God's Promise

In the spring of 1999, I was planning our wedding. We were going to get married in the back yard of the new home we were building and the reception was going to be in the house. We had a DJ service set up and dance floor in the garage. It was going to be beautiful! The big day came and about 20 minutes before the ceremony it started to rain. Not just a spring rain but the kind that Oklahoma is so famous for...tornado rain. The winds picked up and blew all the chairs and arch over, the tornado sirens went off and the clouds rolled in and it looked like night time at 6:00 in the evening. The pastor's wife came to me and said..."slight change of plans, we are getting married in the house." It was not what I wanted but it didn't really matter because at the end of the day I was going to be Mrs. Gerald Herron.

We got married and the reception began. As soon as the ceremony was over, the rains stopped and the clouds broke. Gerald and I were in the back yard when someone snapped a picture and in the background was a rainbow. It is a really cool shot so we had in enlarged and framed. It was a special thing between us, our promise from God that things were going to be okay. Then one year later, exactly to the time, we were walking in to Albertson's to pick up a couple of steaks to grill and there in the sky was a double rainbow. We just laughed and said, God is just letting us know He is here to celebrate with us.

Now fast forward nine years, it is August of 2008 and we are told that I have colon cancer. God told me that He would heal me. We go through the surgery, the chemo and try to do all the right things. In April, the doctor says "congratulations, you are a cancer survivor!" We think we are past everything until 90 days later when the PET scans show the cancer has returned. You can imagine how that would shake your faith. All kinds of things have run through my head. As you know the doctors have told us to get our affairs in order. So to say that my faith has been a little shaky lately is an understatement. We have been calling on everyone we know to pray with us for healing.

Last night, our pastor and his wife came over. They asked what we wanted prayer for specifically. We asked that the cancer be driven out of my body and Gerald and I can grow old together. Curt reminded us of Abraham and how God told him he would have a son. It took 25 years for that promise to come about. We are sure that during that time both Abraham and Sarah questioned and reminded God of the promise. But in Hebrews, Paul wrote that both Abraham and Sarah were people of great faith. That helped me tremendously. God promised healing to my body, but in light of the recent events, I have questioned and reminded God of his promise. It made me feel like my faith was not strong enough and that I was doubting God. It has been an emotional roller coaster. The encouragement that Curt and Donna gave us last night was huge. But here is the best part....Gerald called me a little while ago to let me know that on his way to work this morning it rained off and on. Then as he was pulling into Hilti, there was a double rainbow in the sky! God is watching over all of us and he hears our prayers. Please continue to stand in the gap for us. Pray specifically for the cancer to be driven out of my body and that Gerald and I can grow old together.

I thank all of you for your prayers and encouragement. I am amazed at your generosity and kindness. May God continue to bless and keep you.

Because of Christ,

Julie