{"id":7511,"date":"2017-04-26T06:11:07","date_gmt":"2017-04-26T06:11:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/?p=7511"},"modified":"2017-04-24T14:21:31","modified_gmt":"2017-04-24T14:21:31","slug":"imagine-if-we-did-not-have-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/friends-of-cvm\/imagine-if-we-did-not-have-jesus\/","title":{"rendered":"Imagine if we did not have Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Just recently I was given the news that I had Metastatic Oesophageal cancer with a shortened life expectancy of 9 months.<\/p>\n<p>Although the consultant was looking directly at me for one brief moment, I had to check myself from turning around to see if she was talking to someone else.<\/p>\n<p>In the weeks and months to come I will have to undergo both radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This is to give me a better quality of life.<\/p>\n<p>I believe that at some point in each one of our own lives we will undergo tests and trials this is order to form our own character.<\/p>\n<p>In Romans 5: 3-5<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><em>\u201cNot only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Just imagine if we did not have Jesus! &#8230;..That thought sends shivers down my spine.<\/p>\n<p>We truly would have No hope and the future would hold only death but we do have Jesus and that changes everything we have life and the guarantee of eternal life.<\/p>\n<p>I have been humbled by the support I have received both practical and prayer.<\/p>\n<p>I know that when God called me to <em>&#8220;Step into the breech and reach out to those who are suffering from gambling&#8221;<\/em> that I have given it a go and tried my best.<br \/>\nI am by No means ready to give up or throw in the towel.<\/p>\n<p>2 Timothy 1:7<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201c[I] have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Blessings and love,<\/p>\n<p>Ian<\/p>\n<div class=\"linkwithin_hook\" id=\"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/friends-of-cvm\/imagine-if-we-did-not-have-jesus\/\"><\/div><script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png?w=750\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Just recently I was given the news that I had Metastatic Oesophageal cancer with a shortened life expectancy of 9 months. Although the consultant was looking directly at me for one brief moment, I had to check myself from turning around to see if she was talking to someone else. In the weeks and months [&hellip;]<\/p>\n<script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":7515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1270,1393,599,101,110,945,1394,1395,909],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/NO-JESUS.png?fit=565%2C350&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7PoLK-1X9","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7896,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/top-ten-memory-verses-pt-2-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":0},"title":"Top Ten Memory Verses (Pt 2\/10)","date":"6 March 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"We're back - and it is time for another bible memory verse to wrestle with. This one I am sure you have heard before but what's it all about? Let's see if we can take this verse into the week and commit it to memory. 09: Consider it pure joy,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Team CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/memory-verses.png?fit=565%2C350&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2268,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/the-welford\/pig-food\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":1},"title":"Pig Food","date":"15 February 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"On Saturday's CVM Men's Day in Scarborough, Nick Welford modelled transparency, honesty and integrity in his final challenge. He had never shared this story before the event. Sometimes things must come out into the light.\u00a0When I was a young teenager I was at a church event. The family of one\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Welford&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7663,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/friends-of-cvm\/never-underestimate-the-power-of-prayer\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":2},"title":"Never underestimate the power of prayer!","date":"13 July 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Well, what an incredible journey that Pam (my wife) and I have been on. To be told only 3 months ago that I should basically prepare for my own funeral as I was given a 9-month shortened life expectancy was a shock. With the diagnosis of oesophageal cancer, the best\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Friends of CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/prayer-power.png?fit=565%2C350&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8194,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/50plus\/yes-im-an-evangelist\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":3},"title":"Yes I\u2019m an Evangelist.","date":"31 October 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Evangelism - or telling a story! Life came to a shuddering halt; July 2016 two heart attacks; and life as it was known stopped almost dead in its tracks. Over the course of the next year and three operations I had nine stents inserted into my heart. Stents reopen and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;50 Plus&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/evangelism.jpg?fit=600%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8072,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/finding-the-narrow-path-pt-1-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":4},"title":"Finding the Narrow Path (Pt 1\/2)","date":"7 August 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"It had been a particularly tough first few months of the year. My wife and I had become increasingly aware that our son was not going to make it into mainstream school. We sat in a number of education healthcare planning meetings, listening to one missed target after another. As\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Team CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/welsh-bible.jpg?fit=600%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5848,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/50plus\/lessons-from-backgammon\/","url_meta":{"origin":7511,"position":5},"title":"Lessons from Backgammon","date":"19 February 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I went on a mission grip to Turkey a few years ago where I noticed many of the men sitting playing backgammon. I noticed similar trends in other countries on previous travels and had always wondered how to play the game. When I got back to the UK I decided\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;50 Plus&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7511"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/58"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7511"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7511\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7516,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7511\/revisions\/7516"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}