual journal does the same; it reminds us of crossroads, provisions, and answered prayers—demonstrations of God’s faithfulness in the past. It is not just moderns who struggle with memory. The challenge to remember was a central theme in Israel’s life as a nation.

Then, and now, the most important thing that Jews remember is the Exodus from Egypt. It was then that God rescued and redeemed His people from a life of bondage to a pagan nation. As the Israelites prepared to leave Egypt, Moses told them to remember “this day.” What were they to remember? The “strength of [the Lord’s] hand” that delivered them from slavery to safety. God is strong; God is mighty to save; God is a promise keeper—and more. It is the attributes of God, displayed in the past, that give us cause to trust Him and live for Him in the present.

Remembering and considering God’s attributes and faithfulness is a step toward personal revival today."
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As I ponder being delivered from "Gehenna" (the airport in turmoil yesterday) I am also reminded of being delivered from cancer and healed to the extent that there isn't any, but I still have this tumor in my lung.  God answered all of the prayers everyone prayed and took the cancer away, yet he did not heal the tumor, yet, and I remain on steroids for another 7 weeks.  ...Why?

Interesting question.  I suppose if I were God, I might want to take a look at me and my history of bust out of the gates running 100 mph, and off to the next thing, and craft a plan where I could both heal me and grow me simultaneously, if that is what I wanted to do, if I were God.  #shrugs

As I reflect on the Israelites leaving Egypt, I am reminded that they spent 40 years in the desert wandering, groaning, walking, and generally not making great progress to the promised land.  So why did they wander for 40 years and not just get to go straight to the promised land?   The short story is disobedience and misalignment with God.   Lots of complaining, groaning, and not doing what they were supposed to do.  While that generation did not get to the promised land, and it wasn't until the next that did, I believe that God used that curse of 40 years to grow the people through that time.

So as I continue to walk in a much less dark shadow of the valley of death, I think that I (or really anyone[s] walking through the process of being healed) am supposed to continue to grow and God can use the current affliction, albeit currently benign but still very much there in my case, to keep my path straight and on course with whatever he has planned.

I think the key is faithful alignment and committing to getting there.  One of the healers, and now good friend of mine named Edith, who prayed over me told me that I must fully surrender to God's plan and also have no unforgiveness or broken relationships in my life, in order to see the healing come to fruition.  I made some important amends with some people and went the extra mile in some cases, and I am glad that I did that.  It was not easy to assume the reduced position in some of those cases, but it was no where near as bad as I thought it would be, and it was a very important step in my trek.  I do not know of anything left to do there, but I do know that God has a plan (Jer 29:11), and it needs attention.   One piece of that plan is passing it on.  "When we are healed, it is not just for us", as a very wise friend named Kevin who lives in Luxemborg reminded me a few weeks back.

So, I am thrilled to say that we are launching a Christian Cancer Support group at Great Bridge Presbyterian Church at 333 Cedar Road in Chesapeake on April 25th at 7pm.  The group agenda will consist of a short biblical devotional, talk time for people there, and most importantly prayer.   We are inviting people battling cancer, friends and family of those with cancer, and very importantly anyone who is a survivor.  My hope is to create a setting where faith, prayer, and community exist, and many can grow, and Lord willing, can hopefully be delivered from their plight as well.

Here's to a continued walk to healing and 100% restoration, and to being delivered from where I was...oh yeah and deliverance from the cancer too.   Kelly and I remain faithful that God will heal this tumor in spite of the doctors less optimistic prognosis of just trying to "shrink it some and then operate", and shock the medical world once again.

#Isaiah40:31