Choosing Gratitude: Terry is grateful for his kidney failure!
Nick and I raise financial and prayer support to work full time in college ministry. One of our supporters, Terry, has been an amazing blessing in our lives. And guess what?! We’ve never even met him! He has a daughter who was apart of a bible study Nick was involved in in California a few years ago… His daughter told him about our ministry to college students, and he felt led by the Lord to become one of our first financial and prayer supporters! We were unbelievably humbled to hear of such a cheerful giver’s deep desire for the gospel to heal and bless the hearts of college students. He has been laboring on our team with us for the past two years. And its true, we’ve never even met him!
Terry was diagnosed with kidney failure and has had to be on dialysis for some time. He recently emailed us an update of his circumstances. When we heard his story, we were blown away at his grateful heart. I thought it was only appropriate to count him as a “guest blogger” on my blog during my series of “Choosing Gratitude.” Be prepared to read about a man truly grateful for things like physical pain, suffering, uncertainty, friends, a God to trust in, and hope. Thanks for sharing, Terry!
Dear Family and Friends,
It was almost two years ago (April 2008) that I wrote you inviting you to Praise God for the gift of uncertainty as I embarked upon the journey of kidney failure, dialysis, and who knows what. I write today to give testimony to the God of all grace, my heavenly Father, whose grace is sufficient, whose wisdom and goodness cause all things to work together for good, who invites us to cast all our anxieties on him because he cares for us, who provides mercy and grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:16). These promises from our Heavenly Father have sustained me these last two years, and he has proven to be faithful to his word and all his promises. Lamentations 3:21-24 has been particularly encouraging and a source of continued hope. It reads:
“This I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning. GREAT IS YOUR FAITHFULNESS! The Lord is my portion says my soul, therefore I will hope in Him.”
Nothing could be truer.
While I never thought that God needed to prove his goodness by providing a transplant (“He is good and does good” in all things, Ps. 119:68), nevertheless he in grace has once again acted for my good by providing a donor and and a transplant date at Stanford March 31st, Lord willing. There are no words to say thank you to the many of you who sacrificially offered to be tested as potential donors. It was such a display of the love of Christ, and when Stanford and my dialysis caregivers indicated how unusual it was to have so many people willing to donate (approx. two dozen of you), I simply told them that my family and friends were all Christ-followers and that’s what Christ-followers do — love sacrificially. Christie and I would also like to express our gratitude for every expression of support you all have provided and for the prayers you have all assured me you have made on our behalf. I’m certain that God has answered those prayers with daily grace and mercy through the last two years as well as in providing a kidney through the sacrificial gift of a Christ-follower and good friend, George. They say to let George do it; well George did it … sacrificially.
I concluded the previous letter with the following paragraph, and I conclude this one re-affirming that every word has been proven true over these last two years:
“… as I embark upon this journey of uncertainty, not to grumble and complain about my lot in life, or to curse my bad luck at having this disease, or to ask for your sympathy, but to give testimony to the God who is my heavenly Father and who can be trusted with everything. I want to take my stand in praise of this God while things are their most uncertain so that no one can say that my faith in God is a fair-weathered faith, happy with God when he gives good gifts, but not when the road is rockier. I am confident that whatever happens is for my good and for his glory and I wanted to share this with you all so that you too may praise him with mefor his mercy and grace and wisdom and goodness and sovereignty at all times, and not live in the illusion of certainty, but thank him with me for the gift of uncertainty.
Amen and Amen.
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Soli Deo Gloria,
TC
We praise the Lord for Terry’s partnership and for God’s faithfulness to Terry. Thank you, Jesus, for giving Terry a kidney transplant and for helping Him trust you through the pain and the unknown future.
