Isn’t it heart wrenching that each and every person reading this blog has had a loved one battle cancer?
Maybe it was your mom, or uncle, or neighbor, or best friend, or cheer coach, yourself or whoever, but we’ve all seen at least one loved one, and maybe many more, fight that fight. With varying outcomes. We’ve seen and heard the stories of victory, the ones we praise God for and speak of his goodness. And we’ve seen and heard the stories of loss, the ones full of grief and pain, the ones that cause us to question God’s goodness. But all and all, before the end of any of these stories, there is the war. The months and months, years and years, of battling the cells in the body that are killing it, even though the treatment causes severe pain and complications. It’s a war because you don’t know how long you’ll have to fight, or how likely it is you’ll win, and the good parts don’t come until after the wars been won. But man, when it’s won, it’s the sweetest victory, isn’t it? Sometimes victory isn’t a true option though. Sometimes it’s an aggressive cancer and it was caught too late. Sometimes the only reason they fight the war is to hold off a defeat for as long as possible. Sometimes the fight isn’t even worth it.
My point is, there is a fight that must be undertaken to get to the end.
Do you remember the day you first found out your loved one had cancer? Immediately you knew, no matter what, there were going to be hard, long days ahead. Your brain probably started thinking up all the treatments that they would undertake. But, fortunately for us, most of us had hope. We had hope because God has blessed us with modern medicine that can help this war be won.
Charlito is a nineteen-year-old boy, my age exactly, living in Cainta, Manila. He just completed tenth grade. He went to prom three weeks ago. He’s in the wood work class. He’s the shiest of his brothers and he is also the oldest. He works jobs to help his family. His dad is out of a job right now. Charlito has also been sick for a while, a few months actually. Last week Charlito went to the doctor finally, because here, you only go to the doctor when something seems very wrong. He had his lungs x-rayed and received an ultrasound. Fluid is filling Charlito’s lungs and the doctor diagnosed him with pneumonia. But they found something else; Charlito has tumors on his lungs, liver, and pancreas. On the 19th of April, he will be tested for cancer, and from what we have been hearing, it seems very likely that the test will be positive.
Now, remember that fight I mentioned above? That doesn’t really exist here. Not for him. With how advanced the disease looks and how long Charlito has been sick, the odds aren’t very good. The most that could be hoped for is a few years of living off the chemo treatment. But here in the Philippines, only the very wealthy can afford that. Chemo isn’t even an option.
Imagine your loved one getting cancer here. Imagine not having nearly enough money for treatment. Imagine simply going home knowing that the days are truly numbered.
I couldn’t help but feel hopeless, I just accepted defeat, accepted the end before its even here and assumed, well that’s that.
Who do I think I am? Who do I think God is?
Just recently I have been learning that often in the bible, the new believers after Jesus’ death and resurrection were known by their hope. I’ve had over two thousand years more proof than the early Christians, that God is all powerful and so I have all the more reason to hope. Prayer.
I am not here to ask for the money to support Charlito, to help fund his treatment. We don’t want that. No, I am asking you as a body of believers to pray for complete healing over Charlito’s body, that on April 19th the tumors will be gone, that the fluid will be removed, and that he will be able to attend eleventh grade. I don’t know why the lord chooses to heal some people, rather than other people, which is actually something I’ve struggled with a lot lately, but I know we have every reason to hope. And I also know that I want the lord to be my first resort, not my last, so why would I not pray?
I know we carry the confidence and authority of Christ. I know he listens. So, I am asking you to stop reading this and pray for Charlito. If you’re a part of a prayer group, ask them to pray, too. If you’re part of a prayer email chain, pray. If you pray as a family, ask your family to sit down tonight and pray. If you don’t pray as a family, ask them to sit down tonight and pray for Charlito. His hope is in the Lord. My hope is in the Lord.
Thank you for the prayers : ) man you guys, of all the countries we’ve lived in so far, time here flies the quickest for sure. I apologize for the lack of blogs, but we have been busy busy busy. So happy to be so busy for the kingdom. I have lots and lots to share, I just need to set time aside to write it all out. Super short update:
My parents came to the Philippines!! That’s right, Bobbie and Dave joined me for a fantastic, spirit led week of ministry. It was much needed and really sweet to see them. They are pretty cool. Love you mom and dad. I will be posting a vlog about Parent Vision Trip (PVT) shortly.
We worked with an organization called Wipe Every Tear. Wow. Guys please look them up and check this out. I will also be writing a blog explaining this ministry and my experience with them.
In other news, I have only 7 weeks left of the race and that sounds both terrifying and exciting. Pray for me
As always, thank you for reading, much love,
Kara : )
