Buggy Rides
A devotional to kick off your week
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.
Proverbs 17:22 NLT
I was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2001, and a portion of my cancer treatment involved radiation therapy for several weeks. My dad’s job was flexible, so he drove me each day. He was an active caregiver who wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Radiation builds up, so by the second week, I was physically hurting and emotionally zapped. But Dad didn’t let my lethargy or souring attitude drag him down. He nicknamed our drives “buggy rides.”
When I think back over the weeks I received radiation, I picture them fondly: Dad opening my car door with a grin on his face, pretending our sedan was a horse-drawn carriage.
Faith that survives brings joy to hard situations.
Now that I’m a parent, I recognize the strength it took for Dad to bring cheer into our situation. He must have felt helpless, scared, and exhausted. It’s not easy watching your kid suffer. It’s also not easy balancing a full-time job with the litany of appointments that fighting cancer demands. But Dad didn’t pass on his stress; instead, he brought optimism and hope. In this, he modeled to me God’s compassion and joy.
We cannot always choose what our circumstances are or when we will face difficult times. But we can choose our attitude and approach to life. Our pain can become our passion. Our radiation appointment can become our buggy ride.
Breath Prayer
Inhale: I’ll find hope…
Exhale: … in my struggle.
Sometimes we have trouble locating the light at the end of our tunnel, the dawn at the end of our dark night, the blessing at the end of our pain. But Romans 8:28 reminds us that He always has one in store for us both in and beyond our pain. Sometimes it’s an amazing father. Sometimes it’s much-needed buggy rides. Sometimes it’s both.
Note. I love your use of metaphors, whether they be fog or buggy rides. Keep up the good work!