Walking in Faith, Diana Homsi's Story

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Hey friends, welcome to the Her God Story podcast where you will always hear a good story to encourage,

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inspire you in your walk with the Lord. I'm your host Jodie Chiricosta, ministry leader at

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Somebody Cares America and international author and traveler on this journey with Jesus.

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I'd love to hear from you. Let me know what you like about this podcast, how you first heard about

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it, who has been your favorite guest, and anything else you want to share with me. Just send an email

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to hergodstory@somebodycares.org. The prophet Isaiah lived during a very tumultuous time.

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The Assyrians and the Babylonians were both expanding their territory through war

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and many nations were defeated and their surviving citizens were carted off to places unknown.

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Their enemies were, their armies were brutal in battle and it seemed that total destruction of

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both Israel and Judah were imminent. The northern kingdom of Israel was defeated by the Assyrians

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because of their idolatry and their wickedness. The southern kingdom of Judah however still

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worshiped the Lord in large part and while they had a mixture of good and evil kings,

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the Lord in his mercy spared them from being overrun giving them more time to return whole

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heartedly to the Lord. But they still experienced attacks with the threat of famine, disease, death.

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This is the world Isaiah lived in and while many of his prophecies confronted rebellion against God

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warning them of judgment, the Lord also spoke comfort and hope to those who would listen to him.

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In the midst of a turbulent time, God told them in Isaiah 41 10,

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So do not fear for I am with you. Do not be dismayed for I am your God.

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I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

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My guest Diana Holmesie has experienced the righteous right hand of God protecting her

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and caring for her during war, times of uncertainty, sickness and heartache. She has learned to walk in

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faith instead of fear. I met Diana years ago at church. She's a beloved professor at Tidewater

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Community College and a dear woman of God. Welcome Diana. Thank you, Jody. Diana, you were born

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in a country experiencing civil war and it impacted your life in dramatic ways. Tell us a little

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about your family background and your young life in Lebanon. I was born inside in Lebanon in a

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Christian home, the youngest of six children. My dad was a banker and my mom was a housewife

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and they were committed to the Lord. Both of my grandparents were Presbyterian ministers of the

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gospel. The 15 years civil war broke out when I was six years old in 1975. I recall the entire

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family sleeping in the hallway of the building at the beginning of the civil war. The seventh floor

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building was shaking back and forth. I was terrified. My head was on my mother's lap,

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almost in a semi-conscious state and I asked her to recite Psalm 23 for me. She did over and over

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to calm me down. I asked her to recite Psalm 23, which I still recite to this day every evening.

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The following day we prayed as a family under the dining room table and we decided to leave on foot

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since we did not own a car at that time. Our neighbors vacated their homes in their cars.

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The streets were deserted. Tanks and armed fighters were hiding between buildings and piled dirt.

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We walked not knowing where to go and all of a sudden out of nowhere a lone car showed up.

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It was a driver searching for his parents but could not locate them. By God's grace he agreed

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to give us a ride or a lift to the next town. Our family, eight of us, fit in his car along with his

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dog. That was one of the many miracles we encountered during that dark time. My grandfather's mom's side

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visited us regularly since he lived close by. He never ceased sharing God's word and about salvation

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through Jesus. His word impacted me since I was a child. Every year the family would travel to the

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mountains for a week to attend a Baptist Church retreat. The week was loaded with speakers.

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One day on September 10, 1980 an Egyptian pastor was preaching about salvation

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and we could hear then bombs falling close by and he said, where would you go if you were to die today?

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So Diana, through all of this and there were many times you had to evacuate your home at that,

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you know, during those years but your parents, your siblings, they clung to the Lord. But when did you

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and how did you have that experience of putting your faith in Christ? I started thinking to myself

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and then he gave an altar call. I raised my hand and I prayed with him to receive Christ

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on September 10, 1980. So when you were a teenager the Civil War just engulfed your hometown.

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You know, before that you had been coming and going depending on where the fighting was occurring

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but at some point it was just too dangerous to remain. And so your family relocated to the city

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of Beirut, the capital city. That must have been very hard for you. I mean here you are,

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a teenager, having to flee your home, everything you knew. Share about that time and how it affected

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you spiritually, emotionally, educationally, really in every way. It just upended your life.

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During the Civil War we had to leave our home for weeks at a time, more than 12 times for safety reasons.

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But in 1985 we left permanently our home, was occupied by Muslim fighters, PLO groups,

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and all our belongings were stolen. We fled the area carrying only the clothes we were wearing.

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We had to leave via the sea to Beirut for the roads were engulfed with bombs and militia fighters.

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We, meaning seven of us, ended up staying with my aunt who had a one-bedroom apartment.

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During the displacement I was very fearful, unable to think of my future.

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I was living one day at a time. My family and I experienced God's grace, mercy, and miracles,

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more than ever during that time. I attended Christian Teaching Institute and graduated first

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in my class. I then enrolled at the American University of Beirut, majoring in biology.

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Our mighty God, who knew my past and future, was ordering my steps.

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Family and I were shielded by God's favors every step of the way.

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So one of your uncles at this point was living and working in the U.S. and he was able to sponsor

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your parents and you to lawfully immigrate. So you were uprooted and relocated again,

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which must have been difficult, but when you look back at that time,

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how do you see that God was leading and helping all of you?

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Uncle Henry, my mother's brother, was already in the U.S. He was a U.S. citizen due to his many

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years of service at the American Embassy in Lebanon. He petitioned my mom and family in 1982

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to legally immigrate to the U.S. So in 1987, we were informed by the Embassy that our time

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to immigrate has arrived. Dad, mom, and I were allowed to leave. My siblings had to wait in

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Lebanon a few more years before immigrating because they were older than 21. We left Lebanon

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tearfully like I'm doing right now. My trip to Cyprus and on to Athens, Greece, where we were

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processed at the U.S. Embassy. We landed in the U.S.A. on December of 1987. This relocation was

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extremely emotional for me. Leaving my home country, Lebanon, and my siblings was extremely

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difficult. It was time of instability. We settled in Virginia Beach, Virginia since my oldest brother,

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Matthew, was working for CBN at the time. I attended T.C. Tidewater Community College

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to continue my education and then transferred to Old Dominion University where I obtained a B.S.

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and M.S. in biology. So after you graduated from college, you had sort of settled in the U.S. at

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this point and you wanted to pursue a medical degree. But God had other plans. Tell us about

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that journey and how you overcame a major disappointment. After obtaining the B.S. degree,

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I applied to medical school and was not able to get in. It was a big disappointment, but God calmed

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me down via prayer and his promises. Jeremiah 29, 11, for I know the plans I have for you.

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He declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

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Then I obtained a master's degree in biology. Following that, I applied for a doctorate

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program at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. I missed home was crying daily.

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The head of the department told me, go home and if you still desire to pursue this program,

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you can come back. And so after one semester, I returned home. Proverbs 69, a man

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plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. So once you got home, God opened an unexpected door

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for you, which really has been your life calling. Share how he ordered your steps here. Back home,

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trusting God and yet not knowing what tomorrow holds. I went to visit my dearest professor of

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English at Tidewater Community College. She asked me, what do you want to do, Diana Max?

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I responded, I don't know. She said, come with me. She took me to the dean of science office

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and I was offered a couple of labs of human anatomy and physiology to teach.

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I thank God with excitement. I started teaching lab and the following semester,

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I began teaching lecture and lab. Four years later, I became an assistant professor of biology on a

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full-time basis and I love every bit of it. The students and biology, indeed God walked with me

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every step of the way. Eventually you met a Christian man, you got engaged.

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But during that time that you were planning your wedding, you got very sick. Walk us through that

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journey. I've been praying for a godly husband for many years with fasting, petitions and tears.

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I finally met a Christian gentleman and we dated and eventually got engaged. I was so excited that

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the Lord answered my prayer. So we started planning for the wedding. The date was on the

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church's calendar. I was still fasting and praying and seeking God's face.

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A few months before the scheduled wedding, I requested a prophetic word over the internet

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from a ministry. I trust. I received a CD with the prophetic word and when I listened to it,

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it scared me. I did not know what it really meant at the time, but later I found out that

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it meant something. During that time, I began experiencing weakness and excruciating headaches

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to the extent of falling in the classroom. I visited the doctor several times and I was given

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Motrin to relieve my headaches and stress. While at the doctor's office, I experienced a grand

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moral seizure and I was rushed to the hospital via the ambulance. A CT scan was performed and

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it showed a mass on my brain. I was rushed to a better equipped hospital. An MRI was performed and

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surgery was urgent after realizing it was stage 4 malignant cancer called GBM, glioblastoma multiform,

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with no option for a second opinion. Surgery was done the following day. My brother met with the

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oncologist outside my room the day after surgery. The oncologist talked about what's next,

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chemo and radiation treatment. Responding to Max's questions, he said this type of cancer

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is the most vicious type and survival is almost none and I had six months to live.

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The oncologist added that, bear the statistic, 95 to 99 percent. Don't make it. Don't survive.

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Max placed his hand on his Bible and told the doctor that we trust in God's statistics

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and not man's and we are the 0.1 survival statistic. The oncologist nodded his head.

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I was discharged a week later. 33 sessions of chemo radiation were scheduled to start the following

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week. Before treatment, our pastor and the elders of the church visited me at home and prayed,

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healing scriptures and prophetic words were spoken over me. Very powerful, very powerful

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and emotional meeting. The church supported me with prayers, including you, Jody. Yes, I did.

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A matter of fact, many churches were involved, local and overseas. I can never be thankful enough.

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During treatment, I got short of breath and could not even walk or walk or breathe.

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I told my family, call 911. So I was rushed to the ER. A CT scan showed multiple pulmonary emboli,

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blood clot. Surgery was performed to insert an IVC filter. It stands for NCA or vena cava filter.

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To save my life and to prevent clots from traveling to my lungs and heart.

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Also, I lost all my hair. That was more difficult than being diagnosed with cancer

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because I thought my identity as a woman comes from my hair. Also, a week or so after starting

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treatment, my fiance told me if you live to five years, I'll believe in miracles.

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And he left me during the darkest time of my life. I cried and I cried and I cried. And I was so sad

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that one of my dreams fell apart, but the Lord did not leave or forsaken me. Actually, he showed

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up while I was in the ICU as the lion of Judah, galloping. And I was assured then that I was not

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going to die. The prophetic word I received two months before I was diagnosed with brain tumor

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stated that a ring of fire seen around me and the evil one cannot cross. And it stated also that

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the evil one meant for evil, God will turn for my good. One more thing to add, I had an MRI every

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month for more than a year and then changed once every two months and so on, like three months,

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four months and so on. However, since the first MRI after surgery, the report stated clear,

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stable, no change. God healed me from day one. Praise his holy name.

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Mm, praise God. Well, Diana, I remember the church praying for you. As you said, I was a part of that

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during that time and I know God sustained you. I mean, here you are today. This was, you know,

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many, many years later with this testimony. You know, share what was going on inside you. I mean,

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that's what happened to you. But what was God working in you? What did this do to your faith

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and your relationship with the Lord? My church was supporting me with prayers and words of encouragement.

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Other churches around the world were also praying for me and the family and my family stood by my

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side day and night. And yet I had questions to the Lord such as why me? Why now? What did I do?

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Why didn't you take me home? Am I Jobette? That's what I called myself, the female version of Job.

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When I was rushed to the hospital with a blood clot in my lungs, I could not take it anymore.

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Even my pastor cried. He left my room in the emergency and he went out and cried.

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And then he came back. God's answer to me, why not you, my daughter? Who are you to question me?

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And through it all, God showed me how much he loved me all the way to the cross.

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My faith grew stronger and deeper and I realized God can do anything. I told the Lord if I die,

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I know where I'm going. I had seen God ordering my steps from my childhood until adulthood.

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During that time, I struggled with the Lord's Prayer because I was not able to forgive

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my ex-siancé right away. So I began worshiping God and dancing before him

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and praying and slowly I was able to forgive him way before he ever asked for forgiveness,

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which he finally did 16 years later.

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In that time of surrendering to the Lord, I mean, you know, you said, God, whatever you do, I'm in.

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In that time, you asked him to use you. How has he done that? I know that he's used you since then

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in many ways. Share about how God's using you.

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I surrendered totally to the Lord. His peace overwhelmed me. He made a way for me to share

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my testimony with my students. I teach around 200 students every semester. I was teaching once

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face to face. I would share my journey with cancer and how God healed me.

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They were all Christians who would email me or stop by my office to thank me for inspiring them

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with my testimony. I always told them that I got through this only by God's grace.

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They used to say that I am a strong woman, but I would respond, no, it's not about me.

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It's about Jesus who is in me and gives me strength.

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One student asked me, what is Easter? It was around Easter time. And I said, happy Easter.

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So she asked me, what is Easter? So I explained to her the meaning of Easter.

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She and her husband came to know the Lord and they continue to serve in their church, teaching

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Sunday school and picking up the kids in a bus to take them to Sunday school.

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Some students would come to my office and share their story with cancer or their family story.

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And we end up praying and I would hand them a Bible. I had a stack of Bibles in my office.

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So I would hand them a Bible. I constantly receive email from students informing me

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how touched and moved they were by my story. And I would encourage them to share their story

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and my story. And I would encourage them to never give up and keep up hanging up,

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hanging on to the Lord. Many asked me to pray for them and I did. Actually, I received an email

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last week from a student who lost her child to brain cancer. She ended up being on drugs

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but told me that she was very touched and inspired by my testimony. She stopped using drugs

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and promised to give God a chance. I responded to her with encouraging words. She replied,

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praise God. There are many more encounters with students. I cannot be thankful enough

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to my mighty and loving God. You know, it's so important that we have believers who are in

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places that have contact with unbelievers and share powerful testimonies of what God's done in our

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lives. When people who are in distressing situations see the fruit in the lives of

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believers like you, Diana, it changes their perspective and gives them hope. And it gives

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their perspective and gives them hope and points them to Jesus. I know you recently had another

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health issue, but God has carried you through it. How long has he done that recently, Diana?

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A few years ago, I used to drive to work by myself. I used to exercise at the gym,

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walking, running and lifting weights. I led a normal life with little weakness on the left side

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of my brain due to the tumor being on the right side of my brain. I started to feel unusual fatigue

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and tiredness due to female issues. I became very anemic, which required iron infusions every few

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months, even to this day. Due to the fatigue, my brothers started driving me to college while I

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needed to use a walker to go from class to class. Fatigue got worse and I ended up staying

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home, but it was the same time when COVID showed up and the college required us

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to teach online from home with an awesome God.

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So you were able to keep your job because everybody was teaching from home.

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His timing was so perfect and by God's favors, I'm still teaching online.

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At the same time, I had to visit tons of doctors, about six or seven,

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seeking answers and help. I'm getting some help seeing God in every step. Recently, a benign tumor,

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a fatty tumor, was found on top of the kidney. Its size is big enough that they could not ignore it.

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After having ultrasound and a CT scan, I had surgery in an attempt to block the blood supply

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to the tumor and to cause it to shrink. A couple of months later, I had a CT scan

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to follow up on the status of the tumor. After the CT scan, I was crying in the van.

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I was talking to the Lord, telling him that I had enough. Suddenly, I felt an arm hugging me.

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I was startled because my brothers, Mark and Mac, were in the van.

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Mark was driving and Mac was in the middle of the van. I said, who is touching me?

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Both brothers were wondering what I'm talking about. I realized then it was the arm of the Lord

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hugging me, calming me down. I knew the Lord was with me and that he loves me to the cross.

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By the way, I celebrated last July 16 years cancer free. God is so good. Well, Diana,

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what is a key truth that you have learned through all of these challenges that you want our listeners

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to know? Gosh, I learned a lot through my challenges. Sharing few, God is indeed in control of my life

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in every aspect. Educationally, emotionally, as you can tell from my story.

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He loves me unconditionally all the way to the cross. He is Jehovah Rafa, my healer.

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He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He can do the same for those who put their trust in

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him. I know that I know he is God of the impossible. Mom used to pray Psalm 91

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over me daily. I recite the daily Lord's Prayer and Psalm 23. They still bring me the comfort to this

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day. Even when I have surgery or when I go to the doctor's offices, I would always recite

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the Psalm 23 to calm me down, just like they calmed me down back when the war started.

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As we close, Diana, would you share about a woman of the Bible whose story has inspired or

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encouraged or comforted you or taught you something? I love Ruth because Ruth lost her husband

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and became a widow and decided to relocate accompanying her mother-in-law to the promised

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land. Yeah, her story has a lot of similarities to yours, Diana. Well, you have faced a lot of fear

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in life, but you discovered that God is a very present help in times of trouble.

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Psalm 91, which your mother prayed over you, is a comforting promise from the Lord. I encourage

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our listeners to read the whole chapter when they get a chance, but I'll share verses 1 through 6

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and 14 through 16 now from the New International Version. Whoever dwells in the shelter of the most

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high will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress,

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my God, in whom I trust. Surely He will save you from the fowler snare and from the deadly pestilence.

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He will cover you with His feathers and under His wings you will find refuge. His faithfulness

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will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by

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day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.

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Because He loves me, says the Lord, I will rescue Him. I will protect Him, for He acknowledges my

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name. He will call on me and I will answer Him. I will be with Him in trouble. I will deliver Him

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and honor Him. With long life I will satisfy Him and show Him my salvation.

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Diana has experienced rescue by the Lord numerous times, and as you, dear listener,

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put your faith and trust in Him, you will experience it too. Diana, would you take a moment

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and pray for our listeners? Lord, I thank you and praise you for who you are. You are my Jehovah of

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life, the one who heals. You are my Lord, my Savior, my rescuer. Thank you for being with me

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through my difficult journey. Thank you for never leaving or forsaking me. I pray my testimony will

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inspire and encourage those who are listening. Though life may be full of trials and tribulation,

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you promise to deliver us from them all. As your Word says, you are faithful to all your promises.

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Dear listeners, if you do not know the Lord yet, why not surrender your life to Him? He will not

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disappoint you. Pray this short prayer with me. Lord Jesus, I admit I'm a sinner. Forgive my sins

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and cleanse me. Come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen.

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You know, friends, there are widows and orphans all over the world who need to experience the

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tangible expression of God's love right now. Last year, we were able to help two young men in Texas

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who lost both parents to remain together in their family home by helping with repairs after it was

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flooded during a storm. We also assisted a widow and her two children who were displaced by violence

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in the Middle East. They were looking for a new apartment with a bomb shelter for safety. Many,

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many widows and orphans have special needs that we as a company of women can meet together.

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Would you consider joining us with a special gift to help? Go to hergodstory.org and click on the

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widow and orphan tab at the top of the page. And thank you for tuning in. In our show notes at

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hergodstory.org, you'll find scriptures and other information we talked about. And remember, I'd love

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to hear from you. So please email me at hergodstory at somebodycares.org. If you'd like a free six

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week devotional on Women of the Bible, you can download that at hergodstory.org or purchase a

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12 week devotional that we'll send you for just $12, knowing that all the proceeds go to our widow

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and orphan fund. We'd also love to pray with you on our 24 seven prayer and text line. Give us a

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call anytime at 855-459-CARE or email us at prayer at somebodycares.org. And now dear friends, I

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bless you from Psalm 20:1-5 in the New Living Translation. In times of trouble,

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may the Lord answer your cry. May the name of the God of Jacob help keep you safe from all harm.

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May he send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem. May he remember

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all your gifts and look favorably on your offerings. May he grant you your heart's desire and make all

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your plans succeed. May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and raise a victory banner

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in the name of our God. May the Lord answer all your prayers. Her God Story is a ministry of

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Somebody Cares America and International. To find out more about or support the ministry,

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go to somebodycares.org.