I have Cancer,What Is My Area of Greatest Need?
Posted: Friday, October 07, 2011
by Marijo Phelps
Peak weekend in the aspen leaf season, fluttering golden orbs surrounding the two track trail I was walking, liquid gold with sunshine streaming all around me. In the autumn painted landscape of gold, orange, rust, lime green and yellow I saw a snowy dusted Pike’s Peak.
The elk were bugling and coyotes yipping and howling almost as if they were giving their favorable critique to the God’s painted scene.
We had a morning teaching and were sent out from the huge log cabin housing the ladies retreat with instructions to take a notebook, pen and Bible asking the Lord to shine a spotlight on us and to listen.
I passed several of the gals who found a stumpy log or rock seat already. My head was overflowing and I needed to sit and write soon. I asked the Lord an old Youth With a Mission prayer question. “Lord, what is my area of greatest need?” And felt that I was getting an amplified answer. I had a brand new breast cancer and diabetes diagnosis and that was my focus. The Lord had an answer for both.
I sat and began to write repeating again the questioning prayer, Lord, what is my area of greatest need?.
JESUS
Jesus in me LARGER with me decreasing – I agree that things go best when I get out of the way.
Jesus’ purity purging me
Jesus lifting me to Him
Jesus’ hope overcoming
Me overcoming through my Lord
Me surrendering: will, plans, emotions, life, goals- all yielded up to Jesus
The Lord then nudged me to look up John 1:7 and I wasn’t sure if it was John or 1st John 1:7. I looked up John 1:7.
John 1:7
New King James Version (NKJV)
7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.
And then I looked up the 2nd reference having no idea ahead what was in either of the verses. God is SO good. Both passages tied in and were about the Light of the world, Jesus Christ, his giving us light and instructions on how to walk. Reminding me that I especially need to walk right now, not run.
1 John 1:7
New King James Version (NKJV)7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Then more answer to my prayer came:
Remain malleable in your Master’s hands
Jesus is your craftsman, redeemer, creator God, your completer, your husband, bondsman, “paid in full”.
The scripture chorus then came to me “Thou hast turned my mourning into dancing for me, Thou hast put off my sackcloth, to the end my glory shall sing praise unto Thee and not be sorry. Oh, Lord my God I shall give praise unto Thee forever… I sang.
A poem came to me then.
Daughter delight
Child set free
Precious little one
Captivated by Me
Son shining brightly
Warming your heart
Healing within you
Granting fresh start
One step taken
Your hand in Mine
Savior leads onward
Eternity within time
Marijo, I SEE you.
Soak in my Word (Psalm 71)
Psalm 71
God the Rock of Salvation
1 In You, O LORD, I put my trust;Let me never be put to shame.
2 Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape;
Incline Your ear to me, and save me.
3 Be my strong refuge,
To which I may resort continually;
You have given the commandment to save me,
For You are my rock and my fortress.
4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked,
Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
5 For You are my hope, O Lord GOD;
You are my trust from my youth.
6 By You I have been upheld from birth;
You are He who took me out of my mother’s womb.
My praise shall be continually of You.
7 I have become as a wonder to many,
But You are my strong refuge.
8 Let my mouth be filled with Your praise
And with Your glory all the day.
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
Do not forsake me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies speak against me;
And those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together,
11 Saying, “God has forsaken him;
Pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him.”
12 O God, do not be far from me;
O my God, make haste to help me!
13 Let them be confounded and consumed
Who are adversaries of my life;
Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor
Who seek my hurt.
14 But I will hope continually,
And will praise You yet more and more.
15 My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And Your salvation all the day,
For I do not know their limits.
16 I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.
17 O God, You have taught me from my youth;
And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.
18 Now also when I am old and grayheaded,
O God, do not forsake me,
Until I declare Your strength to this generation,
Your power to everyone who is to come.
19 Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high,
You who have done great things;
O God, who is like You?
20 You, who have shown me great and severe troubles,
Shall revive me again,
And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
21 You shall increase my greatness,
And comfort me on every side.
22 Also with the lute I will praise You—
And Your faithfulness, O my God!
To You I will sing with the harp,
O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You,
And my soul, which You have redeemed.
24 My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long;
For they are confounded,
For they are brought to shame
Who seek my hurt.
“And the Son of righteous shall arise with healing in His wings….” (Malachi 4:2
My presence is HEALING
My presence is LIFE
My presence is freedom
My presence is liberty
My presence is LOVE/AGAPE
I have been going over and over this since the retreat. It is amazing what will happen when we dare to hush up and get quiet before our Lord with notebook and pen in hand.
HE desires to speak to our hearts. HE desired intimate fellowship with us. The creator of the universe wants to sit and speak into our lives. Could anything be more amazing than that?
What do I need for my cancer diagnosis, more of Jesus. The day I got that diagnosis I put it at His feet and placed my hand in His. Each day since, I have done that in my living room after dancing before Him and praising Him name. No, I didn’t do this each day before this. But not I am placing my hand in His, allowing Him to lead me through that day and walking in His footsteps.
HE is able. As I yield daily I put myself into His most capable hands. Do I know the end from the beginning, nope, that’s His territory and I am very glad it is! I do know my Savior and my life is, indeed, in His hands.
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Come visit my blog! http://myincrediblelord.blogspot.com/ |
Marijo Phelps,saved by Jesus grace in 1974, from 9 years atheism into His loving arms. She is wanting to spread the good news about His redemptive plan for our lives through written media. Her name is pronounced Mary Jo. She was an RN for 23+ years, missionary with YWAM,statistical analyst for Every Home for Christ 9 years. Her first poem published when she was four years old. (her mom had much to do with that!) She has been writing ever since.
Her new blog can be found: http://myincrediblelord.blogspot.com
Her new blog can be found: http://myincrediblelord.blogspot.com
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Top-level comments on this article: (6 total)This manifold piece contains so much it is hard to take it all in. But the earnestness of your effort reflects your hope and yearning and rock hard faith. Here's to you on your journey.Yes, my odyssey is marching on - yes, this piece is sort of flight of thought and I apologize but it has taught me, comforted me and taken me through the past few days - GOD is good and knows exactly what we need ALL the time - HIM! His wisdom, His input and His Word (and "words") Not succinct but exactly what this child needs right now... and those fall leaves....
Hi Marijo.
My thoughts are with you.
You asked what you needed, but I think you already knew. I know that you will come through this whole and at peace no matter what the outcome. You are strong and faithful.
HUGS,
Diannethanks Dianne - learning how to lean even more on my Jesus through this all!
Hello Marijo, This was a very uplifting story. The Lord wants me to share with you the scripture that has gotten me through so many close calls with death. It is Psalms 91 NIV
1.He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2.I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my
fortress, my God, in whom I trust."
3.Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and
from the deadly pestilence.
4.He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5.You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day.
6.nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7.A thousand may fall at your side,
the thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8. You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9.If you make the Most High your dwelling--
even the Lord, who is my refuge--
10. then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
11. For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
12. they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
14. "Because he loves me,' says the Lord, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15. He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16.With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation.'
I hope that this scipture comforts you as much as it does me. I will keep you in my prayers.
Much Love,
JessieYES - this is my husband's favorite verse and rapidly becoming mine too!! THANKS so much!
Also Marijo, I wanted to share the lyrics to my favorite song.
The Battle is the Lord's by Yolanda Adams
v1
There is no pain, Jesus can't feel
There is no hurt, that He can not heal
For all things work [yes they do]
According to the masters purpose
and his holy will
no matter what [you in the balcony]
are going thru, remember that God only wants a chance to use you
for the battle is not yours its the Lord's
[we gonna tell the devil that all right?]
There's no sadness, Jesus can not feel
and there is no sorrow,
that the master is not able and willing to heal
remember that all things work
they're not gonna be all good
but they're shall work according to God's purpose and his holy will
no matter what, no matter what you're going thru
remember God sees all and he knows all
and all he wants to do is use you
for this Battle is not yours its, its its its its the Lord’s
This battle is the Lord's. its the Lord's
[yes its the Lord's] it is the Lord's
[but in faith you've got to hold your head up high] hold your head up high
[you belong to the most high God you don't need to cry]
don't you cry its the Lord's
[its the Lord's] its the Lord's
[yeah, yeah yes its the Lord's] it is the Lord's
[No matter what] No matter what
[You're going thru] Thru
[Remember its gonna be alright He's just using you]
God us only, using you for he's worthy
[No matter what] no matter what
[you happen to go thru right now] Thru
[Remember this will be a memory God is only using you]
God is only using you, for he's worthy
[You've got to have faith] No matter what
[You've got to know in your heart] thru
[That no matter what comes no matter what goes
God loves ya] God is only using you
[He loves ya (7x's)] its not yours
[And this battle is not yours] no
[He needs a chance to prove to your enemies that he is God]
its the Lord's, its the Lord's not yours
[So what you've got to do is, hold on, hold on] is not yours
[hold on, hold on] no
[don't give up, don’t give up] is not yours
[don’t give up, don’t give up] its the Lord's not yours
[Step out on faith] it’s not yours
[yeah, step out on faith] no
[yes]
[Step out on the word of God] is not yours
[yeah, yeah yes] it’s the Lord’s not yours
[This battle is not yours no, no] no
[This battle is not yours nooooo] is not yours, it’s the Lord’s, not yours
[If you don’t understand anything] is not yours
[know that you’ve been set up by God to be blessed] no
[Understand that it’s gotta work this way] is not yours,
[understand that God knows, God knows, God knows what you need] It’s the Lord’s, not yours
Is not yours
[before you really need it] no
[He knows how to move ya] is not yours
[He knows how to take ya around the enemy] it’s the Lord’s, not yours
[He knows how to hide you] is not yours
[in the comfort of his arms] no
[You’ll have peace, that counts of understanding] is not yours
[You’ll have joy, like a river ever flowing] it’s the Lord’s not yours
[ever flowing] is not yours
[ever flowing]no
[This battle is not yours] is not yours
[no, tell them tell them] it’s the Lord’s not yours
[no this battle is not mine] is not yours
[this battle is not mine] no
[I don’t have to fight it, God is gonna do it] is not yours
[I don’t have to fight it, God is gonna do it] it’s the Lord’s not yours
[I don’t have to fight it, God is gonna do it] is not yours
[I don’t have to fight it, God is gonna do it] no
[I don’t I don’t, I don’t I don’t] is not yours
[no, no] it’s the Lord’s
[no, no] not yours, is not yours
[no] no
[I'm so glad that God sees it] it’s not yours
[and he knows all] its the Lord's not yours
this battle is not yours, no, it belongs to the Lord
Hallelujah, yeah
AMEN - will print this out for my AM dancing with Jesus in my living room!
MJ - a song of joy rings out for you. What a wonderful source of encouragement you are to many. Thank you for sharing this powerful peace. It's not only timely for you, but for this age, when so many are hurting and uncertain. I am with you, with Jesus is sweet peace no matter what the circumstance. The storms my rage, but never could they drown out the voice of Lord if we only listen. Love and hugs! TThanks T _ I can't wait to hear your news Monday!!!
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing such an intimate time with the Lord. Love, KristaI just want everyone to see how personal and real our Lord Jesus can be in our lives if we let Him! Thanks for your encouragement so much!
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