#One: Isaiah 6:8 says, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’ ▶"On November 22, 2016, I was invited to a Thanksgiving community service at a Catholic church in town. Preachers from various churches were coming together for a night of worship and testimony. They asked me to be a part of the testimony portion of the service, giving me ten minutes to speak. I took this opportunity before the Lord in prayer, asking what it was He wanted me to share, and I listened. God spoke to my heart that despite the fact this was a service of thanksgiving, there would be people in the audience who would have a hard time finding anything to be thankful for. There would be people present who were going through heartache and great loss. This was something I could certainly relate to deeply. It was just two years prior to this engagement that my mother, my father, and my best friend, Jen, had all died of cancer. The location and timing of this service were significant to me because it was to be held at the church Jen had attended. I had given her eulogy at the very same podium I was going to be speaking from. During the diagnosis and loss of my mom and dad, I was walking through the treatment and care of Jen. She was battling glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of brain cancer. I became her medical power of attorney and attended all her doctor appointments and treatments. I helped her write letters to her children as she said good-bye. In the end, I led Jen’s funeral service, just three months after my mom passed away. I was painfully familiar with deep, deep loss. While listening to God in prayer, He directed me to the verse of Romans 8:28 which says, “And we KNOW that in ALL things God works together for the good of those that love Him and are called according to His purposes.” The message God wanted me to share was that no matter what deep trial or struggle those in the service were going through they could rest assured that God would work them ALL to the good in their lives. I knew I would share with them details of all the good things and the triumph God brought to me and others including the ministry I had started in honor of my dad, my mom, and Jen called Handing Hope. I also could not stop thinking about a worship song by Chris Tomlin called “Good, Good Father.” Now, I am not a singer and I knew this song was not the usual style of music played in this particular church, so I was unsure how I could share this song. I knew the Lord wanted me to share it, but I was troubled by how to make that happen. I confided in my friend, Kim, the co-founder of Handing Hope, that I felt very strongly I was supposed to share that song at this service and had no idea how. As Kim and I walked into the service that night, I still did not have an answer. Then I saw it. I picked up the program for the night to see when they had scheduled me to speak. The song that we would sing just before I gave my testimony was, you guessed it, “Good, Good Father.” I felt confirmed that I had heard from the Lord and the message of hope He gave me to share at the service was from Him. One amazing ending to this story is that God had spoken to the worship leaders of the service just one week before the event. Originally there was a different song slotted to sing before I spoke, but they got the message to learn and sing “Good, Good Father.” They had never heard this specific song before, but when they did, they were obedient to Gods’ promptings. They learned it and made the change to have us sing that particular song before I spoke. When the worship leader and his wife later heard my testimony about what God wanted me to say and how that song was a part of it, and that I had no idea how I was going to be able to share it, they told me how God directed them to make the change and learn that song. They also shared that my testimony encouraged them greatly in their ministry that they were, in fact, hearing God too. This confirmation was a huge blessing to us all.
#Two: John 16:13 says, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” ▶ When Jen was diagnosed with cancer, it was devastating. We were so close. We stood up in each other’s weddings, we both had four children, each with three girls and a boy, our kids were the same age, we were the same age, and we even both had the same name. Every decision I made for her care and treatment, I had to process and ask myself what I would want if it was me going through this battle. Jen’s loss of memory made it impossible for her to make these difficult decisions. I sought the Lord for wisdom a lot during her care. One day as I prayed with a group of friends and spent time quietly listening for the Lord to speak, I heard Him tell me that I was going to go through a season of loss and that it was going to be more than losing Jen. I felt deep concern and sensed I was entering a very difficult time in my life, significantly more difficult than what I was already experiencing. I called my mom later that day and told her what I had heard the Lord say. A few months later, my father was diagnosed with lung cancer. He was sixty-five years old, very healthy, happy and still working at the time. The doctors gave him six months to live, and when that time came, he was gone. My father had been so influential in my life. He was my best friend, my biggest cheerleader, my everything. He was the closest and the first of all my losses. Then, a few months after my dad passed away, my mom started to complain of pain in her side. She commented to me that she feared she too was going to be part of the season of loss the Lord had spoken to me about. I cried out to the Lord and begged Him not to take my mom. She also was only sixty-five years old and worked full-time. Prior to then, she had never been hospitalized, she walked two miles a day, and she appeared very healthy. Unfortunately, my mom was right and was part of the season of loss the Lord had prepared my heart for. My mom died of pancreatic cancer. She lived only eight months after her diagnosis. I had a very close spiritual bond with my mother, and I miss her immensely. Then three months after my mom passed away, I said goodbye to my friend Jen. God was so gracious to prepare my heart to go through this season of loss. I knew He was with me, He allowed it to happen, and even though I did not understand why I trusted Him.
#Three: Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to me and I will answer you and will tell you great and hidden things that you do not know.” ▶ My friend, Kim, and I wrote a book together of powerful and encouraging stories of survivorship as well as information on cancer prevention and education. The book is called Be Well Assured at the Heart of Cancer There is Hope. Kim and I struggled for months with the title of the book. We thought about it and shared many different ideas, but nothing felt right. Then one day while I was on a plane, I was praying and listening to the Lord, seeking Him specifically on what the title of the book should be. He gave me the words “Be Well Assured There is Hope.” I immediately loved it and when I told Kim, she had the same response. We knew God gave us this title. The title speaks the truth and little did I know that just months later the words of the book title would also become a beacon of hope to my own heart when I waited for a biopsy result for myself.
#Four: Galatians 3:5 says, “So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?” ▶ Just as Kim and I finished writing the book, I found a spot on my back. Fear paralyzed me as I waited for the biopsy results. I had just submitted the title to the publisher: Be Well Assured at the Heart of Cancer There is Hope. I cried out to the Lord to speak to me, as I was full of fear. Here I was finishing a book to bring others hope in the cancer battle, and I found myself needing hope. Oh, how I needed to feel well assured! I picked up my devotional and opened the page to that specific day. As I read, I began to weep in thanksgiving for the words on the page. This devotional had been written long before I had ever thought of writing a book on cancer. The author wrote these words: “Be Well Assured there is Hope…” the very title the Lord spoke to me for my book that I submitted just days before! I could literally feel God pour out His assurance and peace on me in that situation. I felt hope. I felt well assured. My biopsy came back negative!
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| JEN COFFEL |
Jen is a successful Entrepreneur, Best-Selling Author of 4 books, International Speaker Trainer, and has generated over 25 million dollars in sales. She has been featured and recognized on ABC News and the Chicago Tribune for her work in helping others. She has also been quoted in Inc 500. But she is most proud of founding "Handing Hope" which brings comfort and smiles to children battling cancer around the world! She is a wife of 26 years, and mother to 4 incredible teenagers (including 17-year-old twins)!
“Belief Inspiring Action” is at the foundation of all Jen does.
To find out more about Jen visit www.JenCoffel.com
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