Hello Friends,

Hebrews 10:23-25, and verse 37

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near."

Verse 37 "For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised."

Pastor David once again knocked it out of the park today.  He preached on Hebrews 10:26-39.   Verse 37, as stated above, talks about the need for endurance.  How can we maintain our endurance?  By meeting together and encouraging one another.  While God/Jesus is #1 in our lives, we are not meant to go through life alone.  We need each other.  (Afterall, Eve was created so Adam would not be alone.)  We need to encourage and uplift each other.  I'll admit, I feel like I may be starting to sound like a broken record.  This blog is all about encouraging fellow Christians, and to me, the verses above are among the best to use.   

I'll be honest here.  I don't talk much about when I had cancer, however, I feel the need to share now.  When I went through cancer treatments 10 years ago, I really struggled with Faith.  I didn't stop believing and I remember thinking that I don't remember my life without Jesus. I knew I still needed Him and couldn't live without Him, but praying was hard.  I wasn't upset that I had cancer, as much as I was angry that my mother (who lost my father to cancer years before, then had cancer herself two years before I did) had to watch her daughter go through the same.  I struggled to understand why God would make my mother endure such heartbreak in her life.  She was married just over six years, she never remarried because, as she put it, my dad was the love of her life.  She raised two kids (age one and two at the time of dad's death) all by herself (with some help from her "village").  That's what made it so hard for me.  I struggled to pray.  But I KNOW, 100% KNOW, that my church family at the time prayed for me.  They gave my mom cards to give to me in the hospital (chemo lasted a week inpatient, but mail at the hospital was slow and they found it worked better this way).   I had at least 20-25 cards a week, so my mom would give me a few a day to help me feel encouraged.  I took great comfort in the fact other people were praying for me.  It was a hard time in my life.  It took about six months after my final chemo treatment to start "feeling" faithful again.  It wasn't that I lost faith, I always believed, but I truly struggled to know what to even pray (Romans 8:26 anyone?).  I hated my mom had to go through all that.  I remember my first appointment with my oncologist (an hour away from home, as he was a specialist in my kind of cancer) and asking about the 5 year survival rate.  52%, and my mom felt RELIEVED!  Because although my dad's cancer was in his brain (and 30 years earlier), I inherited his genetic disorder (which causes cancer in less than 5% of people who have it), and she expected worse.  But prayer, from our "village" helped us both through.  It's been 10 years.  I go to a new church now, but my village there has helped me grow as well.  I am so grateful for all of my villages growing up.  In my hometown, and where I live now.  I know my mom was really grateful too.  She had so many great friends that loved on her and encouraged her.   When she passed, her circle of friends came to my sister and I and asked if we would allow them to provide some snacks for after her memorial service.  Our hometown church (where the burial was) asked if they could provide a meal after the burial.  

All this to say, church is IMPORTANT.  Where would I be if I didn't attend church?  If I decided I didn't need anyone else?  Where would my faith be?  Would I still believe?  Would I have survived the cancer?  How would my mom and sister have dealt with it?  I know they talked to their friends; they had their own support systems.  I had two very special friends that I talked to and texted with very regularly.  What would have been different, if we had decided to not attend church, not share our burden, or not allowed our friends to offer encouragement?    THIS is why we go to church, we worship in community, and we pray together.  We are a VILLAGE, we need each other.  God created us to love and support and ENCOURAGE each other.   Because of my church ("village") I was able to ENDURE the storm and afterwards, grow.

THIS friends, is why I blog, THIS is why encouragement is so important to me, we NEED encouragement and prayers from others.  Why do YOU think God wants us to gather together and encourage each other?  I believe it's because life is hard, and God knows it.  He knows we will go through trials, and He knows we need to support each other to help us keep the Faith. 

Who needs encouragement?   ALL of us do.  Please feel free to private message me on FB, or, if you are reading from my blog page use the contact form, to send an e-mail.

I am a follower of Christ, I am not perfect, but I love Jesus.

Until Next Time,

Liz Allen