“The spot is benign”, my friend heard, and since that moment every breath has been a gift.
It’s funny how that happens.

Ever since she got cancer and was pronounced clear after chemo, every successive checkup slowly delivered her back to normal life.
Where breaths are expected, rather than celebrated.
Until the last check up when they found “a spot.”

The worst part was the timing– she was just about to leave for vacation and had to take this news with her; and she wouldn’t find out whether it was or wasn’t cancer till she got home.

Vacation spent nestled where God likes us best to be.
In the midst of the unknown, trusting for what is unseen.
The place we develop our muscles of faith.

Feels like a cruel place, the unknown.
I prefer the happy place of “known”, as it helps me achieve that fabulous sense of false security that all will be exactly as I predict it to be.
Which it never is.
But I like it there anyway.

“Known” is a calm companion, and at the very least, we should be able to take our vacations with it.
But she didn’t get to.
She was forced to take the unknown with her.
And with the unknown, came the fear and dread every time she thought “What if”.
Until “What if” stopped carrying the weight it once had.
And another notch of fear was replaced by another notch of trust.

The unknown feels so distant and awful, but it is actually the place where we are nestled and held close. We discover things about God we wouldn’t know any other way.

So my friend went on her vacation, and lived her days.
She prayed her request.
And stayed in the now.
And in the midst of the unknown and unseen she found
that whatever the outcome, she would be okay.

Which was exactly the point.

And then she came home.
And the spot turned out to be nothing at all.
And she came outside and spread her arms and looked to the sky
.
And she saw her life again—with the vision that comes after we thought we might lose what we hold dear, and suddenly gain it back again.

The vision God gives us by taking us through the unknown and unseen.
So we can see every gift.
And live where we are supposed to be.

Fully here.
Fully His.

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If you, or anyone you know, is walking through a challenging season, be sure to check out Finding Faith in the Dark: http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Faith-Dark-Story-Takes/dp/0310337119/ref=la_B00IKAGCDG_1