With Wings as Eagles
Monday, May 20, 2024
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isa. 40:31.
In August I received a clean bill of health after my annual physical. In October I had gotten an "I see no real problem" from the vascular specialist who inspected my swollen leg. But by November I started having occasional back pain. The swelling in the leg was still evident in December, when my sister eyed it with concern and made a doctor's appointment for me. The physician's words, "prostate cancer," sent a chill down my spine!
A few days later, back home in Tennessee, I was feeling somewhat tired. My usual optimistic attitude was failing. I thought of the words "They shall run, and not be weary." Then the pain hit, and I begged to be taken to the emergency room. Three days later the surgeons performed an orchiectomy and predicted I had six months to live.
During the next four and a half years I tried treatments ranging from herbs to experimental chemotherapy. By the fourth year I had sold my accounting business, since the pain was getting too great to hide, and I began an experimental chemo program at Vanderbilt. My courage was bolstered one day when I overhead another man on the same protocol telling his nurse that he was "back on the golf course again!" "They shall walk, and not faint."
For six months I took treatments and felt wonderful. My wife and I began traveling. I did odd jobs around the house and played with my grandson. "Run with me, Papa," he would say. Around and around I pulled him in his little red wagon, laughing and telling him stories. Then one day four months after the experimental chemo ended, the pain suddenly returned. I stubbornly tried pulling the red wagon with its special load, and I got sick—very, very sick.
I'm still in bed, too weak to function. My hospice nurse says she is "absolutely amazed" that I have been able to hang on so long. Maybe there will be a miracle yet. I keep that ray of hope. Then I think again of Isaiah: "They shall mount up with wings as eagles." Smiling, I am looking forward to that, too, in case the miracle doesn't happen!
Hang in there. God can use you regardless of your circumstances. And that is a miracle in itself!
In August I received a clean bill of health after my annual physical. In October I had gotten an "I see no real problem" from the vascular specialist who inspected my swollen leg. But by November I started having occasional back pain. The swelling in the leg was still evident in December, when my sister eyed it with concern and made a doctor's appointment for me. The physician's words, "prostate cancer," sent a chill down my spine!
A few days later, back home in Tennessee, I was feeling somewhat tired. My usual optimistic attitude was failing. I thought of the words "They shall run, and not be weary." Then the pain hit, and I begged to be taken to the emergency room. Three days later the surgeons performed an orchiectomy and predicted I had six months to live.
During the next four and a half years I tried treatments ranging from herbs to experimental chemotherapy. By the fourth year I had sold my accounting business, since the pain was getting too great to hide, and I began an experimental chemo program at Vanderbilt. My courage was bolstered one day when I overhead another man on the same protocol telling his nurse that he was "back on the golf course again!" "They shall walk, and not faint."
For six months I took treatments and felt wonderful. My wife and I began traveling. I did odd jobs around the house and played with my grandson. "Run with me, Papa," he would say. Around and around I pulled him in his little red wagon, laughing and telling him stories. Then one day four months after the experimental chemo ended, the pain suddenly returned. I stubbornly tried pulling the red wagon with its special load, and I got sick—very, very sick.
I'm still in bed, too weak to function. My hospice nurse says she is "absolutely amazed" that I have been able to hang on so long. Maybe there will be a miracle yet. I keep that ray of hope. Then I think again of Isaiah: "They shall mount up with wings as eagles." Smiling, I am looking forward to that, too, in case the miracle doesn't happen!
Hang in there. God can use you regardless of your circumstances. And that is a miracle in itself!
Used by permission of Health Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
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