“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,”. Colossians 3:23 NIV
“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.” Proverbs 16:3 NIV
Today’s picture inspires me to ponder the hard work necessary to accomplish a goal. Today’s picture represents lots of planning and attention. Do you have a goal you are working towards? Are you focused on God as you work? Are you committed to the hard work ahead?
This Mindset Monday, allow today’s scripture to guide your focus. Making a plan and focusing your attention is half the battle. Spend some time this morning prioritizing your steps and focusing your attention. Then step into your Monday with the mindset needed to win the day!
“Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.” Psalm 139:13-16 MSG
Today is one of those days that the temperature is predicted to fall as the day progresses. Today is one of those days that reminds me of the changing of seasons and the passage of time. Today is also Spiritual Sunday and as I think of time ticking on, I am reminded of God’s steady presence in my life.
Days like today put me in a mood of reflection. I encourage you to do the same as you worship today. How have you felt God’s presence over time? When did God show off? What situations did God use to strengthen your relationship with Him?
Click here and listen to “God of All My Days” by Casting Crowns. Allow the lyrics to guide your thoughts this Spiritual Sunday and may you be reminded of the ever present God in your life.
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 NLT
Click the link, My Journey and join me for See You Saturday.
Each day has be something different about my HPV journey. If you missed one, I encourage you to go back and read;
“So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.” 1 Samuel 17:50 NIV
Can you imagine David showing up to a fight with a sling and stone? This is such a great backstory to our stories. God is always showing up and equipping us for whatever we are facing. On this Finish Friday, I encourage us all to face the day with courage knowing God is on our side. The song, Fear is a Liar by Zach Williams reminds us that the Devil is always trying to tell us differently. What the Devil doesn’t know is that we have a rock and a sling in our pockets.
As most of you know by now, I have been sharing my HPV journey. Today is surgery day. At 8:00 am EST, I will have a Hysterectomy. I’ve had the last four months to mentally, physically, and spiritually prepare for today. It is no different than training. Life isn’t a 5k, it is a Marathon. Today is just another race.
Each day has been something different about my journey. Today I am a little anxious because it has also been four months since my last biopsy. It can take up to a decade for HPV to turn into cancer. Mine as been more aggressive so I am at a higher risk. I ask that you all sing a prayer over me and my medical team with In Jesus Name by Katy Nichole. “This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalms 118:24 NLT)
Look at the stats from CDC.gov, every year in the United States.
Nearly 200,000 women are diagnosed with a cervical precancer
11,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer caused by HPV
Over 4,000 women die from cervical cancer
If you missed a day to my story, I encourage you to go back and read starting with Sunday;
“Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.” Exodus 14:21-22 NIV
I would have loved to be with Moses and the Israelites to see the red sea part. Can you imagine walking through with sea walls all around you? Thankfully we have this story written in the word of God to know that we serve a mighty God who is faithful in His promises. Today God is writing our stories, just like He did with the Israelites.
What is God doing with my story? More often HPV will go away on it’s own. After three years of screenings and biopsies, I was advised by trusted Doctors to have a Loop Electrosurgical Excision Procedure, otherwise known as a LEEP. This was hard for me to plan because I was in the middle of training for a Marathon that I felt sure God had called me to do. Back in January 2022, less than two months before my race I had the procedure. Thankfully I recovered well and was able to run my race.
I thought I would finally be done with this HPV journey. I was at peace knowing that I had taken every preventive measure possible. Five months later I went in for a follow-up screening. It took almost three weeks for my results to come back. I began to worry so I wasn’t surprised when my results came back High-grade (HSIL) Dysplasia/Carcinoma in Situ. This isn’t cancer but pre-cancer. I would then see a Gynecological Oncologist for a consult and more testing. I was advised by this specialist to have a Hysterectomy.
So here I am today, just a day away from surgery. I went for my last long run this week. As I listened to my marathon playlist the song, Truth I’m Standing On by Leanna Crawford played. Some of the lyrics sing, “The God who parts the sea promises he’s gonna make a way for me”. I am trusting God on this Thursday and thankful for the trusted Doctors God has equipped to take care of me.
For more on treatment for HPV, you can visit; acog.org. You can find my Marathon playlist on Spotify; 26.2
Each day has be something different about my HPV journey. If you missed one, I encourage you to go back and read;
“At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.” Job 1:20-22 NIV
We can learn a lot from Job. After all the bad things that happened to him; the death of his children, loss of his wealth, and his health. Yet, he faithfully walked with God. Horatio Spafford who wrote the song, It Is Well also experienced great tragedy with the death of his four daughters. I encourage you to listen to this version by Kristene DiMarco. Walking through life with God, we can worship and keep our eyes on Him.
I can’t imagine such tragedy. As a parent we never want our children to suffer. This week I have been sharing about my personal HPV journey. It is something I do not want my children to experience. When the Gardasil vaccine for HPV was first approved by the CDC, I wasn’t a candidate to receive the vaccine. I made the personal choice with my children for Kendal and Trevor to be vaccinated. After I was diagnosed with HPV, I made the choice to get vaccinated in the hope it would help. I share this not to push vaccines on anyone because that is a personal choice. I share this because it is a part of my Journey.
To know more about the Gardasil vaccine for HPV, you can visit the CDC.org.
Each day I have posted something different about my journey. If you missed one, I encourage you to go back and read it;
“I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.” Psalms 34:4 NIV
What does it mean to live by faith? To seek the Lord in everything we do. In this verse from Psalms, David isn’t saying we will be delivered from our trials, but if we seek God He will deliver us from our fears. I can relate to David. When my HPV journey first started, my Dad was in the middle of his cancer journey. Through these two journeys, God had been there for me every time I sought Him. He has even held me when I didn’t.
Often our trials are meant to transform us in the process. I have learned to be an advocate for my health. It is not much different from being an advocate for our faith. Everytime Satan tries to get a foothold, we can stand on God’s word. With every test result, I would have more questions. I encourage us all to ask those questions and to keep asking. It is so important to be educated on our health. After all, we are living temples for the Holy Spirit, so we must take care of our bodies. I encourage you to listen to this clip, He Knows What’s next? As Steven Furtick talks about living by faith.
I also encourage you to listen to the song, Fear Is Not My Future by Brandon Lake. This entire song speaks to my story. My favorite part is saying Goodbye to fear, guilt, shame, pain, and grave.
HPV is more common than you think. There are groups of more than 150 related viruses to HPV. Learn more facts from Cancer.org
This week I am sharing a very personal journey. Each day will be something different about my journey. If you missed one, I encourage you to go back and read;
