Count Your Blessings

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This world can be hard and we all face various challenges. It is easy to focus on the hurdles we face and become downtrodden. The past couple weeks I have felt challenged that winter is coming. I think many people dislike the idea of winter but for me it’s even more challenging. You see as a cancer patient I am drastically limited in the places I can go most of the time. For example, I haven’t been to a restaurant in about four years. I haven’t been in a grocery store, or any public place. My chemo attacks my immune system and so crowded places are not good for me. Unlike many treatment methods I don’t get much of a break from chemo. I take a daily chemo pill for three weeks and then I get about five days before I have to go into get four chemo injections and the next day I restart the chemo pill cycle.

I only recently this year got my oncologist to be okay with my attending church in person once a month when I am off all chemo. It’s a small window but precious time to connect with my church family and worship together. However my time to attend is narrowing down as we go into winter. Because of the increased cold, flu and Covid during the winter I am not able to attend so my heart was a bit heavy when I started to think about the encroachment of winter. It’s also challenging because having to use a walker on snow and ice is not exactly doable.

I could focus on all of these things but I don’t have to. I have a choice. For me I chose to start counting my blessings and to be honest I am still counting! When I was first diagnosed I was limited to a wheelchair. I am now able to use a walker and get around pretty well. I was in oxygen 24/7 and now only need it at night. I was fatigued all the time. Today I swam 50 laps in the pool and did an hour of other exercises. There are so many more blessings but my point is no matter what we face we have a choice on what we allow to be our focus. I could allow cancer to set the tone for my life. I could complain about side effects, treatments and pain but all of that pales in comparison to the blessings God has poured into my life. The greatest blessing is His love. No matter what I face I am overwhelmed by His love.

If you are struggling with the hurdles in your life I challenge you to lift up your eyes and start counting your blessings. It is such a great way to spend your life!