I wrote “ Into The Light because I believe God wants me to tell his story through my cancer journey to bring honor and glory to himself. Initially the book was just a compilation of random journal entries written in my personal diary whilst I suffered from cancer; and also my thoughts about God and suffering were penned into my journal. These pages were never intentioned to become public property. This changed dramatically during my first year at university where during our 10 week Christmas vacation break of 2001, I felt God compelled me to embark on the journey of writing a book of my experiences. I had no idea it would be 10 years later when it would be released but Gods timing is perfect right !.
Jesus motivated me to write the book. I was praying through the immense pain of the residual neurological effects that lingered after the brain tumor and treatment. I had rode down to the local jetty and I asked God through tears that the world might know my suffering and that Jesus might be glorified through it. Immediately I heard Gods still small voice say “Yes now that is my will”.
I believe this book is contributing to the world knowing my testimony and for Jesus to be exalted. When at university I had more spare time than I had experienced in the previous 8 years of my cancer journey. I felt compelled and had the drive to spend hours typing away at my laptop and see what God enabled me to write. I have always loved words and writing so it was fun, emotional and laborious as I described the various emotional ups and downs of the battle.
I originally wanted to call the book “ When Push Comes To Shove “ influenced by the Christian band POD but then decided to call it “ Against The Grain” and then moved on to “ Don’t Give Up” but was decidedly distressed when a friend said that title sounded like a Justin Bieber song !
The short story I wrote at 4 am in 2000 was titled “Into The Light”. This story was one of the tools God used to get me into university. My brother and some friends liked the title and I prayed about it and it seemed to fit the story on both a physical and spiritual level. I hoped that the title would create interest for the reader and lead them to believe this was a book about Gods work. The final title became “Into The Light”
Into the Light is an inspiring, true story of my journey of healing and restoration.
I believe that this book is one way to reach out to hurting people in order that the God that comforted me during my trial might help others in theirs.
This scripture is fundamental to my plans to help those who suffer.. Paul in 2 Corrinthians 1:3-4 says “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God”.
I have prayed and continue to pray that those who read “Into The Light” might know the healing I received from Jesus, in their lives. I pray that the young and old men and young and old women might know the grace and mercy of Jesus.
It seems logical to me that because I experienced adolescent cancer and the fact that the whole testimony occurred when I was a teenager and in my early twenties, that “Into The Light” would be targeted at adolescent and young adults. My thoughts though are that God isn’t limited to what I see as ‘logical’. He is the God of the impossible and I am open to whatever the age bracket or group he chooses to speak to through the novel, he will.
Cancer is unfortunately an enormous part of our society today. It seems
I desire to write because writing is a huge passion of mine. I would love to write more on cancer being a transition and not a destination. I would love to write about suffering and hope and God. I would also like to explore writing fictional stories with fictional characters with a Christian message jammed in the middle or even a few novels with no particular edge……not sure but please pray.
Now I want to briefly share with you something of the vision I have for my future. After the years of personal suffering I have endured, I want to start up a new, or work with an existing, organisation which aims to give a voice and a hope to the marginalised and disenfranchised members of our society. I see this as working to help primarily people with life threatening illnesses ( like cancer) which might prevent them from participating fully in our society. I am unsure at this stage as to the details but I am confident in Gods timing and through prayerful dependence on Yahweh, the full picture will come.
My experience of working with hundreds of young people with cancer throughout Australia in Canteen and various older people through the Gawler foundation; and from years of working with various forms of disability, I have come to the conclusion that Jesus makes all the difference. I have spoken to copius amounts of hurting people who didn’t know Jesus as their savior and a handful that did. I am convinced that those who suffer great physical and emotional pain but enjoy fellowship with the King of Kings, cope significantly better than those friends outside of relationship with Jesus. The difference is very real. The peace that comes through relationship with Jesus when ones body doesn’t work well and ones mind is struggling under the weight of suffering, is phenomenal.
During the time of Jesus ministry on earth held out in the four gospels, Jesus rarely sought out well centred, bubbly, healthy or by this worlds standards ‘successful’ people. Instead Jesus seemingly sought out the Leprous, the blind, the sexually immoral, the possessed and the broken hearted.. He still died for the ‘beautiful people’ and still knocks on the door of their hearts today but we see in the bible a compassion for those that are weak that reflects his character as well. In Matthew 2:15-17 we read “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” I want to help the sick come to Jesus like I did in 1997. I want to be one of the tools Jesus uses to help make verse 17 a reality and for those that are weak to know they are strong and for the poor to know they are rich in Christ. I want to guide people towards Jesus words in Matthew 11:28 when he says 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”. I desire suffering people to know the comfort I have received from God and that this same comfort is intended for them also. I want my heart to break for what breaks Gods and for the broken hearted to know hope in this fallen world. I desire to point out Christ to those in this world who might feel that life has left them dry and thirsty for truth and that suffer under the immense weight of tragic circumstance, guilt, false condemnation and failing health.
I want to be one vessel which helps in the process of drawing prodigals back into the kingdom and seeing the freshness and newness of life that is found only in the risen Christ. I want people, who are angry at God for throwing them a curve ball in life and those sheep that have strayed from the flock after difficult experiences in their lives, to know that God still loves them and that Jesus still died for them and the invitation has no RSVP date on it and it is not to late to come back the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
One thing I didn’t get earlier on in my walk; and I haven’t yet understood to this day, is why there is such discrepancy between Christians about various issues.As I study the word of God I see unity amongst believers brought up many times and as I delve into the area of human suffering, healing, faith, miracles death and all the other issues that these entail, I have no doubt there will be difficulties in facilitating the opinions of many. Different interpretations from seemingly the same text seem to split on healing and prophecy and tongues and giftings to name a few. These differences haven’t proved to unite the body of Christ but have seemingly contributed to fracture the unity which Jesus bought. Instead at this moment in history, it’s almost like the splits in the church serve to preserve unity in the church by dividing it. It’s like Christians put on a front of unity but when it comes to the cruch, we are children sitting in their own little section of a room looking at the other children wondering why they don’t just bend their knee to our interpretation. When Jesus talks about childlike faith he isn’t referring to childish faith.Dominations can be seen by the world as a stand off between several warring friends who won’t budge, just in case they lose some ground or are proven to be wrong. Christian denominations are not what they are supposed to be. Denominations though are not the problem but what Satan uses them for is
I try to imagine what a more unified Christian body would look like. I propose it would look like an army, not getting involved in ‘civilian’ affairs and instead going into to battle with every believer for the same great commission and purpose; to glorify the king of kings and the lord of lords. My hope is that we might see the body of Christ as God does- as a holy nation of believers and not a sectioned off people. Someone might say that denominations are a necessary development because the church is world wide and we can’t have the ‘all believers party’ this side of heaven. I would agree that the portioning off of Christians geographically is inevitable and necessary. But the divisive ways Christians can do this is not called for and is unbiblical. Denominations are not the problem but what Satan uses them for is
As I consider the centre I believe God has laid on my heart to work in, I feel a great peace and energy at the prospect. I am grateful God didn’t lay this on my heart until now because I look back and realise that I wasn’t ready to minister in this way. I am bubbling with excitement at the gospel witnessit potentially will have and am humbled at the opportunity. Now I am. I am reminded of the words of a Kenyan missionary I met whilst I was on a short term mission trip to Kenya as I shared my excitement about the future and my anxiousness to know what God was doing in all the chaos. He said ‘sometimes we want God to hand us a flash light so we can see into our future but God often decides instead to give us a lamp so we can see the next step and then hopefully trust him for the remainder ‘
