The Power of Prayer!

The Power of Prayer!

Today, as a part of my IMPACT Project work, I was taking around banners and promotional materials to stores and businesses that are observing The National Day of Prayer (NDP) which falls on the first Thursday of May every year. Wayfield Foods and other companies in Atlanta take the NDP as an opportunity to encourage their associates and customer to acknowledge God through prayer. I am a witness that prayer makes a difference in your life and draws us closer to God. I was pastor of a church here in Atlanta for 25 years and have been a Christian all my life it seems but I must admit it wasn't until I was diagnosed with Cancer in 2009 that I realized where my prayer life and relationship with God was and was not! It wasn't where it needed to be. I imagine I'm not alone.

Sometimes we think we are relying on God and are trusting in the Lord Jesus, when we are really trusting in ourselves. As probably the most frugal person known to man and a tenacious saver, before cancer, there were not too many issues that could arise that I could not simply "cut a check" to resolve. But there is no amount of money that can heal you when you have an incurable disease. Some of us trust in our relationships with people. But I have found that people will let you down even if they have good intentions. Many times when trouble comes, people are nowhere to be found.

Recently in 2013, I had a season of severe pain to which it seemed like there would be no end. During those months, I found out that only a relationship with Christ and prayer can be relied upon! I hurt so badly for so long that year.  I prayed like I never prayed before day after day and yes, Jesus delivered me from the pain. But more importantly, what remained once the pain was gone was an attitude of gratitude that moved me from prayer of supplication ( Oh Lord supply my need) to prayer of thanksgiving (Oh Lord, I thank you that you that there is nothing too hard for you)!

I want to encourage you today to pray throughout the day and every day! Pray until it turns into praise! Our God is faithful and He is able to deliver you out of every horrible pit. I still have the underlying problem that caused the pain in 2013 and I still have the Cancer that caused the problem. But what's greater is I still have the power of prayer! My God is able to heal and deliver me from all of the above! What a privilege it is to carry (as the old Christian hymn says) everything to God in prayer!  On the first Thursday of May, I will join others around the country praying for our Nation. But let us determine to make every day a National Day of Prayer!

Stage Four at Forty!?!

"My Wake Up Call"

 Dr. Charles H. Jackson, Sr.  Author of You are Victorious!  (Winning in the "Sport" called Life)

Today as I reluctantly got out of bed after receiving a "wake up call" from one of my nurses in Kaisers Infusion/ Oncology Department, I decided to start a blog to encourage you and others (including myself) facing challenges on a daily basis. I want you to know that you are victorious. Sometimes little frustrations of the day can be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Mine came early. As soon as I saw Kaiser on the caller ID, I knew it was either a robocall reminding me of an upcoming appointment or more likely a live person telling me that either I had missed or I was running late for yet another doctors appointment. It was the latter. But instead of letting it frustrate me into singing the blues, I decided to just laugh and reschedule.

Since 2009, my life has been seemingly one endless stream of doctors appointments, follow up appointments, pre-appointment lab appointments,specialist appointments,bone treatments, chemo treatments, hormone shot appointments and oh yeah my regular doctor appointments! Whew!!! I get tired sometimes just trying to keep up with my medical appointments not to mention the symptoms from the actual disease. As those going through similar challenges know, it can get discouraging. But as anyone who knows me will tell you, I refuse to allow it or anything (especially not Stage Four Prostate Cancer nor the appointments and symptoms related to it) to stop me! I Corinthians 15:57-58 has settled for me that in all things, through all things and over all things, thanks be to Jesus Christ...I am Victorious!

When I got knocked down by the Joe Frazier like left hook that exploded on my jaw five years ago (September of 2009) when I first learned the news that I had Stage Four Prostate Cancer, I was down but not out. On the contrary, it was a wake up call! I had just turned 40 and as I detail in the book You are Victorious! Winning in the "Sport" called Life, I thought I was ahead of schedule getting screened at that age. But when you have a family history or symptoms ( like frequent urination) it's wise to get checked early. What I did not know at the time is that I not only had some symptoms but I had a family history that was hidden from me and the rest of my family by my father. I learned too late that he had prostate issues at the very least and cancer at the very worst, about 6 years before I learned of my diagnosis. The reasons I wrote my book and why I am doing this blog is two fold. One, that people can specifically overcome prostate and other cancers through early detection and sharing your medical history with your family. I write secondly that persons in general can realize that no matter what you or they face in life, we are victorious! The key, the wake up call, is realizing that we all have a date with mortality, an expiration date if you will, but the good news is we also have a divine purpose. Life is not how long you live but how well you live! When you find your purpose, your own mortality is no longer your primary concern. I want to encourage you today not to focus on your mortality but rather on your purpose from God. Wake up! Don't miss or be late for your divine appointment. Don't let straws pile up and break your back...focus on the positive. Focus on your purpose. Remember, it's never in dwelling on your past; your purpose is always in your present and your future. I hope you will believe with me every day that your best is coming. Be encouraged that it's ahead of you and not behind you.