October 8
Be at peace among yourselves.
1 Thessalonians 5:13b
Survivors pay special attention to their relationships and assess the health of those relationships. For authentic healing and well-being, it is essential that each of our relationships is positive, provides support, brings joy and is mutually respectful. While no relationship will ever be perfect, as no human is perfect; it becomes vitally important to nurture relationships that add to our sense of contentment and thanksgiving. Relationships that drain us, add unnecessary stress, take advantage of us or cause us pain need to be examined and changed in whatever ways are possible. Healing is greatly enhanced when we are at peace. Seeking and establishing peace among those we encounter every day is a tremendous boost to our health and spirit.
Oh to be at peace with everyone in my life. O God, it’s often so very hard to do. But peace is your name. So I come to you to show me the way to establish your peace, in your name, today. Amen.
October 9
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Matthew 5:6
The search for what is right, for what is good and for what is eternally true is a noble and worthwhile search. Because when we look for these wonderful gifts from God we will begin to find them. Throughout the cancer journey there is so much we can discover that is wrong, that is bad and that is uncertain. Finding those things only leaves us diminished and discouraged. But the search for the very real presence of God in our lives, a search for blessings and wonders that we begin to discover are far too numerous to number, will fill us with hope, with promise and with increasingly positive expectations. In that we find our spirits lifted and our outlook greatly improved.
Too often I’m looking at what is difficult and overlooking what is going well in this journey. My need today, O God, is to have a clearer vision of the countless things you are doing to help me find authentic healing every day. Amen.
October 10
The Lord lives! Blessed be my rock, and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation.
2 Samuel 22:47
To believe in a God who actively cares for us provides a deep well of support. When we hold onto the promise that God loves us and only wants the best for us, we are able to tap into a stream of hope that refreshes and revives us in untold ways. When we nurture a trust in God’s ability to be a steadfast source of help and in God’s desire to offer us recovery and deliverance, we begin to experience blessings and joy we never understood before.
When I rely on your helping, healing presence to guide my days, I am filled with greater hope than ever before, dear God. I resolve today to place my trust in you, the strongest foundation I can find. Amen.
October 11
No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
Matthew 5:15
It is essential that we share the blessings we have been given. It is in sharing that we receive far more than we give. In a dark and difficult world, it is far too easy to see only the disappointments and frustrations around us. But that only makes our vision darker. Yet when we allow the light that does pierce the darkness to shine from us and through us, we change not only our own outlook, but also begin to influence the understandings of those around us. There are untold blessings in our midst. We can illuminate them and allow them to illuminate us to see the greater hope that God provides.
You put a light within me, O God, which warms and helps me every day. Even when I travel through this valley of illness, I realize I can help to shine that light all around me. As you bless me, help me to be a blessing to others in return. Amen.
October 12
The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.
Matthew 4:16
Darkness quickly descends on our spirits when cancer enters our lives. But darkness doesn’t have to remain. God reaches out to us to –
• give clarity to us,
• take fear from us,
• present peace of mind to us,
• offer direction for us, and
• bring healing to us.
God holds out a light and shines it before us to show us that we do not have to stumble and stagger into a dark and forbidding void. Instead we can begin to walk assuredly into a brand new and brighter day.
God of brighter days, when I am low and discouraged, I need your light to shine in the darkness of my soul. Pierce my doubts. Push away my disappointments. Protect me from my despair. Amen.
October 13
For this I will extol you, O Lord, among the nations, and sing praises to your name.
2 Samuel 22:50
Gratitude. We must come back to it every day. To affect a positive change in our outlook, our attitude and our well-being, we must devote time consistently to thanking God for God’s love and care for us. Give thanks right now for this day, for the life you have been given today to enjoy it. Give thanks for the sunshine, the rain, the home in which you are able to live. Give thanks for those who care about you and for you. Give thanks for the moments of release when you laugh, when you cry, when you have a burden lifted from your heart. Give thanks for unexpected blessings and for blessings when expectations were met. Just give thanks. For everything you can. As often as you can. Your life will change when you do.
I give you thanks today, O God, with a grateful heart, a heart full of amazement and joy. The more I seek what is a blessing to me, the more I realize I cannot finish counting the ways you enter my life to heal it. Amen.
October 14
I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you.
Philippians 1:3-4
In all of our lives are people who love us. We cannot travel this pathway alone. Each of us needs the healing touch of others who love us and who only want the best for us. Not only do they help to provide care for our bodies, but they also nurture our spirits and souls. The support they give is invaluable. Take time to name those who are essential to your care and well-being. Take time to thank them for all they do. Take time to thank God for providing them in our lives and for working through them to bring hope and encouragement to each day.
I know I do not thank you enough, dear Lord, for those people you bring to me who love and care for me. But I take this moment today to begin to renew my expressions of gratitude for them and for all they do to give deeper meaning to my life. Amen.
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