My Mom's Cancer

My mom's cancer is back. We thought it was gone, but it's back.In Date Your Wife I write about my mom's incredible influence on my life. I also tell the story of my mom and dad's marriage, my mom's breast cancer diagnosis twelve years ago, and how God used the cancer to bring fresh life to their marriage. I've already received hundreds of emails and comments about the impact Date Your Wife is having on men, women, and marriages. Many of these have included comments about my mom and dad's story.At the same time that this book is being released we've found out my mom's cancer is back. I'm writing this with tears because I love my mom so much and I hate seeing her in pain and I don't want her to die. We walked this road twelve years ago.The cancer is in her bones. Radiation and chemotherapy are beginning. My mom is a fighter and is fighting this. She's hopeful. My dad is by her side, loving the socks off of her and taking such great care of her. I'm proud of him. The prayer is that the cancer stays confined to her bones. If that remains the case, she could have many more years with us. I want my three sons to grow up and have many years enjoying and being influenced by the mom that has so influenced me.My mom is the one who led me to place my faith in Jesus. God used my mom to bring me to him. I don't know how anyone faces death without Jesus. Jesus conquered death and the only way we can conquer death is through him.Whatever happens with my mom, it's a win-win situation. If my mom lives another few years or twenty years, it's a win: she gets more time to enjoy life on earth and help others (in addition to being a wife, mom, and grandmother, she's a Christian counselor), and we get more time with her. And if my mom dies soon, she gets to be with Jesus sooner and worship him in a cancer-free, sin-free environment. You can't lose with Jesus.But I want more time with my mom. I believe she has work left to do before she goes home.So, I'd like to ask all of you who read this to join me in praying for Joan Buzzard. Pray that the cancer retreats, that my mom has many more years to impact others for Christ, and that her pain would subside.Friends, don't waste your life. At nearly 58 years old my mom has already left an incredible legacy, a legacy that hinges on Jesus and his gospel. Life is a gift. Let's steward it well. We will all die. But not all of us will live an abundant life and leave behind a legacy that impacts multiple generations. Our world needs more Joan Buzzards.Cancer kills. Jesus resurrects. And that changes everything.