If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans by Jen Jones

It truly is amazing how technology brings people together who are hundreds of miles apart..

Recently I received an email from a distant cousin who lives in Alaska. To set the stage, this is how I came to hear about Jen and her amazing struggle.

As you know I ran away to Colorado in June and began having a wild adventure of not only learning who I was but also learning who God was and what he wanted for my life. He really revealed in me an adventurous spirit. The cousins (or God sent angels) that I'm currently living with told me I had distant family in Alaska that I needed to connect with. Thank you Facebook! I found my cousin Lori on FB and began conversations with her about someday visiting and playing in the Alaskan mountains.

Around Christmas Lori contacted me and offered me a wonderful opportunity to move to Alaska and become a nanny, if you will, for her friends Jen and Jeremy. Jen is currently battling cancer while being a mom to two little ones. Her husband is working hard to not only provide for his wife financially but also in sickness and health..

After much consideration, prayer, and back and forth decision making, I decided to not move to Alaska. It was a hard decision and although it was a good offer, I just didn't feel it was the best. Which to this day I'm still convinced that Colorado is my place to rest my head.. for now.

But just because I've never met Jen doesn't mean she hasn't touched my life and that's what I have decided to share a recent email from her to you. Jen is a strong beautiful woman who is truly living through life's hardest struggle and is doing it with optimism, courage, and hope. In the email you are about to read, I almost sensed a joy for her life and a passion to continue to persevere even when the pain is unbearable. I wonder how many of us can say the same when we struggle with our life situations.

I feel like her words will do enough to speak to you, I don't really need to keep adding my two cents but I do want to say this.. Dear Jen, I am so thankful to know your story and you are my in thoughts and prayers daily. Although I wasn't able to make it out to Alaska this time I do hope to someday and I can't wait to meet you when I do. God has you and your family tightly in his hands and if you keep pursuing his love and strength for your life, he will provide every step of the way. These verses are my prayer for you and your healing.

2 Corinthians 1:2-5 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Jen's email:

Want to make God laugh? Just tell him your plans! Once again, thank you for all of your prayers. Your prayers and God's mercy & grace are the only explanation for why I'm still able to write to you in the first place!

Quick summary: the infection cleared up with the antibiotics, just in time for me to catch a chest cold - and then another bacterial infection a couple of weeks ago! I also had radiation again, this time to my entire brain, as there was a 1 cm tumor on my right front lobe. It took a while to recover from that treatment - some complications - and sadly my hair will probably not grow back - but I've got three different wigs to hang out with now!

I had another CT scan the other day and the results were mixed. Unfortunately, the cancer has metastasized to my lower backbone, so I will be headed back for more radiation starting Monday. In addition, it's difficult to tell what is going on in my lower left lobe (lungs) where the infection is recurrent - If an airway is being blocked by the tumor and the lack of oxygen is causing the infection to recur (and the mass showing of mucous) or if it is all metastatic mass. A pulmonary specialist is looking into that issue. I also have three more tumors growing near my left collarbone, and there are now two tumors instead of one in my liver. The good news is that the tumor in my lungs mid-sternum has not grown!!! - which is really excellent because it was starting to make it difficult for me to swallow. The great news is I'm still here! (after being told that mid-March would be the longest I'd live)

John & Wendy Baumeister very generously gave me use of their sauna and literally within a few days of use it relieved a large amount of pain & coughing - so much that my lovely little hubby went off and bought & installed our very own!

The bottom line - God's awesome gracefulness! It is only by your prayers and His grace that I'm still here. I've come to learn more about God's purposed involvement in my life - I have so much to live for, and have been very blessed in so many ways throughout my life. I'm only 32 and I feel I have so much more to do on this earth - besides growing old with my dear hubby of nearly 11 years and raising our nearly-4-year-old and nearly-6-year-old. And so I humbly ask you to continue to pray for FULL healing for me- please forward this email so that others may be praying for me, too - please forward this email to your church's prayer chain. If you don't attend a church, then I humbly ask you to print this email out and drop it off at one near you at your earliest convenience. Honestly, I would LOVE to know that this cry for healing would be heard by Jesus from people and churches across the nation - if not the world!!!

If you can do this, please accept my heartfelt thanks and appreciation - for your future prayers and to those of you who have been praying for me all along - your prayers have made a difference and continue to do so! Only by the grace of God I am able to write this to you - with blessings & prayers upon you and yours in the name of Jesus Christ - with hugs & smiles - Jen Jones :0)