The Woman Who Wouldn’t Sit Down: A Son’s View of Faith in Action

In September 2022 I was trying to plan a birthday trip.

I searched cities, flights, ideas. Nothing felt right. I couldn’t make a decision. Every option felt off.

Then my phone lit up with a FaceTime call from my mom.

The moment I saw her face, I understood why the plans never came together.

The Holy Spirit had been steering me. Not away from fun—but toward something far more important.

My Mom Has Always Been a Mover

She beat cancer the first time back in 2012.

No chemo.

No radiation.

She changed her diet, started walking miles a day, and trusted God every step of the way.

By 2018, she was going on mission trips to Kenya — building schools, feeding kids, mentoring pastors and single mothers.

She was supposed to return in 2022… but her body said otherwise.

When I flew out to South Carolina to check on her, I found her barely able to walk.
This was the same woman I had driven to Colorado Springs just a year earlier so she could attend Bible college in her late 60s.

After she finished, she made the drive herself to South Carolina to visit family.

Seeing her in that condition was hard to process. It didn’t match the image I had of the strong, independent woman who never let anything stop her.

So we made a plan to get her to Memphis, where my sister had a downstairs apartment. But before we left, I told her, “Let’s stop by the doctor’s office and find out what’s really going on.”

Because you know how parents are — they never tell you the full story.

Stage 4.

That’s what the doctor said.
Tumors everywhere.
Chemo needed immediately.
Two years to live… maybe.

I sat there in shock — silently recording the conversation on my phone so I could make sense of it later.

And while the doctor talked, my mom — sitting in a wheelchair — looked him in the eye and said:
“By His stripes, I am healed. I’m not accepting what you’re talking about.”

From Spartanburg to Memphis and the Real Miracle

We left the hospital and drove the eight hours to Memphis. The next day, we went straight to the VA hospital.

Another doctor. Another scan. Same diagnosis — a tumor wrapped around her spine.
But again, she looked him in the eye and said the same thing: “By His stripes, I am healed.”

Only this time… the doctor started crying. Literally, bawling right in front of us.

He said, “You must be an angel. I’ve been running from God for a long time. But something about you — I know I need to give my life to Christ. And I’m going to do everything I can to help you.”

And from that moment, it was like the heavens opened.

Doctors and specialists started flooding in. Students came to observe. Within days she was in surgery.

The lead surgeon was confident.

The oncologist said, “Of all the cancers, this is the most treatable — and you don’t even need chemo. Just pills.”

The Memphis Connection

I remembered my pastor’s brother had planted a church in Memphis years ago. When I checked the address, it was less than 10 minutes from the hospital.

I went that Sunday before her surgery and asked the pastor to pray and believe with me. He did—boldly. After the successful surgery, my mom visited to say thank you and ended up finding a church family that wrapped her in love and prayer.

Then something wild happened.

My oldest son signed up for a youth outreach called Backyard Revival. After a huge event in California, the leaders asked God where to go next.

God said: Memphis.

Meanwhile, my sister had just accepted a teaching contract there the year before.

None of them had ever lived in Memphis. But in the same season, all ended up there—separately, for different reasons.

You can’t plan that. Only God can.

Recovery Wasn’t Easy… But She Never Backed Down

She had to go through a second back surgery a year later.
Rehab. Recovery. Faith in action.

After that surgery, I flew back out to Memphis — and drove her another 8 hours to her hometown of Chicago, where she could rest and recover surrounded by family: brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews.

But her mindset never wavered.

She kept walking.
Kept praying.
Kept believing.

Because here’s the wild part — her cancer journey started in 2012.
It lasted 12 years.
Twelve years of believing.
Twelve years of choosing faith.

Just Like the Woman With the Issue of Blood

When I think of her story, I think of Mark 5 — the woman who had suffered for twelve years.

The doctors couldn’t fix it.

The treatments didn’t work.

But when she touched Jesus, He said:

I’ve watched that kind of faith firsthand.

Not in a sermon. Not in a Bible study.
But in hospital rooms.

On the road. In recovery halls.

At the foot of a hospital bed.

And Now… She’s Going Back to Kenya

This week, almost three years since she couldn’t walk…

She’s packing bags.
She’s printing prayer cards.
She’s flying to Kenya on assignment.

She’s stepping into a 11- week missions journey with Dorcas Destiny International.
She will feed children.

She will teach the Gospel. She will build leaders.
She will walk in the power of healing.

If You’ve Ever Wondered What Faith Looks Like…

It looks like a 72-year-old woman who refused to sit down.
It looks like a son who got to witness a miracle — up close.
It looks like an empty wheelchair.
And a suitcase full of Bibles.

She Believed. And Now She’s Going.

If you’d like to pray for her…
If you feel called to sow into this mission…
If her story stirred something in you…
Here’s the link to partner in the mission: https://givebutter.com/riknpY/lyricemarsh2

But more than anything — let her life remind you:
God still heals.
God still sends.
And YOUR faith still moves.

That’s it for today

keep JOY, live Disciplined