I have often shared with you that life happens behind this computer screen. I am not exempt from difficult seasons, hurts, and sorrow. I could write a book on some of them.
No one lives life without difficult seasons. It’s a part of the journey.
Last year, my cousin, Kelly, found out she had thyroid cancer. She is young, newly married, with an adorable baby boy. We were all devastated but knew it was curable.
After she had her treatments, they scanned her body and found that the thyroid cancer had spread to her hip bone. Again, we were devastated but still hopeful.
She had to wait until this month to begin treatment again and they were hoping the iodine treatment from last fall had been shrinking the cancer found on her hip bone.
Last week before she went for more scans to check the progress, we (the ladies in my family) spent Sunday afternoon together and Kelly asked if we would pray over her.
The week before I had been praying for her and the passage in Luke 8 had come to my mind. This is about the woman who touched Jesus’ garment and she was immediately healed. (You can read the whole passage, Luke 8:43-48.)
I knew that that was what I wanted to pray over Kelly. That we as a family would be “Gripping HIS Hem” for her while she went through more treatments and we prayed for complete healing.
I asked my sister if she would cut out pieces of material and write “Gripping HIS Hem” on them. We gave everyone a piece of material to take home as a reminder to “Grip HIS Hem” for Kelly.
Traci had some material of my Mom’s and we thought that would be perfect! (This is my Mom’s side of the family and Kelly is her niece. She loved Kelly so much!)
Kelly had her scan earlier in the week, and found out that the cancer had shrunk (90%)! She has started more treatment to get rid of the remaining cancer. We are praising the Lord!
I will never understand completely why we have to go through trials except that I know we live in a fallen world. Joys and sorrow, love and loss are all a part of our journey.
My prayer is that you know the one who who comforts and gives us hope. (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)
I absolutely love this song by Natalie Grant. I am so thankful for grace!
Have a blessed Sunday!
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Thank you Cyndi for sharing this story…it really touches home with our family!!!
GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!!!
Wonderful Cyndi, thank you. . . . Loss is only temporary when we believe in God! . . . . But still, death leaves an earthly heartache no one can fully heal and that is why we hug like it’s the last one we give. . . . A faith that can only exist in the light of victory and certainty is one which really affirms the self while pretending to affirm Christ. . . . And as I read the comments I was thinking this is not about the mere extension of life along a horizontal plane, but about the deepening of life along a vertical plane. Mere longevity cannot render life meaningful any more than brevity has the power to make it meaningless.
Thank you for this word, Cyndi. I find myself gripping His hem for dear life these days. But even in this state of struggle, I was able to share this with a friend today who is also suffering. God bless.
We ( as a family) have been gripping the hem on behalf of my dear sister ( who is a Pastor’s wife .. like you ) she is battling breast cancer for the second time ! With God all things ARE possible!!! This testimony is soooo up-lifting !!! Praise God for the miracle that God is doing in Kelly’s body !!!
Thanks so much, Cyndi !!!! I LOVE this creative prayer reminder !!! I would love do this with the women in my family regarding some pretty big issues we have facing us. I appreciate your blog and Grace & Beauty tremendously. AND thanks for being an open vessel for the Lord !!!! Hugs from Iowa,sister !!!!
Praise God for your precious post Cyndi. Your faithfulness to share His “Amazing Grace and Mercy” is much appreciated. I will be “Gripping His Hem with you all”.
Cyndi, thank you so much for sharing your pain & trial with us. Sometimes it is hard to remember that “you perfect looking people” have the same woes as the rest of us. And I’ve had a hard time remembering to grip His hem lately with so many I care about facing cancer & the loss of my parents recently is still weighing down on me. I need that! Thanks & be blessed for your testimony!
What wnderful news and what a great post! Thank you for sharing. Needed this!
That’s wonderful news Cyndi; I will pray for your cousin. Thanks for sharing not only so we all can keep her in our prayers but also for the blessing of your message. It seems it’s words several of us needed to hear.
Cyndi, what a beautiful testament to the power of prayer and our God’s mercy and grace! Yes, we all have had our struggles, what you see on the outside doesn’t always reflect the pain and struggles we each have had to endure in our life, the only constant in our life is Gods love. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Amen Sandy! I was going to comment but just want to fully agree with what you said so beautifully.
Thanks Cyndi for being a constant light for Jesus! I love the perfect illustration you shared that our Savior who is fully capable to heal all our wounds…
Thank you Cindy for sharing this post. How incredibly blessed Kelly is to have all of you women in her life. Thank you for all you provide for us with your inspirational words. God is great indeed!
That’sMay great news! May Kelly be completely healed and stay cancer-free!
The most beautiful post. I have a child who needs healing from drug addiction. I am going to make me a piece with these words as a tangible reminder when keeping the faith gets really hard. Thank you Cindi!
As Kelly’s mother, I can’t even begin to tell you how. Much this meant to us! After our family prayed over Kelly, I felt such calm and peace come over us and she was totally covered in God’s love! So thankful that her scans came out clear and that there are only remnants of the thyroid cells in her body! Very hopeful and confidant that this treatment will take care of those remaining cells! Trust in God and never give up! His love never fails! I love my nieces and my family so much! We are truly blessed!
Thank you for sharing and for reminding us that everyone goes though difficult times and it makes it so hard to have faith but it’s the only way to get though those times.
Thank you for sharing Kelly’s story and the lovely way you all were “gripping his hem” for her….I love that! I recently had a scare with thyroid cancer, it all ended up being okay and I give all thanks to GOD….today and every day. I will pray for Kelly’s continue healing.
Praise the Lord for his Goodness …May God be Glorified… He is with us, always!
Thank you for this post.
Heard a message this morning mentioning that passage… God is still good and anything that draws us closer to Him can be viewed as ‘good’ too… We all need a new perspective on what it means to be blessed… We are all blessed! Praising Him for healing for Kelly! Love love love the song Clean!!! I cannot live without His Amazing Grace!!!
Thank you for keeping it real, Cyndi!!!
This is by far one of my favorite posts. I am a visual person and love the image of the fabric with scripture. I do enjoy the weekly fashion tips and pics but have become even more inspired by your Sunday posts as they help me to focus on what really matters. Thank you for being real and sharing your heart!
Amen Jill… me too!
Cyndi your heart for Jesus is way more beautiful than all your clothes even though I love your clothes too!!
Praise God for the cancer decreasing. Prayers for us all going through difficult things now🙏
I too needed this passage. My daughter and granddaughter have move in with us for now. I will be praying for your Kelly. Bless you. Thank you.
“Gripping His Hem” is wonderful! I’ll be praying for Kelly and for complete healing and peace in the midst of the storm. We serve an awesome God, don’t we?!
Cyndi, there was a Sunday morning 10 years ago when I was unable to attend church with my husband. I was recovering from a procedure to remove a melanoma from my back; as I lay in bed, all of a sudden I was reminded of the woman with the “issue of blood” who followed Jesus, just wanting to “touch the hem of His garment.” I felt like that woman. Like her, I knew He was and is able to heal, and I prayed accordingly. After church I spoke on the phone with a friend who talked about the Sunday School lesson that day. Surprisingly, the lesson was about the woman with the “issue of blood.” What a confirmation that God was with me. Today I am completely healed, praising God for His blessing of life on this earth. Although I don’t know all of the reasons why God has allowed me to stay, I live to tell others about grace and salvation through Jesus. Thank you for sharing your family’s story today. I’m rejoicing with you!
Gripping His hem! I love it! This is one of my favorite Bible stories. Thanking God for the shrinkage and asking for complete healing for Kelly🙏
What a Holy Spirit inspired idea to remind your family to pray and as a tangible reminder that Jesus is our Healer. Beautiful sentiment that I know means a great deal to your cousin.
Today at church our Pastor said this “Through our problems God can show His marvelous Power”! What a wonderful and awesome God we serve.
I’m so happy to hear the good report about your cousin. I will keep her in my prayers for 100% healing. In Jesus name!
God bless everyone.
I especially enjoyed your posts and scripture today. The song was uplifting. Thank you for your blog and posts. God bless you and your family.
thank you for sharing Cyndi!!!! So many of us are going throught difficult times, and He is the only hope we have. I lost my mom many years ago to cancer and just yesterday, we buried a dear friend who left behind 4 children. Praise God for your answered prayer for Kelly!!! I am determined to praise Him in every storm and look forward to that glorious day when we will all be reunited.
I needed this today 🙂
Oh Cyndi! First of all, PRAISE GOD for the news your niece received. I love what y’all did for her. One of our best friends is going through chemo & radiation for react al cancer. They are believers and have seen a dove on several instances, giving them peace. I am going to forward your email to Rainy because I believe it will give her even more Peace.
This post is one of my favorites!
Praising God for your cousin!! “Miracles are all around us”… from the movie, “Miracles from Heaven” my daughter and I saw that yesterday. (I cried through almost the entire movie). Thx for sharing with us Cyndi 😉
Such a beautiful piece, we all have family and friends who have been through this dreadful cancer. I do hope your dear cousin recovers.
Thinking of you all.
I love your encouraging Sunday posts! My mom, who has advanced stage dementia, moved in with us a month ago. This has been the most difficult month of my life! (Hubby’s stage 4 cancer diagnosis and battle don’t compare to this!). I know God’s hand is in this situation, but I sometimes forget thru the hallucinations and sleepless nights.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful story. I have a cousin who is abou to begin chemo and psooibly some radiation for lung cancer that has metastasized to her bone. I’m going to suggest to our family that we do this for her.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful testimony. We too are praying for a family member who needs a miracle healing. The idea of having a piece of material with that special verse of scripture is the best idea ever!
So deeply inspiring….thank you!
Cyndi, thank you for sharing this amazing testimony about prayer and clinging to God’s power through faith. I know it pleases our Lord when we trust Him so much that even sentimental objects become reminders of His strength, power and presence. As a Sister-in-Christ, I will join you and your family in praying for Kelly’s complete healing. As we look to Cross of Christ this week, Kelly’s story is what its all about. Perfect Savior, reaching down from Heaven, to save the lost and to heal the brokenhearted, the sick, and the fearful.
God still works miracles! To Him be the GLORY! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful demonstration of faith.
Beautiful testimony of the power in healing by the blood of the Lamb!
That was beautiful. Thank you.
Joining you & your family with healing prayers for her healing
Love that passage in Luke. What a beautiful example of coming together as a family and praying over a loved one. I am so glad to hear that the cancer has shrunk, and will continue to pray for complete healing.
Beautiful testimony and great way to grab a hold and claim it with the cloth! That song is powerful too!
This is such a beautiful post. Thank you and prayers for your family.
This really touched me today. My husband passed away a couple of weeks ago. It was totally unexpected. He was 55, seemingly healthy and did all the “right” things to take care of himself. I have been holding fast knowing God has a plan even if it isn’t apparent right now. Thank you.
So sorry Darla. We lost a son 3 weeks ago to cancer. He was 54 with a wife and two sons. I don’t know which is harder…to see one pass slowly before you eyes like our son or suddenly like your husband. I do know that God promises to be with us and hold us closely during all the rough times as well as the good times. Praying that our Lord will be close to you and walk beside you through this heavy burden.
Darla & Pris,
I’m very sorry for both of your losses. Last May, my dear, sweet daddy was diagnosed with brain cancer and had surgery on May 15 to remove as much of the tumor as possible. He was discharged on the 18th and in late June started a Monday-Friday regimen of radiation treatments for 30 days and 42 chemo pills. In September for his follow up MRI, we were devestated to receive the news that daddy’s cancer had returned. My 75 year old Daddy peacefully went home to be with the Lord on Wednesday, November 11. Knowing that he’s now pain free and rejoicing in Heaven is how I take comfort. I miss my daddy every day of every waking moment and I pray that both of you find comfort during this difficult time.
Beautiful post!
Such an awesome God!!!! Prayers for you and your family!
So powerful! Thank you for sharing.
You are such a beautiful soul Cyndi Spivey…many blessings!!