A Big Announcement

"Never put a period where God has put a comma. God is Still Speaking." ~Gracie Allen

 

Before Sara passed away on Sept. 24 2011, one of the last things she said was, “I want people to continue learning, believing and trusting in God, as I have tried to be His disciple, BUT she said, it’s not about me, it’s about Him, that is the message I want people to hear.” Sara did not want us to put a period on this Choose Joy discipleship. The journey Sara walked had a purpose and that purpose did not have to end because she wasn’t physically with us.

In January of 2016 with the assistance of Mary Carver and Hachette publishing, we launched the book Choose Joy: Finding Hope and Purpose When Life Hurts. Sara’s discipleship and spirit lead words have continued to change lives! God is still speaking using Sara’s journey as an example to us.

   

Since the launch of the book 1.5 years ago, I have been blessed with speaking engagements; book signings and the ability to create choose joy items to sell as reminders of choosing joy. My family also set up the Choose Joy Sara Gitz Frankl Memorial Foundation so all the proceeds we receive can be provided in grants.

As Sara’s words and guidance…to be intentional in all things…kept running through my head, I continued to pray for an open mind and faithful feet for next steps with this discipleship. I have never felt equipped to be a writer (that was Sara’s gift) and am not at all comfortable being on camera, but I needed to step out in faith and follow a call.

So, the big announcement… On Sara’s heavenly birthday, September 24, 2017, the Choose Joy Foundation with the assistance of Positive Note Publishing, will be launching a Study Guide and DVD series to accompany the book. The Study Guide is titled Choose Joy: Finding Your Hope and Purpose When Life Hurts. It’s about digging in to the book and the lessons Sara gave us through her own life, and making it yours. It is a guide to finding your own hope and purpose when your life hurts.

   

This publishing journey that my family has been on since 2011 has been all about Him…trusting, being faithful and patient, and saying yes…and it has brought nothing but JOY. We love you Sara and look forward to this continued journey…using a comma…listening when God speaks and making it all about HIM.

If you are interested in assisting us in the launch of the study guide and DVD series, please send me an email at choosejoyfoundation@gmail.com.

Peace my friends…thanks for walking this journey with us!

Gitz 'n Jo -- Our Story

Greetings friends!

2017 has started out with a bang for me...And then in the blink of an eye...it's the middle of March!

As with most of the world, at the end of 2016 I started thinking about 2017...

What was going to be my "word" to focus on, and what goals did I have for Choose Joy? In 2016 as you know, we had a successful launched of the book Choose Joy: Finding Hope and Purpose When Life Hurts. The paperback version was set to release in 2017, but what was going to be next steps for keeping God's word and Sara's discipleship alive and moving forward?

As I was reflecting on all these questions, the word that came to me was Faithful!

The word is a reminder that the plans that I have for God's word and Choose Joy doesn't really matter...it's what God's plans are and I need to be faithful. 

Then in January, after scheduling all my annual wellness checks at the end of 2016, I received a message from my mammogram screening.  I needed to schedule a follow up mammogram and they wouldn't clear me until I did. My heart skipped, but I also knew that it wasn't unusual for people to get called back for a second screening.

After a second mammogram reading and ultrasound, I was informed that they saw something suspicious and wanted to schedule me for a follow up biopsy. The doctor reassured me that it was precautionary and possibly only a 1% chance it would be cancer. So, a followup appointment was scheduled to perform a biopsy.

Within 24 hours of the biopsy, I received the call we all dread! You have breast cancer! 

I won't bore you with all the details of the weeks that followed, other than I had surgery to remove the cancer and there has been lots of testing and Dr. visits to understand the treatment plan moving forward. This week I will have a port put in to begin 20 weeks of chemotherapy followed by 6 weeks of radiation.

My family and I are in a state of being overwhelmed and disbelief. Something we never dreamed we would be facing. We have no family history of breast cancer...and really...haven't we been through enough!

Then my sweet Sara's words flow through my mind and I surrender to the One who can bring me peace. I turn to gratitude that even though the next several months will be extremely difficult, the cancer was caught early.  Instead of facing a terminal cancer diagnosis, I am facing a process of healing so I don't have to face that terminal diagnosis.

As I continue 2017 I will continue to focus on being faithful and continue to honor the legacy of Sara 'Gitz' and be a disciple of God's message. I trust Him to lead me and know I will be able to Choose Joy by trusting Him to lead me. I will choose to be His disciple. 

I pray that you too are finding the JOY of God in your daily walk.