The Hardest Post
Guideposts|October 2020
After my cancer diagnosis, I needed all the support and prayer I could get. So why was I having trouble asking for it?
SHARON MANGAS
The Hardest Post

4/9/2016, 11:21 a.m.

Dear friends, family and acquaintances, I got some news this week that threw my world out of orbit. I stopped and stared at the computer screen. Since being diagnosed with Stage I invasive ductal breast cancer a few days before, I’d been fretting about how to tell people outside my immediate family. Was Facebook really the best way to share the news? There wasn’t time for lots of phone calls. I’d considered e-mailing, but it was frustrating trying to compile all the addresses. With Facebook, I could reach more than a thousand friends at once, some I hadn’t spoken within years. I tapped at the keyboard: So send all your good thoughts, encouragement, prayers, jokes, meditations, favorite Bible verses, good karma and funny stories my way.

Wait, what if I got inundated with pity? That was the last thing I wanted. Once I posted my news, I’d have no control over people’s reactions to it and how those might make me feel. I just couldn’t bring myself to hit enter.

Denne historien er fra October 2020-utgaven av Guideposts.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra October 2020-utgaven av Guideposts.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA GUIDEPOSTSSe alt
In the Everyday
Guideposts

In the Everyday

Cooking, cleaning, breaking up the kids’ fights... If only I had a few minutes for myself!

time-read
3 mins  |
June/July 2024
Worst-Case Scenario?
Guideposts

Worst-Case Scenario?

I’d had nagging injuries before and always recovered. Why wasn’t I confident that I would get better this time?

time-read
6 mins  |
June/July 2024
Honor Thy Son
Guideposts

Honor Thy Son

I was a Marine officer, a lifer—or so I thought. Then came Patrick

time-read
7 mins  |
June/July 2024
Keeping It Real
Guideposts

Keeping It Real

In an age of social media, we're experiencing an epidemic of loneliness. Two friends who met online tell you how to grow an authentic connection

time-read
6 mins  |
June/July 2024
What You Wish For
Guideposts

What You Wish For

She never wanted to see her abusive father again

time-read
7 mins  |
June/July 2024
God's Pillow
Guideposts

God's Pillow

In 2016, the Soberanes Fire in Northern California was the costliest ever in the United States. It almost cost me my life, despite the promise I made to my wife

time-read
7 mins  |
June/July 2024
"I Heard You Praying"
Guideposts

"I Heard You Praying"

As a hospital chaplain, I had seen hopeless cases. But never one more seemingly hopeless than this

time-read
5 mins  |
June/July 2024
"I Love You, Dad!"
Guideposts

"I Love You, Dad!"

Some of your favorite GUIDEPOSTS writers share what they learned from their fathers

time-read
6 mins  |
June/July 2024
Harold and Me
Guideposts

Harold and Me

They’re nearly all gone now, the generation we call The Greatest.” This woman’s mission was to honor one of them

time-read
7 mins  |
June/July 2024
The Race Before Her
Guideposts

The Race Before Her

For this Olympic champion, success bred her greatest fear. How five verses set her free

time-read
9 mins  |
June/July 2024