"What has Jeanelle Learned?"

Jeanelle and Walt were wonderful next door neighbors in Houston. I spoke to Jeanelle last week. She has been under treatment at M.D. Anderson for stage IV bladder cancer. She said that it has not been fun! She wears a bag. She has tried to stay engaged with her family and friends. However, the chemo has been tough and there are days that feel very dark! I assured her that Linda and I will continue to cover her with our love and prayers.

What has Jeanelle learned through suffering? It has taught her gratitude. She has been overwhelmed with the affection and concern from her circle of love. She has been buoyed by memories of joy-filled moments.  Pain is inevitable but misery is optional. Suffering exposes the superficial. Pat narratives are shattered. Introspection is on the agenda daily. Appreciation for personal and professional care by the medical community is enhanced in every hospital encounter.

How do we redeem something bad by turning it into something redemptive? Jeanelle celebrates the resilience of the human body. There is something holy about that. Finitude demands that we look it in the face and pushes us to prayers of adoration, confession, supplication, intercession and thanksgiving.

Recovering from suffering is not like recovering from a disease. Most of us do not come away from suffering healed; we come away different. Instead of recoiling from loving commitments that are painful, we invest ourselves more deeply in them. Vulnerability is not foreign to Christians.

“My grace is sufficient for you and my

strength is made perfect in weakness.”
II Corinthians 12:9

Blessings!