Kimberly Long

When my husband and I moved to Oklahoma from Tallahassee, Florida in 2008 to attend Rhema Bible Training Center, we had no idea what two years would bring ... nor to what extent God Himself would instruct us on issues of faith, surrender and His faithfulness in our lives.

I had been suffering from ulcerative colitis for a number of years and finally decided I had to see a doctor. A colonoscopy in October 2008 revealed more than colitis. Biopsy results showed cancer.

Brian and I were at a pizza place when the doctor called with the news. When I asked if something were wrong, and he told me I had cancer, I just started crying. I felt like I was at rock bottom. I was afraid of dying, afraid of leaving my husband, afraid I'd be letting people down if I died.

The following month, I had my entire colon removed, along with 71 lymph nodes. The cancer appeared in only one lymph node, but this still meant I'd need chemotherapy to stop its spread. One trip to the center where I was supposed to take chemo convinced me I didn't want treatment there.

The people all seemed so hopeless, so sick, and everything seemed so impersonal. I'd seen commercials on television for Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), and they talked about having life after cancer ... a good life. So I called and made an appointment. I wanted my chemotherapy there.

By the time I came into CTCA, I only weighed 94 pounds. A stint that I'd been given during the colon surgery had pushed into my kidney and was causing me extreme nausea, vomiting and dehydration. I'd tried to tell my doctors something was wrong, and the stint needed to come out, but I felt like no one really listened to me.

At CTCA, they listened. They took an x-ray and saw I was right -- something was wrong. After surgery, they started me on TPN (total parenteral nutrition), which is intravenous nutrition, and I was able to gain weight. In fact, thanks to my CTCA nutritionists, naturopaths and oncologist, I'm probably one of the few people who has ever gained weight while going through chemotherapy.

Throughout my cancer experience, I felt God's presence with me. A cancer survivor at the pizza place where Brian and I initially learned the diagnosis told me this was an opportunity for God to prove His faithfulness. At CTCA, I saw Scriptures on people's desks and throughout the hospital. Fellow Rhema students stood with us in prayer. Our Rhema church family showed us God's love throughout the months of treatment by bringing food, praying with and for us and sitting with Brian through my surgery, among other acts of kindness. And I heard the Lord's Spirit tell me one morning when I was praying that I wouldn't die; the cancer hadn't spread.

It's so nice to have people agree with you in prayer. When you battle something like cancer, you need the support of other believers. One part of Christ's body can't function without the other. This was the hardest battle I've ever gone through, and one of the things I learned was that it wasn't just my battle, it was God's battle. My part was doing what He showed me to do; His part was all the rest. I learned to trust Him more and not be afraid of the external circumstances. He was inside of me, and if I let Him lead me, and stay surrendered to Him, He would bring good out of even something bad like cancer.

Upon completion of chemo and with clear test results and scans, I went back to surgery to reverse the ileostomy I had in conjunction with my initial colon surgery in 2008.

Though I'd been told people often had trouble conceiving a baby following the treatment I'd undergone, Brian and I wanted a child. Receiving the okay from my oncologist, continued support from CTCA nutritionists and naturopaths, and praying for the Lord to overcome the near impossible, it wasnt long before I conceived. Baby Noah was born healthy and well on April 6, 2010, in spite of my "high-risk" pregnancy.

Then on May 21, both Brian and I, having completed our course work at Rhema, in the middle of cancer, treatments and having a baby, graduated from the Bible institute.

With cancer issues under control, a new son in our lives and hearts set on working in some form of ministry, we're currently waiting on the Lord to show us where He'd have us go and what He'd have us do. In the meantime, our preparation for service has included the invaluable lesson of experiencing His extraordinary faithfulness in the middle of difficult circumstances.

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