A Man and His Sign

I went to a Colorado Rockies baseball game two nights ago. My son is home for the summer, and my wife and I wanted to take him to a game before he heads back to the east coast to begin a new job there.

I wasn't expecting a great game. The Rockies were playing the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are a good team. The Rockies are not a good team this year. As it turns out, it was an interesting game. The weather was threatening all game, and even caused a rain delay at the beginning of the 9th inning. We ended up winning the game in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the 9th inning.

But the most impactful thing actually happened on the way to the game. As we were walking towards the stadium, we were caught at a red light along with a crowd of other Rockies supporters. As we waited for the light to turn green, I noticed a small, elderly man standing in front of the crowd, holding a hand-made sign. As soon as the crowd began to gather, he went into action. Holding his sign up high, he began quoting scriptures at the top of his voice. "Ye must be born again." "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, you will be saved." "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever refuses to believe is damned." He spent about a minute proclaiming the future judgement and the need of a Savior. When the light changed, he lowered his sign and stopped his preaching.

I was watching him the entire time. He wasn't eloquent. He wasn't well dressed. His sign was crude and a bit hard to read. But I was rivetted. He boldly proclaimed the truth of Christianity in front of dozens of people. And I was glad that we have a country still where a guy like him can witness of his faith in public without fear of being arrested or put in jail.

I wondered how the crowd would respond to him. I thought they would be mocking him almost right away. A crowd like that, there were plenty of people already drunk, already talking loudly, probably ready to put down a guy like him. I was surprised, though. The talking got quieter, some even listened to him, but no-one gave him a hard time. No-one.

As I passed him, I put a hand on his shoulder and told him "Amen, brother. I'm a believer too." I wanted to encourage him in what he was doing. I hoped that brief encounter would let him know he was not alone. I wanted him to not give up in proclaiming the good news.

Then I thought: would I do that? Would I stand outside Coors Field with a sign, preaching to wave after wave of sports fans as they arrived at the stadium? Would I be that bold? Willing to risk being heckled or harassed for what I was saying? Even perhaps physically jostled or attacked? Arrested? I was reminded that the Apostle Paul was horribly mistreated for his bold witness for Christ.

I felt like I had seen an example of the Apostle Paul there on the corner of Blake Street in downtown Denver. And I was convicted by his bold witness. Shamed that I have never taken that bold a step for my Savior. Wondering why he was doing that when I had never even thought of doing something that radical for Christ.

Two days ago, I found a new hero. Someone who inspired me to be more intentional, more bold, more outspoken, in speaking the truth of the gospel to others. I hope his example changes me. I want to change. I want to make a difference in people's lives. To be a witness for Christ. God, please help me to be that kind of witness for my Jesus.

B.C. and A.D. redefined

I would like to borrow these two well-known and defining acronyms from history to help in processing what is happening in our family right now. The defining date for us that separates these two is January 25th, 2012. That is the date my daughter Stephanie found out she has cancer.

So for me, B.C. stands for Before Cancer, and A.D. stands for After Diagnosis. When Stephanie continued to have unexplained medical symptoms over the course of this past year, she would not accept doctors who told her she needed more rest, or should take more vitamin D. She continued to seek out further medical testing and I thank God she did. After a PAP smear finally showed the presence of cervical cancer, there was relief over finally having a correct diagnosis. Now she knew what it was, she could begin a process to "fix" it.

But our A.D. has been anything but smooth. Every time there has been further news from the doctors, it has been worse news. From cervical cancer, with surgery as the solution, we went to metastasized cancer, with at least one lymph node infected by the cancer. From there, we have had biopsy results reveal the cancer is a rare and aggressive cancer, resistive to treatment, called endocrine-neuro cancer, which requires basically throwing everything at it to try and get rid of it - chemotherapy and radiation, right away, and over the course of the next 6 months.  

Our A.D. world has been completely redefined by her cancer. Nothing is the same.
So many things that were important before her diagnosis have become so much less important now. Our jobs. Getting our home ready to sell. Keeping up with the laundry. Going to the gym each morning. Eating regular meals.

Our priorities have completely shifted. Now, these are the things that are important to us: Taking care of her and her husband's needs. Finding out as much as possible about her cancer and the treatment regiment needed. Organizing meals. Getting her to the hospital, to doctors appointments. We want to be sure we are there for her at every turn.

Through it all, we have drawn even closer to God and to our faith in His ultimate goodness in our lives. His Word has become our daily sustenance. Prayer has become a way of life. The encouragement of others who have stepped forward to walk this path with us has become as precious as gold to us.

God has ministered to us in our pain, in our uncertainty, in powerful ways. He is our strength, our comfort, our rock. He is working good...always! The story Stephanie is telling through her blog, derailingmydiagnosis.wordpress.com, is being followed by hundreds of people already. Her journey of faith has gone viral, reaching to people all over our nation, all over the world!

We don't know what the future holds. The road will be long and difficult. But we are learning so much, and there is so much more to learn. Lessons from the caring hand of our loving Heavenly Father.

Speak, Lord. You have our attention.