A couple years ago I was visiting my friends in California for about 10 days of fun and relaxing in the sun. We spent the whole time relaxing on the beach, playing games and simply enjoying each other's company. The entire time was filled with fun with absolutely no worries or cares; until the last day.
About 3 hours before my plane was set to leave and take me back to Utah, we were enjoying a few last precious moments surfing on the beach. Everything was all fun and games until I rode a huge wave directly into the shore, head first. After a few moments of blinding pain, I was able to crawl out of the water, where my friend had been watching the whole thing. Despite my pathetic protests, after a brief evaluation they called the ambulance and drove me to the emergency room.
After some quick scans they found out that I had torn some ligaments in my neck and would need a few weeks in a neck brace. While this was certainly not fun, I was glad to simply have movement in my body. They informed me that many people became paralyzed from this same injury. I felt blessed that God had preserved me and had allowed me this opportunity to recover.
However, on my return to Utah, upon closer evaluation of the scans, they found something that they had not expected; a cancerous tumor was growing near my brain.
Preparations were quickly made to operate and remove it before it could cause any more damage. The doctors informed me of how lucky I was to have had the accident, because if it had grown big enough for me to begin showing symptoms it would have been too late, and it would have killed me. They called it luck, but I knew it was something more: the hand of God guiding and protecting me.
After a successful operation I was put through 9 months of chemotherapy, most definitely the longest 9 months of my life. While this was by far the hardest thing I have ever been through, I have come through it with the knowledge that God lives and that he loves and knows every one of us. I can't even begin to describe how many prayers I had answered and how many tender mercies of the Lord I received; one time when I was feeling very sick and the only thing that sounded good to eat was blueberries, I prayed and one of the men in my neighborhood brought me blueberries. Another time I was bored and tired of being in the hospital for two weeks straight and one of the workers brought me a Nintendo Wii to play with. Hundreds of similar small but meaningful experiences during this time showed me that God is there and that his hand is in every aspect of our lives, even when we don't take the time to recognize it.
I am now happy and healthy and completely cancer free, and I know I am only here today because the hand of God was guiding and protecting me. While maybe not all of you have experiences quite this extreme with the hand of God picking you up and slamming you into the sand to get you to the doctor, I'm sure you all have experiences where you have seen his hand in your life. I would invite you to share your experiences; you never know whose life your story may touch.
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