Man Is Born For Trouble

Up until two weeks ago, our family, the Hartleys have been fairly free of trouble. We have faced the death of grandparents, we have experienced serious injuries, we have dealt with a difficult transition in life, but never in our wildest dreams would we think that one of us would get cancer. We have all been fairly healthy over the years.

When I received the call from my Mom and heard, "Fred, we received terrible news today." My heart sunk. I wept over the phone with my Mom. I remember the feeling I had. It was almost as if I was punched in the stomach. I have always been close to my sister. She and I have been together for all but two years of my life. For the first time, I felt vulnerable. For the first time, I thought, how could this happen? This was the most difficult news I have ever received.

As I have processed this news and the reality of my sister's diagnosis, I am reminded of some of the posts that I have written in this blog previously. It was almost as if God was preparing me for this news. God makes it very clear in His Word (Job 5:7): "Man is born for trouble as surely as sparks fly upward." In other words, adversity will come to a person's life and God allows it to happen.

Since God has allowed my sister to experience this disease, and He has allowed our entire family to grieve and experience this with her, then He certainly has a purpose for it. God does not do anything without a purpose. No matter what God has done throughout history, He has had a special plan. At the end of each day of creation, we read in Genesis 1 that, "He saw that it was good." Every person that has ever been created, God says are "fearfully and wonderfully made." These are two examples of the fact that God never makes a mistake. Even in my sister's disease, He has a design, He has a purpose.

In light of that, we as a family have prayed that God would reveal His plan to us. I am also praying, personally, that God will minister to my own heart. Ultimately, we long to see Jesus glorified through this journey that we are on. I am trusting God for complete healing for my sister. In addition, I am asking God to sanctify me more wholly as I long to understand more of God's character through this journey. 

We, as a family, are in the process of being inside the Refiners fire. We are being pressed, stretched and tested through this journey. I am praying that we experience what Job says in 23:10, "But He knows the way that I take, when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold." I want to experience all that God has purposed for me through this journey with my sister. I look forward to sharing these insights through this blog. I want to come forth as gold.

In closing, I want to encourage those of you in the midst of a trial, open yourself to the Holy Spirit's work in your life. May the Lord meet you in your valley. May you experience the height and depth of the love of Jesus. Oh how He loves you and me, He gave His life, what more could He give.

Jesus, show me Your way.  Have your way in me.

Strength comes from Jesus

Challenges in life have their way of creating a variety of emotions. When we experience a crisis, it can cause a person to get stressed, angry, perplexed, hurt, sad and this list barely scratches the surface. Many people will experience the lows of life and turn to the wrong places to satisfy the longing of their souls. The weight of bad news or the stress will cause the average person to crumble.

As you read in my most recent post, last week, our family found ourselves in the middle of a crisis. My sister discovered that she has lymphoma cancer. 

Our family has handled this news fairly well and it is simply because of our faith in Jesus Christ. I don't want to minimize what my sister has been diagnosed with. The reality is that God is in complete control. We rest in His sovereignty and perfect plan. The Psalmist wrote in chapter 46:1, "He is our refuge and strength, our ever present help in times of trouble." If He leads you to it, He will lead you through it. This understanding comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

When a person invites Jesus into their lives, they receive an eternal inheritance. This person goes from having nothing to having everything. From being an orphan to having a family. Colossians 1:21-22 says, "Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation."

Then, it says in Hebrews 4:15, "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weakness." Because of what Jesus went through for us, He is able to minister to us in our hurt. When we are in need of strength and encouragement, Jesus is able to be our supply. He gives strength to the weary. Those who hope in the Lord, will renew their strength.

A Call to Prayer

Last Thursday, while I was in St Louis for a youth conference, I received word from my Mom that my precious sister, Andrea, has a large tumor in her chest. It has been diagnosed as an uncommon and aggressive cancer called non-Hodgkins large B-cell lymphoma. 

I want to invite you to join us in prayer as we declare life, peace, joy, health and healing over her. Her situation is serious – very serious. The tumor has already broken a rib and is pressing against her heart, esophagus, larynx, and the four major blood vessels around the heart. The tumor is inoperable, but it is not untreatable.

In the next two days Andrea and her husband Josh will make a decision on the medical treatment. This is a critical time. She needs the wisdom of God and she also needs divine healing.

The good news is that our God is a healer. Healing is not just something God dabbles in once in a while – Healer is one of His names. It is who He is and what He does. He is good at it – the best. The Great Physician. No one does it better than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

Josh and Andrea wrote a wonderful testimony of faith describing their journey and the exact medical details. Click here <http://goo.gl/7c0ck> if you would like to read more. They will update their progress on this website blog.

I invite you to pray with us for my sister's complete healing. Please join Team Andrea by rising up and joining intercessors around the world as we seek Jesus together for wholeness and health.

Joanna and I can’t thank you enough for standing with us through this most challenging season. 

Hebrews 4:16, "Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."