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Dear Don, I had to write this to you. It is my story on what has happened to me in recent months concerning my operation for cancer and the changes that has happened within me since then. My pastor, Reverend Merriweather, my Family, and my Friends, what my reasons are and, I have no answers, but, I have this true story that might be unbelievable to you, but true. Only God knows why I'm writing this now to you. My answers will be defined and analyzed by my Pastor for better understanding for me and my new journey with the lord. First, I searched and found a man of wisdom, a man of substance, a trust worthy man of God that will understand my story and use it in his way within the Tabernacle of the Lord, Our Savior Jesus Christ as a platform to tell my story. I didn't just come running to Pastor Merriweather, at "The New Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church because I was diagnosed with cancer of the throat and that my prognosis was that of six months or less to live as the doctors said, after they diagnosed bronchitis and a severe sore throat at first. But I am here to share with all of you my journey, my story. My Story By Robert L. McVea 2001 To review with you on how all this began, it started with my meeting with my doctors, and how she explained the beginning of my journey and what were my chances of a successful surgery. My chances for survival didn't look good, but there were possibilities. The doctors were first and most immediately concerned with the position of the tumor, whether it was wrapped around my larynx or not. As it turned out, the tumor was hidden behind the larynx and the MRI and the CAT scan couldn't detect its actual position. At this point, my doctor mentioned that this would be a very difficult surgery that they would be undertaking. If the tumor was wrapped around my vocal cords(larynx), removal was impossible and the best thing to do would be to just sew me up and send me home to live out my life with family as comfortable as possible. Now being 56 years old, and though I had many good years to go, I believed that I was in pretty good health, I thought my regular check ups that I've maintained through the years and having a successful career and life in general, I was moving along fairly well. But NOT with the Lord in it. It wasn't a my first priority in my life. I, like many kids from South Central Los Angeles with a good religious background, I feared the Lord and I knew the rights from the wrongs. I was being just a typical young man that had curiosities to follow. So God and church came way down on my priorities list in life. And that made me more prepared for Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Now to me, I had no fear of the here after, and really had no choices but to continue with the process, so I had no insurance with the Lord for the hereafter. I' m Catholic by religion, so in my beliefs I had my last rites and by marriage, my wife was a member of "The New Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church". They sent members (Sister Winters, Sister Cunningham, Rev. Bush and Sister Bush) to pray with my family for a successful operation. I may mention since now I'm a member of said church. I addition to prayers from my job, friends and in-laws from around the country, people that I knew and didn't know were prayerful for me. I couldn 't believe that I had touched that many people and who cared for me. It was an encouraging blessing to feel. Sometimes you go through life without knowing that you can or even have touched people because it wasn't part of your agenda. But, when you don't realize that you have something to offer, that word of encouragement to a friend or to others, or even being open to receive a word of encouragement, we seem to not notice these small things in life. These things are our blessings, both big and small. We have to recognize, and appreciate our daily blessings. At this point, the hospital staff began preparations for my surgery and felt in good spirits, for I thought that I had made peace with the Lord, but I really had no faith in what God can do or how he would walk with me in my darkest hour. I realized that I really wasn't prepared for God in a sense of spirit. I was just prepared to die on that operating table. Now you might think, Old McVea or Daddy was just under the influence of the anesthesia and the drugs had me hallucinating about this story, but as I write the interpretation of my story to you, and tell you this is real and that I have been touched by Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, you wouldn't believe me, but I have. As I laid there in the operating room, watching and thinking as the professionals began to do their work, I started to drift. I heard my doctor say, "come on, let's get started, it's getting late. To this day, I understand much better what the definition is of "it's getting late" and what it now means to me, especially in this time of my life. While you are here on this earth, what have you done with your life that had/has meaning or substance to it or while I'm here, what did I do with what God has given me and did I serve him well? It's getting late. Is my life and those in my life living with the Lord? The operation has started and now reality was in progress and only now I remember my journey the Lord took me on, a journey of peace and tranquility, something I can't explain. Only my Pastor can dissect and understand the meaning of this, that I was touched by the hand of God. And as he said to me, "I need you now Robert my son, to tell your story of life as I want it told". Now that I have no voice to talk with of my own, but only with a mechanical device, I now wonder daily, what calling does my Lord have for me to do? Surely, I'm not the type to be on a corner preaching my story or the type of person to come running into a church just because I have been saved or may I say, my doctors performed a very difficult operation and I survived a successful operation and completely removed all of the cancer. It CAN come back. There are no guarantees. Or are they? I believe so. For he walked with me in my darkest hour when I might not have had the faith then as I have do now. Our Lord was with me as he has always been with me. My Lord didn't let me down, he let me survive for another day. But, why me? I shouldn't question the hand of God. Was it God's work or just a medical success story? While I'm still recovering, I'll pass this message on to you as he, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has past it on to me and I have used it a number of times, for different reasons, for different people that might have doubts in his powers or when my faith is being tested. Again, I remember this story I read. "Come to the edge He said. They said We are afraid. Come to the edge He said. They came He pushed them, and They flew....................." How true are my beliefs in that story about my Lord now? What about my religious roots in my 56 years on earth? I still ask why me? Only my pastor can dissect and make sense of all of this new inner strength within me now. I now remember what I had forgotten. Our Lord Jesus Christ came down and died for our sins and after his resurrection, he made believers out of those that didn't believe or doubted his actions or beliefs by doing so. He made a blind man that was blind for years able to see , he made a crippled person that was crippled most of his life able to walk, he took an insane person and made this person sane. It's all documented in the Bible. And I say this to you right now. These are my beliefs. That my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ came down to me and said "I need you now, my son". And afterwards, surely what was given to me for many years was gone.....I was speechless for the Lord said, "I need no voice to do his work. Use what I have given you all of your life. Your good heart and mind, and remember me, and you will be heard just as loud as before. With his glory and power, I now glow inside with his words and I know not what he wants me to do, but as these thoughts pass through my conscious mind daily, words like "I've been to the mountain, I may not get there with you, for I have seen the coming of the Lord, as I hear other inner-voices saying "I am somebody, I am a child of God, those voices now have meaning and understanding to me even more so now than ever before. Now, I go through life with no regrets. I haven't lost anything, I don't feel sorry for what I can't do, and I thank God for what I can do. So my pastor, my kids, family, and friends, I go about my daily chores now that I am retired from work after 22 years with Hughes/Direct TV as a corporate advertising manager, not worrying as we all worry to much in this life about peoples responsibilities and problems. Worried daily about what was right and what was wrong, is it time for vacation, or will I get the next promotion. NOW ALL I DO IS SAY MY PRAYERS DAILY AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, I REFLECT AND ASK HOW HAVE I SERVED MY LORD TODAY! My story on WHY/REASONS, I just told you as you know me as your Father and Friend, there is no nonsense in my vocabulary. I'm of strong mind and body as my beliefs are. I AM BLESSED! I thank GOD for giving me another day, and if he calls again I am prepared. I have insurance on my soul........................................................................ .................................. Click HERE to return to the edited story Click HERE to create a banner that links to this story! Your e-mail address will be kept private!
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