Encouraging Videos For Cancer Survivors

Do you know of someone dealing with cancer?  Newly diagnosed, going through chemotherapy or in remission?  No matter their place along the cancer journey, we have developed three short inspiring videos that we believe will encourage all survivors along their journey.

These videos look at what advice a 10 year cancer survivor would give himself or herself if they could go back in time and speak to themselves at the various spots along the road of cancer.  These videos have been well received thus far and we hope they become a link you can forward to someone that needs a little encouragement.  Hitting the forward button on your email is so easy, please do it today for someone .  The link to the videos are below or you can find them on our website at www.christovercancerministry.com and click on the video hub tab.

Video Link:      http://www.christovercancerministry.com/videos.shtml

As always, please let us know how we can serve you.
God Bless!
 

Smile A While

There are certain movies that are “must sees” for me and my family each Christmas season.  One of those for our family is the modern classic “Elf” with Will Ferrell as Buddy the elf.  There are so many memorable lines in that movie.  Lines like, “You did it, you did it, you made the world’s best cup of coffee” or “You’re not Santa, you’re a liar..fake Santa, fake Santa!”  Another favorite line that Buddy delivers is “I love smiling..smiling’s my favorite!” 

Buddy just might be on to something with the “smiling thing.”  Recently, while on a business trip, some co-workers and I found ourselves in a small Asian restaurant near the Virginia countryside.  We ducked in for a fast lunch with plans to quickly be back on the road.  We were greeted by a tiny middle aged Asian lady named Sarah with bright eyes and a smile that lit up the room.  Sarah was not only the hostess, she was also the waitress and chef.   When Sarah served the meals, refilled tea glasses and picked up our plates, she maintained that sweet smile that had greeted us at the door.  It wasn’t a fake smile either.   Sarah was genuinely happy to meet us, took pride in preparing a meal for us, and with a smile on her face, she wished us safe travels as we left. 

When we left the restaurant and we continued on our way, everyone in our group commented on what a great stop that had been.  The food, of course was tasty, but the thing that people kept mentioning was how kind and happy Sarah had been.  A couple of us even said we were in better moods after having that meal with Sarah.  All by itself, Sarah’s smile had lifted the spirits of some tired travelers and left us better for having met her.  

Sarah will probably never read this devotional and will never know the impact she had on us that day.  But, my hope is that through sharing this story with others, we can all learn a lesson from Sarah.  Each of us knows a distinct group of people.  These people have issues in their lives like cancer, death, marital problems, job loss, and others.   Sometimes a simple smile is all that is needed to brighten the day of these people in your life.  You may never know the impact your smile will have, but smile anyway.  Take Sarah’s example and try smiling a little more often during the ordinary interactions you have with others throughout your day.  You might just find that the person’s day you brighten the most will be your very own!     

Christ Over Cancer- Day of Hope Event

On September 21^st at 3pm, the Christ Over Cancer (COC) ministry at Woodlawn Church of Christ will have their annual Day of Hope event for cancer survivors, caregivers and anyone else needing encouragement in dealing with cancer.   This is the 7^th year of the Christ Over Cancer ministry and this past year the ministry has been able to help not only people in the U.S., but inquiries have been received from other countries like Malaysia and South Africa. 

Each year, COC offers a Day of Hope event at Woodlawn Church of Christ in Florence, AL which normally includes survivors sharing their stories of hope.  This year’s format will be different as we will present  a series of videos from survivors sharing their  advice and wisdom that they have gained throughout their journey.  The information that will be shared will be what a survivor would tell themselves if they could write a letter to themselves at each stage of the cancer battle--- Diagnosis—Treatment—and Remission.    In addition to the video series, we will have encouraging songs from several local groups and we will have a balloon release celebrating survivors and honoring the memories of others. 

At the conclusion of the Day of Hope, there will be a reception to allow cancer survivors and their families to meet and offer encouragement to one another.  The Day of Hope begins at 3pm on September 21^st  at Woodlawn Church of Christ located across from Indian Springs Subdivision.  For questions, please call 256.767.3170 or log onto their website at www.christovercancerministry.com