Elise never imagined cancer would be part of her story. But as she walks through this unexpected journey, she’s seeing God work in ways she never could have predicted—especially in the hearts of her friends who aren’t believers.

Even before she became a global worker with Encompass, Elise has spent much of her life sharing the gospel with others. Some of her closest childhood friends never decided to follow Jesus, but after being diagnosed with cancer, some of them started reaching out in ways Elise never expected.

One of those friends is Marie* who is a very pragmatic scientist. She had always been upfront about her disbelief, but recently she told Elise, “I don’t believe in God, but I realize He actually always existed for me, through you.” She also told Elise about a conversation she had with her six-year-old son. When he asked her about life and death, Marie’s response was, “Well, we’re made of particles, you know, and at some point we’ll just go back to being dust.” She went on to tell Elise, “But you—you have different answers.”

Another example comes from a married couple, Caroline* and Alain.* Caroline technically doesn’t believe in God and hasn’t prayed for the past 18 years or so, and Alain is a quantum physics researcher, who believes everything can be explained by science. But one day, Alain sent Elise a text that completely caught her off guard: “I tried to pray for you. It probably wasn’t very good, but I hope it still counts.” Elise was pleasantly baffled. 

Another friend, Chloe,* asked Elise if she was mad about getting cancer. Elise answered, “I don’t understand it, and I’m frustrated about how it limits me—but I believe that God has a plan. I don’t necessarily always like his plan, but I do trust that it’s perfect.” Chloe said, “Well, I’m angry on your behalf about what’s happening to you, because you’re a good person. But I’m watching how you react, and I see that there’s another way of reacting that’s just different. It doesn’t make sense to me, but in your world, somehow it does because you have God.” In that same conversation, Chloe also said, “So I went into a church and I prayed for you because maybe that’s what makes sense in this situation. I guess we just need to trust God and his power.” Chloe also sent Elise a picture of her three-year-old lighting a candle in a church—that was their way of turning to God on Elise’s behalf. Elise says, “When I saw that picture, I just thought, ‘This is absolutely amazing.’”

For years, Elise had prayed for these friends, often feeling like their hearts were closed off to God. But now, through her own pain, she’s witnessing breakthroughs. “It’s just wild to me that all these people are turning to God in some sense since there just aren’t any other answers,” she says. 

In moments like these, Elise finds the strength to keep going, even on the hardest days. The side effects of treatment are grueling, and the limitations often feel overwhelming. “Do I wish I didn’t have cancer? Absolutely.” Elise says. “But I also feel like it’s a privilege to see how God is working through this.” 

Through it all, Elise has been learning to rest in God’s sovereignty. “Every time I ask Him what I should be doing, His answer is always the same: ‘Just be still, and watch what I’m doing.’” And in watching God, she’s seeing Him answer her prayers for her friends in ways she never imagined.

God, please continue living through Elise and making Yourself known to the least-reached through her.

*Names changed for privacy