Don’t Waste It

John Piper once said after being diagnosed with prostate cancer, “Don’t waste your cancer.”

I have been chewing on that idea for awhile now, especially after being told I’m in complete remission from my leukemia. I don’t want to waste my cancer either.

This past summer, I remember at one point, my feet were swollen, bruised with red dots, and rather painful to walk on at times. I was fluid overloaded, so I just assumed I overwalked (we had gone to Shipshewana that week), and the fluid was starting to cause some issues. We had no idea what was to come and that that was the first sign I had leukemia we believe. Who would’ve thought?

When I was diagnosed, I went through every stage of grief in a matter of a few days and it was ugly. I ugly cried constantly and kudos to the nurses who just sat with me. I didn’t want to waste this cancer, but how in the world was I going to survive? How was I going to get through this? My mind was still fresh with heart issues, which was why I was there in the first place! The 8A cancer floor was unfamiliar, scary, and I didn’t want to be there (hello denial)!

And then glimpses started to happen. Because I was in the hospital for so long, it allowed me to:

• A. Have way too much time on my hands, but time to process what was happening.
• B. Be able to talk with all those who came in my room about God’s perfect timing.
• C. Take time to write down thoughts and blog about what God was doing in and through my cancer.
• D. Realize that there was a world outside those 4 walls that desperately needed Jesus.

How do we not waste the unplanned and painful circumstances God allows in our life? How do we embrace the journey God has us on and use it for His kingdom? What if we used those circumstances to showcase God’s glory and show others that God is worth more than anything here on this earth? What if?

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 says, “³ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

What God does in our lives, then allows us to comfort those around us. We accept that comfort and love and then in turn, need to share it with those God brings into our life. And often times, we don’t have to look very far. God places people in our spaces and places, right where we are. THIS helps us not waste anything.

I don’t want to waste my cancer. I don’t want to waste my heart failure. I want to keep looking up and share that love out. What is God challenging you to not waste? Let’s do this together, for His glory.