My sister sat quietly on the crude, worn bench in the sweltering African church
listening to her missionary husband inform his congregation that soon he would
accompany his 29-year-old wife back to the States.
She had been diagnosed with cancer. Examinations by German doctors in Monrovia,
Liberia confirmed it, as did a careful biopsy. Her husband was advised that she
had three months to live; a prognosis that, for compassion's sake, he did not
share with his wife.
Unaware of the harsh time line, she stood to face her African friends, people
she had taught, loved, cared for and won to Christ.
Opening her well-marked Bible, she addressed the familiar faces. "My friends,"
she said, "God has given me two verses in Psalm 118:17,18: "I shall not die but
live and declare the works of the Lord. The Lord hath chastened me sore, but he
hath not given me over unto death."
The African Christians moved restlessly on their benches. "Doesn't she know?"
They whispered to themselves and to each other. "Hasn't anyone told her she has
only three months to live?"
Bidding the congregation an emotional goodbye, she assured them that she would
indeed return to Guinea, West Africa. In her heart, she knew their work was not
finished; indeed, it had barely begun.
They had been married eight years but still remained childless. Her heart's
continued cry had been to become a mother. And now this. Not only could she not
expect to have children, but she had been diagnosed with cancer as well. She
crawled inside her bed that was tented with mosquito netting and began her long
prayer vigil
In the deafening silence of the long night that followed, she heard the quiet,
distinct, inner voice of the Spirit. "He maketh the barren woman to keep house
and to be a joyful mother of children." (Psalm 113:9)
Ultimately, her choices were two: accept the verdict of the German doctors or
place her faith in the timeless word of God. She chose the latter. She would
stand on the promises of her Lord.
As she penned these thoughts to her family back home, they remained incredulous.
They talked endlessly about how to deal with her insistence that God would heal
her. Was this basic faith or stubborn denial on her part? They began to make
extensive plans for her care, her comfort, and sadly, her funeral.
Arriving in New York, examinations and testing began for the young missionary,
with doctors meticulously comparing new x-rays with those of German doctors in
Liberia. There was more than convincing evidence in the first x-rays. Further
examination by the oncologists in New York revealed that indeed she was full of
malignant tumors. Doctors discussed the necessity of a hysterectomy which made
her wonder how God planned to bring Psalm 113:9 about bearing children to
fruition in her life.
But six weeks later, the New York specialists were stunned. They could detect
nothing. The malignant tumors had virtually disappeared. There was no trace
whatsoever of cancer.
Finally, they were forced to concede that God in His mercy had reached down with
His mighty, sovereign, healing hand and performed a miracle. She had stood
valiantly on God's promises, had taken Him at His Word and he Had honored her
simple, unadorned faith.
God directed their return to Africa seven months later to continue the ministry
to which He called them, a ministry that extended over 30 years.
Two years to the day on which Norma Gardner arrived in America with her husband,
Andy, for cancer treatment, their first daughter was born. In the six years
following, two sons were added to the family of this dedicated couple. Two of
the children returned as missionaries to Africa and a third, also a seminary
graduate, is on the staff of an upstate New York church
For the grateful missionary couple, God had made a miraculous U-turn on a path
that others had too readily assumed was a heart-breaking, dead-end road.
Copyright © Mariane Holbrook
Mariane Holbrook is a retired teacher, an author of two books, a musician and
artist. She lives with her husband on coastal North Carolina. She maintains a
personal website www.marianholbrook.com
and welcomes your Emails at
Mariane777@bellsouth.com
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