Paul says in his letter to the Corinthians (1:2-5), “1When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.”

If he’d come with a fabulous, pristine voice and professional presentation the people may have thought he was a wonderful speaker. They may have thought he was special. But when he came to them as he was, the glory was God’s.
If we polish our flaws and hide the horse we road in on, people not only won’t hear how the blood of Jesus literally changed us, they’ll think we are smug and arrogant. Throw perfection out the window! It’s unrealistic and not very inviting.

The Samaritan woman at the well had a testimony. She met Jesus and He knew everything she’d ever done. She likely was not happy about that, as her life made her an outcast in her day. But He didn’t turn away from her. Somehow in talking with Jesus, she was transformed from a woman shunned by her people to a woman with a message. The Samaritans eagerly accepted Jesus because of her testimony. They heard the message of salvation from someone who had experienced it.

John 4:28-30
28Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29″Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” 30They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

John 4:39-42
39Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41And because of his words many more became believers.
  42They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

“If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God, I will get you out of any trouble.
I will give you the best of care.
If you’ll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I will answer, be at your side in bad times.
I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I will give you long life; give you a long drink of salvation”;

PSALMS 91: 14-16 Message Bible

It was taking the surgeon too long to come into the exam room. I had been reciting scripture since my eyes opened that morning. I knew in my spirit I was facing a challenge. I just didn’t know the whole story yet.

The paper gown I was wearing rustled soft as I moved around the exam room. “I can do all things through God who strengthens me” popped into my spirit as my mind retraced the events that led me to this point. On Saturday evening, I noticed a small moist area in my bra as I took it off to get ready for bed. That’s odd I thought. A slight squeeze brought out a dark colored liquid. On Monday morning, I called my gynecologist and saw her later the same day. The next day I had a comprehensive mammogram and a sonogram. Four days later I saw a surgeon for his opinion. He recommended a stereotactic breast biopsy; which by the way, in my opinion; was invented by a man to torture a woman while her Tata’s hang above his head! Just kidding. Now, I stand in the surgeon’s office awaiting the results of the stereotactic breast biopsy.

I picked up a magazine, flipped a few pages, a knock on the door…Dr Ahmed enters.
I have always been drawn to this surgeon’s gentle, soothing yet honest and open “bedside manner.” I’ve had the pleasure of knowing him since mom was first diagnosed with cancer 10 years ago. So there was no question that he would be the surgeon for me as well.

Over the course of the next few minutes he explained to me that the biopsy revealed that I have what is commonly called ductal cancer in-situ or DCIS. Then he stopped, looked me right in the eye and said, “I want you to put your mother and her cancer out of your mind. This is totally different!” I did exactly that, I compartmentalized mom’s situation and listened intently as he charted out the recommended course of treatment. I was to schedule a MRI of both breast and then return to his office for the results of that and to schedule a lumpectomy.

He assured me several times that this was a grade 0-1 cancer. That is was in-situ which means encapsulated or enclosed/has not spread.

We discussed the fact that I continued to have extreme tenderness in the left breast which Dr. Ahmed says is not connected to the diagnosis. But never-the-less it is what sent me to my doctor in the first place! And I knew in the deepest part of my being that the tenderness and nipple discharge had been the Holy Spirit’s way for getting me to the doctor early because my routine mammogram was six months away.

Once again I was struck by the awesome power of THE ALMIGHTY GOD!

We live, breathe, walk and talk in the natural everyday. Prayerfully each day we submit our lives to the Lord, asking that he keep us from all harm and danger, that he place angels all around us to guide and direct us and that he give us wisdom to be powerful women in his kingdom. Having said all of that, is it not just like God to do exactly like he said he would do!

Prayer,
How awesomely magnificent you are Lord God. You are not man, that you may lie and you demonstrate that EVERYDAY that you breathe life into our bodies.

I praise you for the pain and discomfort that took me QUICKLY to the doctor!
I praise you more because you are God and positively give me the best of care.

I commit my EVERYTHING to you! And I praise you in advance for ALL that you are going to do.

IN JESUS MOST PRECIOUS NAME, AMEN

When Tears Have Voice by author Nora Neal-Daggett