Alli's Mountain Shout #crushedit #listenup

One time, one of my closest friends went to the doctor for a sore throat and they called her later that day and said, 

"psych! It's leukemia." 

Ok, it didn't go down exactly like that but geez it was pretty close and just as unexpectedly. As I'm writing about this, she just finished up a week of chemo and she's now officially planning for a bone marrow transplant in about a month or so.  That quickly.  Isn't that just "punch ya in the crotch, spit on your neck fantastic?" (thanks Rachel Green for that little gem). 

Of course, because it's Alli, she has turned this into pure fuel to live out her purpose. Before all of this happened, I heard her say so often that what she longed to do with her life was so simple: to meet with one person at a time and just LISTEN to them face-to-face; to INVEST in them; to LOVE them. All of them, one at a time and collectively. To dig in the hard soil of building up relationships as slowly as they need to be built. To listen just as intently to a person she may never see again as she does to me. 

bring...comfort...proclaim

This. 

This cancer. 

This leukemia...

Alli has decided, THIS is what God is using (not causing) in order to achieve this desired purpose in her life right now.  She has turned her pain into a platform for GOD'S glory. It's as if she's standing on a mountain called "whatever it takes" and she's shouting to each person she encounters, "God loves you, I am his ears...speak to me." A mountain that never would have arrived in such a dramatic way if not for leukemia, a mountain that she has decided to be thankful for and not waste a second of climbing.

  

Is she real life?  No one can say what they would do in this situation, but it's worth pointing out that she has CHOSEN to look at the mountain that has suddenly appeared on her straight and narrow road and without missing a step say, 

"I'm gonna climb this willingly, joyfully. Mountain, you may have set out to destroy me, but with your soil beneath my nails, and dusty sweat on my brow, I'm going to USE every piece of you as the Good Lord makes you submit to His purpose in my life. You thought you were my enemy but you've become my ally and there's not a thing you can do about it." 

All that know her aren't necessarily surprised that that's her heart, but what people want to do and what they actually do sometimes end up being two very different things. 

(*cough*Courtney Hutchinson*cough*)  

It's the human condition. But Allison Kays doesn't live conditionally.  She lives spiritually.  As in GOD'S HOLY SPIRIT is living inside of her. She's aware that some days will be a lot harder than others and she's also taking this time to rest. There are a lot of ways you can fight resting, even in pain and even when you can't move...but she's doing it on purpose because rest doesn't have to mean passive inactivity.  Rest sort of looks like climbing a mountain while you're lying in a hospital bed. Rest is work.

God taught me so much about mountains over the past year (which you can read about here, Mountain Mama: At the Base of an Unexpected Mountain ).  I was an actual mountain mover and the verse Matthew 17:20 suddenly became real to me. But, I think I began to think that all mountains were placed in front of us to be moved. 

Through Jesus and Alli, I'm starting to understand that mountains don't always equal bad, it's more about seeing the mountain and being obedient to the still, small voice within us. Sometimes God calls us to tell the mountains in our lives to move. Sometimes He calls us to set up camp at the bottom and wait. Yet other times He calls us to hike to the top with the equipment He's placed in our backpacks and proclaim the good news along the way, then from the top.  I moved my mountain; Alli is climbing hers. 

I guess sometimes God needs us to be elevated 

so that people take notice when we speak.  

When everyone is looking at US, 

we need to be looking at HIM. 

It reminds me of one of my favorite sermons from my Pastor (Steve  Wayne at Celebration Church in Huntington) titled: The Prisoners Are Listening--see Acts 16 surrounding verse 25.

Paul and Silas were chained up in prison--shackled and tortured.  Yet they were praying aloud and singing hymns to God (in all of that pain and fear) and it says that the other prisoners were listening to them.  Suddenly there was an earthquake and guess what happened?  The very foundation of what they stood on was shaken.  Did you hear that?  The prisoners' foundations were shaken. Then, their chains "came loose" and the door to their prison cells were opened.  Unexpectedly.  Just from HEARING other people sing praises to God and pray in the midst of extreme adversity.  The very adversity they suffered within.  

Paul and Silas stood on their mountain top 
--while immobile and imprisoned--

and sang back to God what 
they knew to be true about Him.
What He Himself has told them.

They prayerfully sang truth to Truth. 

They prayerfully sang that truth 

in the presence of the prisoners around them. 

And it changed everything.  It's what Alli is doing. She won't waste the time in this hard place. She'll sing truth to Truth and those around her will hear.  Whatever it takes to proclaim His name, to be His ears, to climb this mountain in His strength...she's in.  God wastes nothing--nothing in your past, nothing in your pain, nothing in your current circumstances.  My sister with leukemia is taking the sting out of it by refusing to bow down to it.  She's using it to speak the Truth of God to those who she encounters in this unexpected rest.  She will rise out of its ashes, of that I'm sure. How do I know this?

Because 1 Corinthians 15 says to THANK GOD because HE GIVES us victory OVER DEATH through Our Lord Jesus Christ.  Praise God. It is finished. 

This is the end of my blog and below, I'm going to give you a typed out version of Allison's #listenup challenge: 

I’ve really been praying that none of my experience here is wasted. I do not like to be the center of attention; it’s not comfortable for me when people have such beautiful, amazing, wonderful things to say about me--I just don’t know what to do with it.  I’m so much more comfortable turning the spotlight on God instead.

My passion in life, what my heart aches to do, is to spend one-on-one time with people and just listen.  I know how important it is because I have been blessed so much through counseling, myself. I know how much having a listener one-on-one can do for your heart when you just want to be heard.  It’s what I would be doing out there if I weren’t in here, so I finally have an answer for:

 “What can we do?

We want a job.

We want to help.”

God gave me an answer to your question last night during my devotion and prayer time.  I was in James 1:19 where it says,

“you must all be

 quick to listen,

slow to speak and

slow to get angry”

If you want to help me, here is how (a.k.a. your homework):

At some point in your day, take time – even if it’s 30 seconds– to listen, to really listen, to another human being. Slow things down, ask them how they’re doing and then really listen to the answer.  Can you listen up…for me?

Because everyone has something hard they’re going through

and everybody matters.

I talk to every person who comes in this hospital room because it takes the scary part out of all of this, but also because it makes me realize that the doctor or nurse or member of the housekeeping team I’m speaking to is A PERSON. I don’t want to know them as their title in this hospital; it helps my heart to connect with them. To realize that we’re all people first -- they just happen to be on the other side of this thing.

That’s what I’m asking you to do for me, while I’m in here and I would love it if you would hashtag it #listenup when you talk about it on social media.

I want you guys to #listenup.

There are people all around you that need to be heard.  

Even if you can’t do anything about what they’re telling you.

Even if you can’t fix one single thing about it, it’s ok.

Just listen.

Pray for that person.

Give it to the Lord.

And walk away knowing

 that what you’ve done is holy work.

I promise you it is holy work.  There is nothing that would make my heart happier than to know y’all have been doing the work that I can’t do right now from this hospital room.  I would REALLY love to see you hashtag #listenup and let me know that you’ve done your homework.

I think that you’ll find that it will change your heart; it’ll change the way you live your life and the way that you interact with the people around you.

There is nothing that we can do to change the vast majority of the hurt in people’s lives, but it’s there so just see if you can find it.  Sometimes like the infection in a wound that needs cleaned out, the infection that is just sitting there stagnant, it just needs to be released.  To get out.

So, I’m going to trust you guys to do that mostly because God told me to tell you that; to give you THAT specific answer when you ask, “what can I do?” It’s the BEST thing you could do for me right now because I want to see God get glory and see lives changed in His name because you STOPPED to do this.

Our world is so fast, and attention is at a premium, which is why commercials are so valuable.  They get you for 30 seconds and that’s a big deal, so take 30 seconds of your life and give it to somebody else. 

Look for the hurt and bear that burden with them.

Look for the joy and celebrate with them.

Even if you don’t know the person you’re listening to--it could be a cashier at a gas station or the person working the drive thru at McDonald’s—just #listenup.

I’m hopeful for y’all. I love each and every one of you and truly hope that you know how much I miss you. But rest asssured that God is doing something holy in room 5917, in my heart, and with you guys too. I just know it.

I’m not worried.

Ok…I’m a little bit worried. 

I’m not looking forward to the side effects that are coming, BUT for right now, I’m healthy and I feel good so I’m going to scoop up that joy and just celebrate today. You guys can celebrate with me.

My good friend Jennifer Bowen said, “combat comes before victory,” so I know I have to fight. I know.  I also know that victory is on the other side of this.

I love you guys so much and I could not do this without you. When you think about me and are tempted to worry, just remember your homework: #listenup and then tell the world.