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He shall regard the prayer of the destitute,
And shall not despise their prayer. Psalms 102:17 KNJV
When Homeless Men Prayed
Ray (name has been changed) was a needy middle-aged man who I had met during our years of ministering to the homeless. He was polite and kindly-natured when we chatted each week. Often, he stood near an area of benches where I would hold prayer gatherings. He contributed to the general conversation and kept others engaged in speaking up about their prayer requests.
One week as I asked for requests, several merely commented that they were “good” or had “no problems today.”
I paused, debated, and finally said, “Well, I could use Your prayers today.” I then shared that one of my 6 kids had brain cancer and needed surgery. You could have heard a pin drop.
Then, one by one, the homeless each expressed their concern, asked questions, and prayed for us. Ray asked me for my son’s first name and I watched him scrawl it on a scrap of paper and put it in his pocket.
Weeks passed. I was busy with my son’s situation and didn’t see Ray.
One day, when I was finally back at the park and with the homeless, Ray spotted me. He ran over and asked how my son, Luke, was doing.
“I can’t believe you remembered his name,” I began.
“Of course,” Ray stated, “I pray for him every day. His name is in my pocket.”
At this, he pulled the scrap of paper from his pocket, and waved it at the large crowd of homeless gathered there that day.“Who do we pray for?” Ray shouted at the crowd.
“L U K E !!!” came as a single roar.
Then came individual voices. “How is he?” said one.
“I pray for him every day,” said another.
“I haven’t missed a day,” a third chimed in.
The voices came from here and there all over that field.
“The Lord is in control.”
“God has this!” “You give Luke our love!”
“Ray never lets us forget to pray!”
————————————————- 8 years later—————UPDATE:————————————————————————————-
And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. Matthew 8:7 KJV
For with God nothing shall be impossible. Luke 1:37 KJV
You might also like to read “Touching God” here on our website about Luke’s diagnosis.
The following is a summary of our journey and our gift from God.
In October 2014, my son, Luke was given 9-15 years to live. At age 32, Luke was diagnosed with Oleogodendro Glioma, stage 2, brain cancer with mixed glioma. He had been told this following his resectional brain cancer surgery.
Another resectional brain cancer surgery on regrowth came in February 2018. At the time of his second surgery, he was told it was now classified as a more aggressive Anaplastic astrocytoma, stage 3. He underwent radiation treatments and chemotherapy.
In 2023, there was again more new growth on the remaining cancer, and a third resectional brain surgery was followed by another series of radiation.
PUZZLED
He began his second year-long treatment with chemotherapy
when his routine MRI had his oncologist “puzzled.”
Scar tissue was shown. A tumor board of specialists was consulted and all agreed they were seeing scar tissue.
Each subsequent MRI and a recent Petscan showed scar tissue and no new growth on the remaining cancer.
Last visit, he was told to discontinue chemotherapy!!!
We are PRAISING GOD!!!
OUR AMAZING, POWERFUL, LOVING GOD has given us a MIRACLE!!!
We had been told in 2014 that Death was Luke’s prognosis.
However, Nothing is too hard for God!!!
There are no words to THANK MY GOD ENOUGH!!!
Luke had been sharing His faith throughout the storms of the past 10 years. We knew he would go from life here to life with Jesus, but, oh, the blessing for us all to have him with us here longer!!
Luke is one of our ten adult children. (I had 6 children and Bruce had 4. God introduced us after we were both widowed. We married in 2021. See our article on this website, “Is God Real In Your Life?”)
In these 10 years of Luke’s illness and our anguish, God comforted me, his mother, with the realization that Luke would pass some day from this realm to God.
Like stepping from one room into another, we walk there with Jesus, God’s Son, Who died but rose for us all. That fact makes all the difference.
Seemingly, God has blessed us with a true MIRACLE! We thank Him and leave the future of us all in the Perfect Hands of God. Someday, He will call us all Home.
Til then, We Rejoice with Luke.
Right now, as I type this, Luke is helping to paint his friend’s house. Later, Luke’s 10-year-old son, and wife, will be outside waiting for him to finish up and come home.
Luke is a healthy and happy man, who loves God with all his heart!
Thank You, Lord! Our God is Awesome!!!
And thank you to the more than 20,000 people who have prayed for Luke over this past decade or more.
You are profoundly appreciated and deeply loved.
God heard you.