Tag: Celebrate

Marriage Vows

Today’s a new day! On this date twenty-six years ago, I had the honor of marrying my bride Laura. When we shared our vows on that Friday night we had no idea that the majority of our marriage would center around my health issues.

Like every newlyweds, we thought The big stuff, the hard illnesses, would come later in life. That definitely has not been part of our story.

I was taken by surprise when life-threatening illness hit our home – and even more surprised when it happened to me. Without any warning signs, I began experiencing severe fatigue and muscle weakness. Within a few months and after a number of tests, Laura and I were told I had several forms of crippling arthritis. Only to find out a year later, I was actually dealing with a very rare type of cancer. (only 2% of the population deals with this type of cancer). We had no idea how that diagnosis and then multiple life threatening diseases would become part of our everyday lives.

My wife Laura and I were still in our honeymoon season of our marriage. This kind of thing wasn’t supposed to happen. I felt helpless as Laura cared for me in addition to working her full-time job and working on her masters degree. While I was in the hospital, she stayed by my side, trying to work and get some rest in some uncomfortable chairs. Watching her husband struggle to just breathe at times.

Over the years, Laura has taken on most of the she household responsibilities. She makes meals, vacuums and chauffeurs me to multiple medical appointments. She does this all with a smile and encouraging words.

I was and still am blown away by how Laura continues to care for me all these years later. At times, I have found myself frustrated that I cannot do more to make her daily grind a little easier. Her kindness continues to overwhelm me.

As I reflect on this health journey we continue to walk together, it gives me a deeper appreciation of God’s purpose for marriage. Sacrifice is lived out in homes around the world as couples serve each other through illness, financial crisis and family issues. No matter their story, husbands and wives face opportunities to love without seeking anything in return. Why? So they can experience God’s heart through one another and live His love for one another.

Every opportunity we have to serve our spouse gives us the chance to live out the love story God crafted for us. He gave His Son so that we could have life. There was nothing we could give in return – nothing we could do to pay Him back. And yet He chose to give anyway.

Laura continues to live out her commitment to stand by me in sickness. She has more than fulfilled her marital vows – she has become a living illustration of God’s love. ~OC

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College Football In The South

Today’s a special day. Like every other properly raised Southern person it’s my favorite time of the year; college football starts today. Team shirts, hats and jackets are out, Saturday menus and BBQ’s are planned, and the big games are being taped so we don’t miss a bit of action.

That’s college football in the south.  It’s a celebration.  It’s a tradition.  It’s a way of life from late August through bowl season.

For as far back as I can remember, Southeastern Conference football has been a part of my life. Every Saturday I have planned my Fall Saturdays around Florida Gators football. Over the years I have attended numerous games at The Swamp. There is nothing like it. I have been to other college stadiums and NFL games, but nothing compares to sitting in The Swamp on a Saturday with over 90,000 of my closest friends.

Even being grown and married, very little has changed on any given Saturday afternoon in the fall.  The Florida Gators are still the team to root for on those Fall Saturdays. Southeastern Football is still the programming of choice. Those Saturdays are still filled with get togethers or at least texting family and friends throughout the game.

College football is still a special time in the South at any age. Go Gators!! ~OC

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Beauty Marks

Today’s a new day! Instead of looking at our scars in a negative light, make the choice to look at your scars as beauty marks. Our beauty marks help tell our story and lets the world know that God is faithful and is healing us every day. Let your scars shine! ~OC

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Never Give Up

Today’s a new day! I think most people do not like to be uncomfortable. Most people do not like the hard moments in life. Most people do not like to be burdened or inconvenienced. Yet, in the tough moments in life, God never calls us to give up. Instead, He calls us to keep on pushing and trusting Him, even in the most difficult moments.

As a former marathon runner and someone who has been walking through a crazy beautiful health journey for over twenty years, I am used to being uncomfortable. I am used to the hard moments in life.

As I have walked through the tough moments in life, here are a few lessons I have learned:

Never give up on your prayers.

Never give up on the people God has placed in your life.

Never give up on your dreams.

Never give up on yourself.

Never give up when you face hard times or failures.

Most importantly, never give up on God.

The beautiful thing about God and his amazing grace is that He never gives up on us. He calls us back even when we decide to stray away and do things on our own. God is always there waiting for us with open arms. Remember, every battle we will ever face was defeated on the cross when Jesus gave his life for us.

I am not sure what type of season you’re walking through at this moment. Maybe you have been praying the same prayers over and over for years, but they seem like they will never be answered. Don’t give up.

I want to encourage you to never limit God and put him in a nicely decorated box. Allow Him to work through you and never give in to those temptations to give up.

Looking back on all of my marathons, I am so glad I completed each of my races and never gave into the temptation to quit. Based on my health, those marathons were never easy on my body, but each taught me about overcoming and to never give up.

I believe our faith and life journey is like a marathon, it’s not promised to be easy, it’s going to be hard and full of twist and turns, but our finish line and reward in eternity is far greater than anything we could ever imagine.

So today, keep pushing, keep fighting and never give up. ~OC

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” ~2 Timothy 4:7

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Walk With a Limp

Today’s a new day! As I continue to walk out my faith journey, I have experienced wilderness moments on more than one occasion. Those moments when life just beats you up. During those seasons, I am always reminded that I am not God. During the tough seasons in life, I am thankful that God still wants to have regular face to face encounters with me. He wants to hear about my thoughts and concerns. God desires to hear from us and to speak to us. As I continue to walk this journey called life, I am often reminded that my thoughts and opinions cannot compare to the divine, sacred and loving wisdom of our amazing Savior.

As I continue to walk out my faith journey, I no longer walk straight. No, these days I walk with a limp. A beautiful reminder of everything God has brought me through. The struggles I have overcome. As I write this post, I am reminded of the quote by well-known Christian pastor and author, A.W. Tozer, who wrote, “Beware of any Christian who doesn’t walk with a limp.”

Dear Friends, our world does not need more people screaming from the rooftops and declaring that their opinions are the only ones that matter. No, we desperately need more limping Christians, who have walked through the wilderness and encountered God in a powerful and life changing way. We need more Christians walking with a limp, who are more passionate about helping those individuals who are currently walking through their own wilderness experience and who are less concerned about their own opinions.

I believe as we look at today’s headlines and the world around us, we need to stand up and speak out for what is right—to seek justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God. I also believe these days are ones to walk with a limp in humility, kindness, love and grace. I pray we will spend more time seeking God’s purpose for our lives and less time screaming that our opinions are the only ones that matter. Today, I pray we walk with a limp. ~OC

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Created for Community

Today’s a new day! God created us for community. Being part of a community allows us to love and support others walking through this journey called life. Being part of a community allows us to celebrate moments of triumphs and hold friends a little closer when heartaches hits those in our community. Being part of a community makes life a bit easier. But we cannot be part of a community if we do not seek one out.

Spoiler Alert! We cannot do life alone. Being surrounded by a supportive community is healthy in so many different ways. I have a small, but solid group of friends I can confide in when I struggle. A group of friends I can celebrate with during the good times. A group of friends that check in with me on a regular basis. There is great comfort being surrounded by community. Seek one out. ~OC

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Sacrifice

Today’s a new day! In John 3:16, we read that God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. Think about that for a moment. What do you love so much that you would sacrifice your only child for? This question speaks to who we are and what we’re willing to sacrifice. I encourage everyone to spend some time reflecting on this question today. ~OC

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The Race

Today’s a new day! As I continue to recover from my hospital stay, God is reminding me that He created me to be a marathoner, not a sprinter. But, I want to be a 100% now and not wait through the months of recovery. You would think after twenty-three years on this crazy beautiful health journey I would have that lesson memorized.

Throughout my entire life of playing and watching sports, some of the people I have had the most respect for are those athletes who have overcome tremendous hurdles. They work through an injury or trial in life and reach the highest levels in their respective sports.

I always loved running as a child, but never ran a marathon until after my cancer diagnosis. Even a Parkinson’s diagnosis could not keep me from running. However, as I continue to run this crazy beautiful health journey, I realize that it’s not a sprint, but a marathon. Along the path of the race, there will be many trials and tribulations that come along our way. In any sport, teams will face tough stretches where their teamwork will be tested, but it’s how they come out of those trials that determine whether or not they will be called “champions.”

As I ran my marathons, I would often experience fatigue. In the heavenly race, we can consider fatigue to be a temptation whether it is not praying every day or letting our Bible collect dust. We all face different types of temptations and at times, we succumb to those temptations. However, Jesus wants us to drink the living water and trust in Him at all times. In John 4:13-14, we read the following words from Jesus to the woman at the well:

“Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13-14)

With the exception of a few very talented runners, most people run a marathon to finish the race. As Christians, we are taught to run to the finish line or in other words, until God calls us home to be with Him. After you accept the invitation to run with Jesus, there is still training that we all need in order to fully experience all that God has in store for our lives.

Our spiritual training is something we all need to do 24/7/365 in order to run the race God has specifically designed for each of us. It takes a lot of effort to stay in our lanes and sometimes we run into a few hurdles along the way, but the goal we have to remember is ultimately receiving that heavenly reward when we come face-to-face with with Jesus in heaven.

Today, I encourage you to keep running the race God has planned for your life. While it may seem difficult at times and a shortcut might seem tempting, remember the heavenly reward that God has set before us once we finish the race. His Son ran the most grueling part of the race for us when He suffered and died on the cross for us, so that we can have eternal life and have a heavenly reward. I want to encourage you to keep spending time in God’s word each day. When we are equipped with the Gospel, we can withstand any test the enemy throws at us just like our Savior did in the wilderness (Matthew 4).

I want to encourage everyone to run this amazing race with me. My hope and prayer is that everyone comes into a beautiful and personal relationship with Jesus. So as I close out today’s writing, I want to share a little of the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians that I believe, sums up my post pretty well.

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians 3:12-14

Today, I encourage each of us to press on towards the ultimate goal. ~OC

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No Limitations

Today’s a new day! As most of you know, I am using a walker these days to assist me getting around. The last two weeks were tough, as I went through multiple test and treatments at the hospital. As I was sitting here thinking about everything that’s been going on with my health the last few weeks, I had to stop and give God praise. You see, the enemy thought he got the best of me because of my limited ability to get around and having to deal with two weeks in the hospital. But the truth is, my limited ability to be get around does not effect my ability to continue serving God. Never allow the enemy or anyone else to shackle you with their limitations. Keep your eyes focused on God and finish strong. ~OC

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