A Long Journey

On February 24, 2019, Kathy Jeffrey will be celebrating her sixteenth year of living cancer-free. To arrive at this sweet moment, however, she had to endure ten years of 25 surgeries, a double mastectomy, chemo therapy, and failed reconstruction. To this day, her immune system has not fully recovered. But when asked to describe her journey, Kathy says, “If I had to go back and do it all over again, I don’t think I would change a thing. It’s been an incredible journey. It’s a hard journey when you’re going through it, but that’s where Gilead comes in.”

Kathy met Gilead Ministries soon after finishing her treatments. They were always there for her and seemed to somehow know exactly what she needed and when she needed it. They were a shoulder to cry on, a pair of listening ears, and a source of encouragement. On those especially difficult days of pain and doubt, Kathy says something would miraculously show up in her mailbox to remind her of God’s goodness. She says she can’t even begin to describe how much that comfort means to someone going through cancer. Gilead’s commitment to her has been unmatched by the other support groups Kathy has met, and she attributes this to the faith of Gilead’s members. “Gilead will take you on for life.”

When the lump was first found on Christmas Eve, the doctors told her it was nothing. That night, Kathy had a dream that she remembers to this day. In the dream, someone from her church came up to her and said, “I’m taking you on a long journey.” When she woke up, Kathy knew this was God’s way of telling her that she had cancer. Kathy went to another doctor and received very different results. They told her she had breast cancer, and if she had waited for her next mammogram, the cancer would have spread beyond the breasts.

That “long journey” mentioned in her dream turned out be a very long journey indeed. But Kathy’s faith grew stronger as she witnessed God’s faithfulness and love for her. One personal way she experienced God’s kindness was through His symbolic use of the number 24. The lump of cancer was found on December 24th. Her children’s birthdays are on the 24th. She was rushed to the hospital for a blood clot on the 24th. Many of her surgeries took place on the 24th. And one of these surgeries was performed in room 24. Each time this number showed up, Kathy knew it was God’s way of telling her that everything was going to be alright.

Throughout her battle with breast cancer, Kathy never questioned why. She knew that there was a reason for her suffering and that she could count on God to be there. God has used her experiences to strengthen her faith and make her a better person. Today, Kathy has worked with Gilead Ministries for fifteen years, serving people who are going through their own battles with cancer. Because of God’s provision and Gilead’s support in her life, she is able to say, “The best thing that ever happened to me in my life was having cancer.”

#cancerismorethanphysical #SharingTheJourney #Cancer #NoOneAlone

(Reported by Annika Peterson from Indiana Wesleyan University)