In Undone, Michele shares openly all the emotions and faith questions that she experienced through her cancer experience. In Relentless, Michele walks you through the next phase of her life when cancer returns, when the orphans they brought home become theirs for life, and when she grieves the loss of her Dad to his own battle with cancer. It is personal, gut-wrenching, and oh so relatable.
Read MoreThere is real delight in being able to say to my chronically ill friends, “This is hard and I’m sad you are going through it. God loves you and I’m with you. You are not alone.”
In this video conversation, I introduce you to my friend, Marissa, author of Loving Your Friend Through Cancer, and survivor or a rare cancer called Angiosarcoma. We talk about being moms with life-threatening illness. Friends, it can be scary, that’s the truth. But also, God is so good. There are so many little displays of his goodness, especially as we see him work in our kids as a result of our sickness.
Read MoreMarissa Henley is a cancer survivor. Her book, Loving Your Friend Through Cancer is what I fondly call the textbook on how to be the most supportive friend you can be to your friend in crisis. Marissa shares how her amazing community walked with her through cancer but the practical lessons inside apply to your friend with any severe or chronic suffering. It could have been titled, Loving Your Friend Through Lyme’s Disease, or Loving Your Friend Through Divorce, or so many similar titles.
Practical lessons like: Knowing your place in the Circles of Friendship and Jen Hatmaker’s Ring Theory; Matching your friend’s tone; and How to speak to your friend in The Pit. We finish up with a chat about Survivorship.
Read MoreNiki Hardy wanted to stop merely surviving. She wanted to start thriving.
“Yes, Jesus came to give me abundant life but I’m in a storm right now, that he also said we’d have, so I’m gonna get through this storm and then abundant life will be waiting for me when I’m through this.” So we start waiting. But, for so many Cancer Thrivers, they didn’t know it would ever be over. This is true for people with depression too or chronic pain or a child with special needs that are very challenging. These things aren’t going to go away. What these Thrivers helped me realize is that this abundant life that God has for us is available right now in the middle of this storm.
Stop waiting, live the abundant life now.
Read MoreWhat do you do when you want (shall I say “need”) to support a friend? What if you aren’t close enough to do the do-ing things you long to do?
I wrote out 21 Bible verses that I will pray for my friend with cancer, one verse for each day she is gone at a treatment center. Want the list? I’m sharing it so you can join me. Or use it to pray for other friends.
Let’s lift up these words of promise to the One who love us best and first.
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