My Faith Story

 By Nicole Folsom

            I have a lot of faith in God because of my mother and what He has done for her.

            When I was ten years old, my mother was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the blood.  I remember the day that she told us. It was on a Sunday.  My mom, sister, and I were all sitting together at church.  My mom went up to the altar rail to receive a prayer for healing. We could tell she was crying, and not just a few tears, but crying hard. Seeing that made my older sister cry, which, of course, made me cry. When my mom came back, she tried to calm us down.

            After stopping at the Subway sandwich shop, we went home where my older brother was waiting. We all sat down and ate. We could tell that my parents were going to tell us something. My parents held hands as they told us the news about my mom’s cancer.  I remember sitting there in shock.  Being only ten years old, I didn’t really know how to react.

At first I wasn’t even crying, though everyone around me was. Then I cried very, very hard.

            Luckily, the cancer was caught early so the treatment didn’t have to be harsh.  Now, thankfully, she is in remission.

            During that time I remember praying to God unceasingly, “Please, please don’t take my mom away.”  I wanted my mom to see me off to my first day of middle school, which she did, and to my first day of high school which she also did. I wanted her to be there for me while being a teenager since there is so much to handle.  I wanted her to help me get ready for homecoming.

            I constantly thank God for healing my mom.  My mom is my inspiration and my rock. She has sacrificed a lot for me including doing a less harsh cancer treatment so I wouldn’t see her go through the side effects of chemotherapy. She has always wanted me to have faith in God, and thanks to her I do. She’s defeated many obstacles in her life including cancer, and because of that, I will always look up to her.