After having a suspicious mole removed, I waited. Not only did I wait, I praised God while waiting. I placed my focus on Him and prayed that no news would be good news.
It had not even been one week since the mole was removed when my phone rang. The call went like this,
“Hello. Is this Shonda?”
“Yes, it is.”
“I’m calling from Dr. Herman’s office and he would like to see you about the pathology report.”
I’m replaying the last conversation I had with a nurse at the doctor’s office in my mind. I was told it would be five weeks before I would found out the results of the pathology report, unless there was something to be concerned about then they would call me sooner.
This definitely qualified as sooner. Only six calendar days had passed by. Yep, this was sooner. I finally found my voice and spoke into the phone.
“When would you like for me to set an appointment?”
The nurse replied, “The doctor would like to see you now.”
“Now? Well, uh…” My mind was wrapping around the fact that they had some not so good news for me and apparently it was urgent. “Ok. I’ll be there within the hour.”
At that moment I had choices to make. I knew that the doctor’s office called me in because the pathology report came back malignant. And there was some urgency there. So I knew that the diagnosis was cancer.
But the choices…My husband, Eldon Whitworth. He had been awake for over thirty hours and had just went to bed an hour before this phone call. Do I wake him? Or do I go to the doctor without him?
I decided it be best to wake him. And Lord bless him, he got up and went with me and seemed as alert as if he had a full night’s sleep. It appeared that way to me, but I know he didn’t feel that way.
I began texting prayer warriors.
Then I began reminding myself of what God’s word says. I started quoting Scripture. I began to remind myself of His promises and how faithful He is to keep His promises.
As Eldon began to wake up, I asked him to “wash me in the word.” He began reading Scriptures to me about not being afraid. As I drove, he read Joshua 1 to me .
I parked the car. We walked into the office. I signed in and we sat down. Just minutes later, I was called back. I looked around at all the other patients, and I felt bad that I was called before all of them. I did not even have an appointment. The sense of urgency attempted to cast fear on me, however, I continued to fight off fear by reciting Scripture in my mind.
While waiting in the exam room, Eldon continue to read Scripture to me. Then he looked at me and said, “The doctor will come in here and tell us that it was malignant, but they got it all. Just watch and see.”
I said, “Okay, I receive that.” All the while, I felt peace within me. I felt an inner joy. These feelings are hard to convey with words, either written or spoken. These are the kinds of inner feelings that can only be experienced when we sense the presence of our Lord with us. He is always with us because He promises to never leave us or forsake us.
The doctor came in with my file and said, “Bad news and good news.” He confirmed that I had malignant melanoma, but said that Dr. Karen got it all when she removed it to send it off to the lab. He stated that this form of melanoma is very manageable.
Oh, I felt such relief and joy as the doctor continued to give me further instruction. Because of the diagnosis, there is still further treatment that needs to be taken care of. I laughed with delight. The doctor said, “You’re taking this very well.”
I said, “Yes, it could have been worse. But thank God this is all I’m dealing with.”
My next steps are that I must see a surgical oncologist to remove more tissue around the mole site. Also I’ll see an oncologist for further evaluation. Today I visited a nutritionist and began an immune strengthening regime to boost my immune system to fight against cancer.
But even as I go through this process, I will continue to do the same as I chose to do when the call came. And that is. . .
- Confess the Word of God
- Remind myself of His faithful promises
- And praise Him with songs of thanksgiving
What ever it is we face, God promises to never leave us or forsake us. He goes through it with us. And when we focus on His faithfulness, praise Him, and continually give thanks, the Lord remains bigger than the problem. God is greater! God is good! Hallelujah!
© 2014 Shonda Savage
