Staying abreast of things

Does God give us cancer?

When we are talking about an all-knowing, all-powerful, ever-present God who loves us, whether we say that God allows sickness or causes it adds up to the same thing . Human pea-brains still ask, “But why does God allow/cause illness?” I just accept that my brain can’t manage all of the implications of the arguments, AND I choose to trust that God’s mercy is always greater than my afflictions. SO when I had my first cancer 16 years ago and I was praying constantly about life and death decisions, I “happened” to be reading through Exodus in my regular devotions and came upon the story of Moses when GOd turned his staff into a serpent. In that same story God told Moses to place his hand under his cloak, and when he obeyed he got leprosy. Real leprosy was a direct result of a command from GOd.

This is what that story meant to me at that point of my journey with God. Just as God gave Moses a “smidgen of leprosy” to demonstrate God’s purposes, God gave me a “smidgen of cancer” to demonstrate his purposes. As I stated in my original discussion, the cancer triggered flashbacks to childhood abuse, and plunged me into a harrowing healing journey.

For me, there are far worse things than cancer. Emotional trauma is worse. Betrayal is worse. Alienation from God is worse. And cancer was the thing (hard, painful, scary) that opened old wounds that God wanted to heal.