What I Learned From Breast Cancer
by Judy Asti

I used to live Mach II with my hair on fire, scheduling every minute of my busy days. I rarely examined my life. Breast Cancer gave me a loud wake-up call. The diagnosis devastated me, yet the arduous journey taught many valuable lessons I’m glad I learned. I offer three of them here in hopes that you will learn them without requiring such a difficult teacher.

Take life one day at a time. Intense cancer treatments and the resulting physical debilitation gave me no choice but to live this way. However, it’s the best way to live no matter what our circumstances. Dwelling on the past and worrying about the future rob us of the strength we need today when things are difficult and dilute our joy when life is wonderful.

Discover your inner beauty. We live in a world that worships beauty and breasts. Breast Cancer attacks both our lives and what our culture teaches it means to be a woman. Breast Cancer forced me to discover the woman underneath the exterior trappings. She’s much more glorious than the outer shell. Even if you stay healthy, physical beauty fades. Yet there’s a woman inside who is made in God’s image. Get to know her.

Trust God. Cancer taught me that the God of the Bible is everything He says He is. For example, God says He is our peace. On the night before my mastectomy, I went to bed expecting to cry myself to sleep. Instead, I felt as if I was lifted up in a heavenly capsule of peace that nothing in this world could penetrate. It was what the Apostle Paul calls “the peace that passes understanding.” Before, I believed in God’s attributes. Now I know that whatever life brings, God’s presence is all I need.

Copyright © 2004 by Judy Asti