Thoughts During Chemotherapy

I sit here writing this post during my first chemotherapy treatment on this Friday morning.

I can’t say it enough, thank you everyone for so much support – as I said in my last post, we can’t run this race alone. We have been shown an overwhelming generosity to rally around us to help with whatever is necessary, and the community of support from our friends and family has been what has helped us make it through this journey.

Many of you have asked how you can continue to help, and as I sit here thinking about the answer to that question, to be truly honest our greatest needs are the ones we have no control over and we can only ask in prayer – clear scans, minimal side effects, peace and rest, courage and strength, recovery from surgery, and ultimately complete healing. Only one person can provide for those needs, and I’ll happily have you ask for those things on our behalf.

Maybe you are saying, yes Crys, I’ll pray for that. But I can do MORE! Rest assured, I know we will discover what kind of tangible needs we have as we enter this new season of chemotherapy. As I’ve learned that this is a marathon and not a sprint, your tangible help will be a welcome and refreshing waterstand along the route!
Until then, know that your prayers ARE the “more”. Sure, perhaps they are also the easiest thing to do. I mean, how hard is it to pray for a few minutes, versus mowing our lawn or cooking a meal? But do not discount the importance of your prayers. Prayer changes things. There is no small or inconsequential prayer. So when you commit to pray for us, know that you are meeting our number one need!

Maybe you are saying, Crys, I read your posts and I wish the best for you and I support you, but I’m just not the praying kind of person. If that’s you, then here’s my request – will you also pray for us?
Don’t do it for you, do it for us. You asked what we need and you made the offer – so there it is. If I had asked you to bring us food or send a card, you would have done it, right? In fact, I bet you already mentally agreed with me above that it’s a pretty easy thing to do compared to anything else.

Maybe you don’t believe there’s a God, or maybe you are mad at him, or maybe you think religion is hypocritical and the church is too judge-y…that’s ok, I’m not asking you to change any of that. All I ask is that you go to the only person who can do something about my situation and ask for His help – whether you believe it to be real or not. I’ll make it even easier, you don’t even have to make up the words yourself!

“God, please heal Crys. Please strengthen her body and minimize the side effects. You love her, and you have the power to heal her. You know all of her needs, please meet them all and heal her completely so this cancer never returns again.”

See? Easy enough. You don’t even have to talk about sins or fire or brimstone! I mean, it took longer for you to read this whole post than it would to pray. And if you want to make your prayer longer than that for extra credit, hey I’m not gonna stop ya. 😉

Your prayers are truly what we need. They make a difference, and I covet each and every one. Thank you for praying for us, for loving us, for being willing to help us, and for so much encouragement to us during this season.

And now, I’m checking out that bell on the other side of the room..I’ll be ringing that sucker soon.