The second time cancer came around, I read a question in a cancer support group and it was this.

“Do you want to live?”

At first glance it sounded almost offensive. What do you mean, do I want to live? And then you drill down and let the introduction question settle a bit.

Yes. I wanted to live. Moving past the irritation of the obvious, the point was, to heal, you needed to make a choice about that question. Because it was the foundation for every decision afterwards to have the courage and determination to move forward, regardless of the choices ahead.

Fearful? Yep. Feeling alone in the choices because others wouldn’t understand (especially my medical providers)? Yes. Overwhelmed about what to do next? For sure. It was hard. And worth everything for my personal journey. It gave me hope.

One day at a time. One choice, prayer, decision, action at a time. What to accept medically and what to embrace naturally. I began making choices because I wanted to live. Information landed in my hands (literally) when I needed direction. God heard my cries for help about how to live, whether I would find physical healing on this earth, or he took me home. Which he will, someday.

To put it another way, I was the person who had to live with the choices I made.

For me it was the trauma of the return of aggressive cancer that drove the question home.

What might it be for you?

Eventually the question turns into our worldview about eternity.

Do you want to live for eternity in heaven? The question was the foundation for the choice I made around seven years of age to ask God to “forgive me, a sinner”. Just like someone handed me books with information to make a different physical healing choice thirteen years ago, when I was little someone opened a book and shared God’s Word with me about spiritual life and spiritual death.

In both cases I had to embrace the question, understand the book, and make a personal choice. “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:22

So, friend, today, do you want to live? How does the way you answer that question shape your worldview and actions today? May the question perhaps point you and others towards a healthier life while you journey through this world, and vibrant life in Christ for eternity.

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Sharon O’Connor is a two-time colon cancer survivor (NED since 2013). Illness, decisions, treatment, and recovery convinced Sharon the only thing stronger than fear is hope. Sharon continues following Hope, gratefully.