And No Worry

It's been pretty uneventful since the surgery. I've mostly been sitting or lying around. It's hard to do much with a bag attached to your leg. Plus I just don't feel all that willing. I've been told not to go up stairs for a while and no straining and no lifting and no orange juice and no caffeine and no spicy food and no worrying. Doc appointment is Wednesday. I'll try not to worry.
Ice cream is okay. So is banana bread. Jennifer makes the best ever.
I've grown up getting over sicknesses. I get a cold and I just know I'll be okay in a week. I can do a week. I once had a surfing accident and nearly punctured the main artery in my leg. Bed rest for a day or two and stitches that came out in two weeks and no getting in the water for month. Doable. I get better. I don't feel that way today.
Surgery went well. Before hand the doctor told me that hopefully the tumor was shallow- just in the lining of the bladder. That would be great. If it goes deeper, then... "We'll talk about that later." It was the size of a small orange, or large lemon, perhaps a tangelo. We'll keep it in the citrus family because once you start talking about melons, that's not so good. But it was just big enough to keep him from being able to see underneath it during the initial exam when it was discovered. So he had to wait to see during surgery how deep it went. He was very positive.
The day of surgery is a little fussy. I went under around 8:30am. The doctor had told me I may not even have to end up with a bag, but he'd said it may happen. It happened. I was told that he got most of the cancer out. There is a hole in my bladder. Apparently it went deeper than he had hoped. I don't know what that means yet. He'll go over that on Wednesday... No spicy food, and no worrying. I'm trying not to worry.
This I know for sure. I'll have to have my bladder scoped every 3 months for a while, then every 6 months, and then every year for the rest of my life. That makes me feel like I won't be better- not sick, but also not better. It seems a little un-better if you ask me. I don't like that scope. I'm going to try not to worry about it.
The bag is an interesting thing. It's nice in that I can just drink and drink and not have to go the restroom. A friend of mine called me before the surgery and suggested it would be a great time saver if he could get one for work. He made me laugh. I thought that if I ended up with a bag liquid would just pass through me unnoticed. There is maintenance that needs attending, but I'd just do my thing while I wasn't even thinking about it. The funny thing is that all I can think about is that I've got to go to the restroom all the time. I feel like I've got to pee real bad all the time. There is a saline filled balloon that is in my bladder that keeps the catheter in place. That balloon puts just enough pressure to make you want to go all the time. The good news is that I'll get it out on Wednesday.
I'm looking forward to Wednesday. A lot of questions will be answered. My bag will be gone. I can return to tea, and orange juice, and stairs, and the restroom. The doc will say everything is going to be fine... I hope. I'm a little worried.

Don't Worry

Saint Francis of Sales had a great understanding in trusting God with his future. He said, “Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow; the same everlasting Father; who cares for you today, will take care of you tomorrow, and every day. Either he will shield you from suffering or he will give you unfailing strength to bear it.”

This thought was not original to Saint Francis; fact is, he learned it from Jesus.

I say to you, do not worry about your life… Matthew 6:25

Jesus gave us this simple little guide for our life- Don’t worry. Yes, there are many things that can call to us saying that all is not well, that we may not make it. Perhaps it could be financial. There just seems to be more bills than ink in the pen. Our worry may be relational. Does he or she really care about me? And the list may go on and on from titanic proportions to the trivial. But they call all the same, making us worry.

But there is that still small voice calling through the centuries to us today- “Don’t worry.”

But why? Why would Jesus give us this guide? Is it because He was an idealist? Was he a motivational guru? Was He simple minded? Or was there something more?

The answer is plain. There was more to it than just having a good attitude. There was a great reality that God would and will take care of His own. When you read the verses that follow Matthew 6:25, you find that Jesus goes into detail on how God provides for the birds of the air. He even points to the common flowers and declares that God takes care of them as well. Then He points out the obvious,

Are you not of more value than they? …will He not much more cloth you…? Therefore do not worry… Matthew 6:26-31

And there is the reason we can be free of worry. Not because I am great and can take care of myself; not because I have friends in high places; not because of anything other than the great fact of God’s unending care for us. Put you trust in Him today and don’t worry.

A Couple Q's for You

What kind of things make you worry?

How has God helped you in the past?

What is something that is hard today that God is helping you get though it?

Write your answers in a “comment”. Keep it anonymous if it is too personal. I’ll pray for you.