My Father's Journey - Part 3

Before you read the next installment of My Father's Journey, please read the first two installments...

My Father's Journey - Part 1
My Father's Journey - Part 2

During the months that have transpired since I learned of David's battle with cancer I have been quite overwhelmed and greatly encouraged by the number of people around the world who have written of their support, and others that I have met personally who have expressed wonderful faith in David's ultimate healing. Many have shared how their lives have been changed and transformed through David's ministry, and we have all been learning so many things in greater depth concerning the nature of God's love and compassion for us all.

Every day it seems as though the Lord has given special words of direction for David out of the Word of God. It is wonderful how David has been able, in the midst of suffering, to maintain a tremendous declaration of faith in the ultimate purposes of God. Many times he has been going out to the hospital to pray for other sick folk and they have been greatly encouraged.

Two things have emerged very strongly and have been re-enforced within my heart. The first is based on a study we wrote in "The King's Table" called "Adversity is a Plus" and I have grown to realise that every miracle that God has performed, expressed throughout Scripture, happened at times when the people were locked in extreme circumstances of adversity. So this situation of David's is a perfect scenario for God to perform another of His great miracles. The second thing that I've been encouraged with again is the great part that the trial of faith plays in our lives, for God reminds us that the trial of faith is not the trial of failure but the trial of faith, and it is in that experience when the character of God is formed in us, and this is more precious than gold (1 Peter 1:6-7).

At every stage of the Journey so far we have seen significant answers to prayer and these have come as a great encouragment. Yesterday David got the results of the latest scan which showed that in the last three months the cancer has not advanced or spread. We thank the Lord for this and feel that the miracle is not far away. He feels strongly about this too.

At the moment David is sleeping well and eating well and beginning to feel stronger, although in the last week or so, because of weakness, he has found it difficult to write in his blog. He has felt badly about this because he wants to communicate with you and because he hasn't had the strength to write he feels that he is letting people down. We have, of course, been encouraging him that people understand.

Bunty and I feel very proud of the family for their strong faith for David. The times we have had with David and Elena and their children in prayer and communion together have been very precious, and David's sister, Rebecca, who is in Thailand with Timothy and their seven children, has been keeping in close touch with David and the whole family have been praying together for him. The Scripture reminds us that God is always at his work (John 5:17) and He who has begun a good work in us will complete it (Philippians 1:6). So, day by day, we live with great expectation of the visitation of the Lord to David and the ministry of His angels to him (Hebrews 1:14).

The Divine Anaesthetic

It's been over a week since my last post and I know many of you have been wondering what's happened. I sure appreciate your prayers, and so I want to give you a brief update on life for me over the last few days.

This last couple of weeks have been a rather difficult one for me, in part because there have been a number of days where I have felt seriously ill (primarily side effects of chemotherapy), but mainly in terms of handling chronic fatigue. There are some days when almost all I do is sleep the entire day. I'll wake up for a few minutes to eat, and then go straight back to sleep. On other days, it isn't so drastic, but fatigue is still a major factor to contend with. For this reason, although I've sat down several times to write on the blog, I've not been able to complete anything substantial -- sometimes I'll write just a paragraph and then feel ready for another sleep! In fact, at the moment I have a very narrow window each day where I have energy to write. Hopefully, this is just a temporary situation.

Having said that, my faith remains high. My family and I continue to look to the Lord as both Healer and the One who provides "sufficient grace" for the situation (2 Corinthians 12:9). These are just part of the challenges we must face in this trial of faith. And sleep is actually an answer to prayer for me. A couple of weeks ago, my sleep was erratic and often disrupted, particular at night. There was a time when I was crying out to the Lord for help to sleep. Now I'm sleeping all the way through the night (and often beyond too!).

Psalm 127:2 declares that the Lord "grants sleep to those he loves." And Psalm 4:8 says:

"I will lie down and sleep in peace for you, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

There is also a real sense that sleep is the Lord's anaesthetic. God put Adam to sleep when he operated on him (see Genesis 2:21), and he did the same for Abraham, when he confirmed his covenant with him (see Genesis 15:12). When I helped in the rehabilitation of drug addicts, back in the 1980s, we often witnessed the Lord putting them effectively to sleep for up to three days -- the administration of divine anaesthetic as they slept through the effects of withdrawal.

So I'm putting a positive spin on this need for sleep. Each time I go to sleep, I'm asking the Lord to perform his surgery. But I'm also looking forward to the time when I will have more energy and be able to press more into the areas of ministry that I love most - meeting up with those who need pastoral care and communicating the wonder of the Gospel, both through the spoken and the written word.

The Encampment of the Lord

This last week has been a tough one physically, as can be expected following my second course of chemotherapy, but I've also experienced a strong spiritual attack at the same time. One night, for example, I had a string of horrific nightmares that can only be described as demonic in nature. But during this time I've come to appreciate, even more than before, the strong faith of my family and my church. They've stuck with me through all this time, interceding in the depths of the night, and standing by me in prayer. I found myself rallying in faith, and it has been a significant experience, which I'll share with you over a few posts.

Today I'd like to share one important concept with you which has emerged over the last few days. Genesis 32:1-2 says:

"Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. When Jacob saw them, he said, 'This is the camp of God!' So he named that place Mahanaim."

Jacob had been travelling to meet his brother, Esau, and thus to face up to a major crisis in his life. He had no idea of the outcome of this meeting, with the possibility of a family feud erupting into outright warfare. But on his way, "the angels of God met him," and Jacob's response is revealing. He recognised that that place was an encampment of God's angels, and therefore called the place, Mahanaim, which literally means "two camps" - his own camp and the camp of God.

In Psalm 34:6, David writes:

"This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles."

In the next verse, he goes on to explain how the Lord "saved him out of all his troubles":

"The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them."

Jacob's experience was exactly this. The terms "camp" and "encamps", as used by both Jacob and David, are military terms. And this was not just a description of the angel of the Lord setting up a tent nearby. It is a military encampment - in fact, it is not just an "encamping" next to us, it is an "encamping" around us!

I believe we don't yet fully know the extent to which God's angels interact with our difficult situations. We are warned rightly in Colossians 2:18 against the worship of angels, and we should never have an unhealthy focus on them, yet they are very much a part of our spiritual landscape. In Hebrews 12:22, we are told that we have "come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly..." And Hebrews 1:14 teaches:

"Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?"

In 2 Thessalonians 1:7, we are told that when Jesus returns, he will be "revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels", but these are exactly the same angels who are even now "sent to serve those who will inherit salvation"!

When God led his people out of Egypt, he told them in Exodus 23:20-23:

"See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared...If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them out."

Later, in verses 27-28, the Bible describes this angelic action in the following way:

"I will send my terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run. I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way."

The angel of the Lord is described as being a "terror" and a "hornet" unleashed against our enemies! What situation are you facing right now that requires a spiritual "hornet" set loose?

In the midst of the crisis he was facing, Jacob realised what was happening. He knew that in the event of open warfare, he had an encampment of angels - "terrors" and "hornets" - who were fully armed and prepared to go to war on his behalf. And this is now the same for us! This is why Psalm 34 - the same psalm that declares that "the angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them" - also makes the following declarations:

• Verse 4 - "I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears."

• Verse 6 - "This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles."

• Verse 15 - "The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry..."

• Verse 17 - "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles..."

• Verse 19 - "A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all..."

• Verse 22 - "The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him."