Summer Love: A devotional about storms, survival, and The Holy Bible

Barbara Survives Her Storm
A devotional written by Barbara M. Britton

For many years, I taught chapel at an elementary school. What a blessing it was to be able to lead worship and sing with energetic students. One of my favorites songs referred to Matthew 7:24-27, a Bible story about the wise and foolish builder. The kids and I would stand tall with our peaked-hand homes built on the rock and then fall to the ground when the song referred to the house built on the sand. The kids knew Jesus was the “Rock” and the best and firmest foundation to build a life upon. I knew this too. But I looked at the scripture a bit closer when I went through the storm of breast cancer.

Breast cancer rocked my world (no pun intended). Long story short, I had two surgeries to remove the cancer. Eventually, I had both my breasts removed. I live as a breast-free woman in today’s world. I discovered I carried a genetic mutation called the BRCA-1. Essentially, I have an open door in my genetic code that ushers in several cancers. When I had my breasts removed, I had my ovaries removed as well. Nothing like instant menopause. Because Jesus is my Savior, and I have an amazing family, and church family, I weathered this storm. My house stood firm on the Rock.

But, after life got back to post-surgery normal, I realized that the storm of cancer left some residual storm damage. I had to wear prosthetics which led to wardrobe issues. My body temperature was out of whack due to menopause, so I didn’t sleep at night. My energy level lagged after radiation. It was then that I looked at Matthew 7 differently. I noticed that the winds that blew and beat against the house built on sand, and leveled it, were the same winds that beat against the house on the rock. The home built on Jesus stood, but that didn’t mean it didn’t have some minor storm damage--a possible shattered window or crumpled siding.

God had saved my life, but it was never going to be the same—until Glory.

Through my cancer treatments came an awareness that people going through the traumas of life sometimes carry some storm damage with them after the strongest winds have died down. The chaos in my life came from cancer, but others deal with chronic illness, or the loss of loved ones, or mental illness, or divorce. The list carries on. We all face our unique “storm” damage.

My novel “Building Benjamin” comes from Judges 19-21 where storm damage abounds. Naomi has lost two brothers in war with the Benjamites. Eliab has lost his mother, brother, and sisters during the same war—but he’s a Benjamite. Can Naomi and Eliab overcome their anger and grief and fall in love? God must heal their hearts and repair the damage of betrayal before they can have their happily-ever-after.

Philippians 4:13 states: “I can do everything through him (Christ) who gives me strength.” 

God will give us the strength to keep on living life after a major storm, but Christians can help repair some of the damage. What can we do as the body of Christ?

Here's a short list:

~Pray for someone who is going through a storm. Send them a card or call to let them know that you are praying for them.

~Bring them a meal or take them out to lunch.

~Listen with understanding. Some storm damage may linger a long time, or may not be made whole until Heaven

~Accept someone’s new limitations. Ask how they are doing.

~Be aware of storm damage.

~Praise the Lord if you don’t have any storm damage!

I am truly grateful that God brought me through my cancer. I have had family members that were not blessed with a cure, but they have the hope of eternal life with Jesus. I thank God that he has given me His strength, and a sense of humor, to deal with my “storm damage.” With my cancer, came a renewed awareness that every day is a gift from God.

What has helped you weather the storms of life? Let’s add to my list on how we can help others with storm damage.

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Author Bio: 

Barbara M. Britton lives in Wisconsin and writes Christian Fiction for teens and adults. 

She has a nutrition degree from Baylor University but loves to dip healthy strawberries in chocolate. 

Barb brings little-known Bible characters to light in her Tribes of Israel series. 

You can find out about Barb’s books on her website, or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

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Book blurb for Building Benjamin: Love Grows Where God Grafts the Tender Shoot. 

Naomi desires to dance well enough to catch the eye of a wealthy landowner. Her father needs a substantial bride price due to the deaths of her brothers at the hands of the tribe of Benjamin. But when Benjamites raid the Ephraimite feast and capture young girls, Naomi is bound and carried from her home by Eliab, a troubled shepherd who needs a wife.

As Naomi awaits rescue, she finds Eliab has a strong faith in God and a just reason for abducting her. A reason that affects all the tribes of Israel. The future of the tribe of Benjamin hangs in the balance, but if Naomi follows her heart and stays with Eliab to rebuild his lineage, she must forfeit her family and become a traitor to her tribe.

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Buy Barbara's book on Amazon or Barnes and Noble

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Words of Faith: Bonnie's story about her mom, hope and gratitude

A Living Treasure

A Words of Faith story by Bonnie Leon

My mother has always seen the world through eyes of hope and gratitude. When I was young, she was a hands-on type of mother who played and worked alongside her family. I have precious memories of her rounding the bases during one of our family baseball games, picking huckleberries with us in the High Cascades, and swing dancing at her eightieth birthday party.

Mom is ninety-one now. She no longer plays ball or picks berries or dances. She spends most of her time indoors at an assisted living center.

Four years ago Mom’s life took an unexpected turn. As a child she survived rheumatic fever, but was left with a damaged heart valve. Somehow or other, that valve held up through the years, until at age eighty-seven, she was told it needed to be replaced or she would die. Mom was pragmatic about the diagnosis and decided to do all she could to live. She’d get the valve replaced, and either she would die or be returned to good health. What she hadn’t counted on was the in-between place.

The surgery was a success, but shortly afterward she contracted a staph infection in the incision. It nearly killed her. For more than five months she lived in a nursing home, on IV antibiotics and a wound vac. She became a shadow of the woman who had gone into surgery months before. But finally, she fought off the infection. Things were looking up.

Tragically, the day before she was to be released, her husband died. In the middle of the night, my husband and I raced up the freeway. Mom needed us. We found her in the hallway, hunched over in a wheelchair, a frail vapid remnant of the woman I’d known.

The days to follow were not typical for our family. We were familiar with death and funerals, but we didn’t know what to do with Mom. Her four children lived far from her home and she needed help. In the end, it was decided that the best place for her was here in Oregon, close to me. So we sold many of her things, packed up the rest, and moved Mom an assisted living center in Roseburg, Oregon. It was a painful transition, but Mom rallied and was her old self—hopeful and full of thankfulness.

My life changed. I oversaw Mom’s finances, housing, medical care, and many of her emotional needs. I’d become the mother. Though the circumstances were difficult, life shared with Mom was also full of blessings. I became acquainted with my mother in ways I never had before. Each day, my admiration for her grew. She was and is a woman of grace and gratitude. Every time I saw her she made sure to tell me how much she loved me. She’d take my face in her hands, smile up at me, tell me how much she loves me and thank me for taking such good care of her. It’s an amazing gift to be deeply loved.

Four years have passed and Mom’s health is failing. She’s extremely frail, can’t walk, and has dementia, which makes it difficult for her to hang onto who she is, who her family is. I’m waiting for the day when I walk in and she doesn’t recognize me. It will happen, just not yet.

Sometimes Mom asks me why I think she’s still living. She can’t see any good reason to be hanging around. She’s lost sight of her own value. She doesn’t realize that the love she extends to those around her is priceless. Even in her present condition she is always kind. She lives with a good deal of pain and is completely dependent on others, but is still grateful for her life and appreciates the smallest pleasures. And still, on most visits, she gives me a bright smile and tells me how much she loves me. 

Mom’s life is still precious and is as valuable as it ever was. Until the Lord takes her home she will serve Him simply by the way she lives. Getting old is really hard, but it doesn’t devalue who we are. We shall remain treasures even to the end. May we never forget that about ourselves and those who watch over us.

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Author bio:  

Bonnie Leon is the author of twenty-one novels, including the recently released To Dance With Dolphins, the popular Alaskan Skies and bestselling The Journey of Eleven Moons.

Bonnie’s books are being read internationally and she hears from readers in Australia, Europe, and even Africa.

She enjoys speaking to women’s groups and teaching at writing seminars and conventions. She especially delights in mentoring young authors. These days, her time is filled with writing, being a grandmother and relishing precious time with her aged mother.

Bonnie and her husband, Greg, live in Southern Oregon. They have three grown children and seven grandchildren.

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Connect with Bonnie:
Website - https://www.bonnieleon.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BonnieLeonAuthor
Blog - https://www.bonnieleon.blogspot.com
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/bonnieleon/