This year once again, two of our employee's, Shelly Cassel, and Edna Hoffman, have volunteered their time and effort to organize the annual Relay For Life which will be held June 22-23 at the Three Rivers Michigan High School Armstrong Field.  This is a huge undertaking, but Shelly & Edna step up, no questions asked, year after year to stand the gap for the survivors of cancer and to remember those whom we have already lost.  They do it well and usually without expecting a "Thank you!" in return. 

Well, from this Chaplain/Pastor, "Thank you so much Shelly & Edna for helping us to never forget and never give up!"

Each one of us can look around and find an empty chair where a loved one, a friend, or a colleague once sat and shared life with us.  We remember their smiles.  We remember their laughter.  We remember the look on their face and the fear in their eyes when they received a report from a doctor that confirmed their disease.

A Psalmist once wrote in Psalm 42:1-3 his hearts cry.  "When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, 'Where is your God?'" 

For those with cancer or any other life-threatening disease, the waiting can be long and frightful.  Waiting for the results from testing after the treatment bring with it anxiety and fear.  There are good days.  Bad days.  And, there are better days. 

It is good to remember at those times that cancer is never sovereign over our lives, only God is.   As C.S. Lewis wrote in his book, The Problem with Pain, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscious, but shouts in our pain."

As we gather this year at the Armstrong Field to remember those who we love so much and miss each day, I pray that each step taken, each lap run, and every dollar raised, is accomplished with the pictures of their faces etched in our minds.  We walk and run for their memory.  And, as we walk, shake hands and give a hug to those who have survived.

And what about you and I?  We too may receive a bad report some day.  I can tell you by experience it blows away your "pretty faith" and you will find yourself standing on a firm foundation if you are indeed standing on the foundation of Lord Jesus Christ.

"My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.  Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.  And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them."   

Knowing that all of our days are truly numbered by God our Creator, let's make this Relay For Life one of the best ever.  Let's whisper the names of those who lost the fight to survive and shout the names of those who have survived or are currently surviving.

This should be our greatest focus with our greatest involvement as we have lost so many close friends and loved one's to this terrible disease.  Let's join Shelly and Edna as they fight for all of us and all of those who have gone on before us.