“Never underestimate my Jesus.
You’re telling me that there’s no hope.
I’m telling you you’re wrong.
Never underestimate my Jesus
When the world around you crumbles
He will be strong, He will be strong.”
– Relient K, “For the Moments I Feel Faint”
My family had it easy growing up. The most we ever had to deal with was my brother not getting along with my parents. I thank the Lord that we never dealt with much pain or heartache. I had not had to handle tough, life-changing situations throughout the first 18 years of my life. That all changed the summer after I graduated high school.
Not long after graduation, my sister-in-law Holly found out she had non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. She and my brother Alex had been married for just under two years and they had a one year old daughter named Gracie. Holly had just graduated from college where she had played basketball for the past four years. She was in the best shape of her life, and then a bomb was dropped on our family.
I did not realize the significance of it at the time. I knew cancer was bad, but I had never dealt with anything like this in my life. My family was shocked. How could this happen to a young family that had everything going for them? Little did we know that this huge trial would show us how big our God really was.
Holly began chemotherapy in July of 2006. It was very hard on her and my brother, but it could have been much worse. My family was able to help out with their daughter, and the chemo’s effects on Holly were less sever than expected.
In December of 2006, Holly had her last chemo treatment. She has been cancer free ever since. Through all of this, my brother, his wife, and the rest of my family all grew much closer to the Lord. We saw his awesome power and the amazing power of prayer. We thank the Lord everyday for how He brought us through Holly’s battle with cancer.
