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Finishing Well When Facing Illness Nothing prepares and individual, a spouse, or a family for the moment the news comes. A doctor, hopefully one with both expertise and kindness, says, "I'm sorry to tell you, but the lab report is not good. You have . . . " Fill in the blank with any of the string of devistaing words that change people lives forever--cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and others. Whatever plans existed before those words are spoken change suddenly. Assumption about life and the duration of life shake at the foundation. Goals, long and short-term, must be rethought, redefined, and restated for a new set of realities. Few of us think about how we would respond when confronted with that news, that meeting with the doctor, that pronouncement about about something in our bodies that is now out of control. Even thinking about it is too hard. So we don't. We go on living, assuming such tragedy happens to others, and touches other families, but hoping and praying that it bypasses us. But what if it doesn't? What if you hear the new? What if the report is yours or someone you love? What can you do? Do the questions or the answers about facing illness change if you are a Christian? That's what we'll explore on this page through these links. Disclosures Upfront When facing illness, it's natural to look for information, for help, for direction, or fellow-strugglers. The good news is that a grand sweep of information is exists online and the searcher can find all sort of information. Unfortunately, the answers contradict each other and may utlimately confuse rather than help. So under the banner of "full disclosure," here's what you will not find here:
What you'll find here is a story. One man's story . . . well, not only his story, but the story of his family and friends as they (we) faced his battle with colon cancer. It is a distinctively Christian story because it was his view and our view that Jesus offers the best answers and resources to face this sort of battled.Our hope is that his story will help others "finish well." More to the Story That Being Sick One thing we learned
through this process is that the battle that can and will be waged against illness
begins long before the medical pronouncement that the battle has begun. Getting
sick and struggling with illness cannot define an entire life. At best, the
battle with illness is a parenthesis in life. That parenthesis must be understood
in its context. And so how a person lived before he or she became sick impacts
the manner in which he or she will respond to the new challenges that must be
faced. As you'll see, the story we tell here has a hero, John Eaves. To understand
how he faced the onslaught of colon cancer and finished well, you need to know
more about the we have lived for years before cancer attacked him. A short article
about John Eaves and his wife, Kay, appeared in HomeLife magazine in January
2004. The story will give you a quick but powerful overview into the broader
context of John's life and help you gain more insights for the other materials
you'll fine on these page.
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Powerful, Unfolding;Story John Eaves took
the initiative when he understood what he was facing. Drawing on all the resources
available, he started the fight. And part of that fight included a series of
email to family and friends. Because John and Kay worked with international
students for many years at some of the leading universities, they had an extensive,
powerful network of friends--many Christians, many who were not. Each email
John wrote was read and forwarded to others. In the classic way of the Internet, classic, viral communication occured. One email multiplied into the thousands.
Email orginating in Nashville traveled in hours around the world. Not only did John's
email spread the word, they also preserved the story. Now, you can read them
and feel the story unfold. Learn about the battle as he learned and taught and
challenged. Ride the roller-coaster he chronicled.
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Biblical View of the Battle In addition to
writing, John also spoke to individuals and groups about the challenge of facing
terminal illness. He edited his notes from a number of those sermons and shared
the best of his thinking and discovery. He entitled the sermon, Finishing Well: A Sermon On How A Follower of Jesus
Faces Living and Dying.
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