She died Friday. Doctors discovered her cancer after she got pregnant; Conner is now two months old and is fine. Her WBTV memorial page is HERE. Ten days ago, she wrote this:
I woke this morning to a peace I have not felt since my cancer diagnosis four months ago. God has been tugging at my heart all morning long, and I can't go another hour without sharing what I read in my devotional last night...
I'm learning to do what Peter did not do at that particular moment in the Bible...my negativity is now in full remission...
It is amazing how it took a cancer diagnosis to make me appreciate the good in others, to appreciate the people in my life, and to appreciate myself. It is all apart of God's will. Although it may not make sense to you, but it does to me: in many ways...God has used this cancer to restore in me what sin in my past life took away.
It broke my heart to hear about Melissa's passing when you mentioned it this morning as I was getting my children ready for school. I knew Melissa from my days working with her at WBTV... often we would talk about the Lord... she truly was a "light". I recall a story I heard from one of my former colleagues... when the WBTV Station Manager where she worked, went to see her after she was diagnosed, hoping to offer her a bit of encouragement, Melissa was the one doing the 'uplifting' and it was the station manager who walked away encouraged because Melissa knew her Lord and wasn't afraid to let others know what she knew to be true. This told to me by someone who is not a believer. I am hoping and believing that all those who knew her that are "not" believers are taking the time to think a little longer about their own lives and where they might be going when it's all over. Melissa... you will be greatly missed! Your smile and joy indelibly etched in my heart. Your Brother In Christ, Rowland
Posted by: Rowland Bestwina | Monday, April 23, 2007 at 09:14 AM