Jonathan’s Journey with Brain Cancer
The Call That Changed Everything
By Aimee from CaringBridge Post (October 18, 2024)
On Friday morning at 7:30 AM, Jon called me from Oak Grove Church, where he plays in a weekly “wake-up” basketball league. His voice was calm, but I knew something was wrong. He had just experienced a seizure (localized in his face) and needed me to come get him. The men he was with had already called 911 and stayed by his side until help arrived.
He was stable enough to be released, as long as I took him to the ER. We drove to Maple Grove Hospital, where they performed an MRI. The wait felt long and heavy. During that time, Jon shared that he had been experiencing strange eye movements for the past two weeks, something we hadn’t fully understood until that moment.
A few hours later, the results came back: multiple brain tumors. That was the beginning of a journey we never expected to take.
They arranged for Jon to be transferred to North Memorial, where he stayed overnight so the neuro team could evaluate him. In the middle of fear and confusion, Jon kept listening to Goodness of God by CeCe Winans. When I returned to the hospital, I joined him. Even in that moment, we clung to the truth of God’s goodness, the same truth that had always carried us.
A Sudden Shift
The next day brought a whirlwind of tests and conversations. By afternoon, a neurosurgeon’s PA explained the plan: a craniotomy to remove the largest mass and send it for pathology.
We sat there trying to process everything. Jon, in that moment, shared a story about a pastor he knew who had faced serious illness and had been challenged in his faith. Jon said, “I don’t just trust God to heal me… I trust God, period.”
Just minutes later, the plan changed.
After consulting with the head of neurosurgery, they believed the mass might be a cyst, not a tumor. Surgery was canceled. Jon could go home and return in a month for follow-up imaging.
It was an incredible shift.
That same weekend, Jon’s mom shared something that still moves me. She had woken up in the middle of the night days earlier and felt led to pray specifically, “Please don’t take Jonathan from us.” She didn’t know why until she received our call.
God was already moving.
The Waiting Game
We waited.
A month later, another MRI showed no new concerns. We were referred to neurology for seizure management. Over the next few months, Jon underwent more testing, MRIs, EEGs, a spinal tap, all of which came back clear. Still, the seizures continued.
We adjusted. Life became manageable in a new way. Jon couldn’t drive, but we found a rhythm. Our oldest began helping more. We adapted to what was in front of us.
But something still didn’t feel settled.
The Pivot
May 12, 2025
At a routine neurology appointment, everything changed again.
The doctor reviewed Jon’s MRI and shifted her concern away from the cyst, which had nearly disappeared, to other abnormal areas in his brain. She told us her clinic could no longer treat him and referred us to Mayo Clinic.
It was a hard moment. Just minutes earlier, we had been talking about how we felt okay with the current plan. And suddenly, we were being told we needed advanced care.
We walked out of that appointment in shock.
And yet, in the middle of it, I felt something unexpected: peace.
God was still with us. I knew it.
Journey to Mayo
May 15–16, 2025
Three days later, Mayo called. What we thought might take weeks happened overnight. They scheduled us for the very next morning.
After months of waiting, we were finally moving forward.
We met with our care team, and for the first time, things began to make more sense. They recommended a biopsy to better understand what we were dealing with.
The Biopsy
May 19, 2025
We arrived the night before and prepared for surgery. The kids stayed home and handled it with incredible strength.
The morning of the biopsy, a hospital chaplain stopped by. He had connections to people we knew, and suddenly the world felt smaller. More personal. More intentional.
The procedure went smoothly.
During our stay, friends shared a passage from the Book of Daniel, the story of the fiery furnace. One line stood out:
“I see four men walking in the fire… and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
We knew, without a doubt, that the fourth man, Jesus, was with us in that room.
The Fourth Man
June 18, 2025
A seizure that morning brought both of us to tears. We felt the weight of everything: loss of health, independence, and normalcy.
Later that day, I went for a walk, desperate to hear from God. My heart felt like it was breaking under the weight of fear and uncertainty.
I prayed, asking God to reveal the lie I was believing.
And I heard:
“You believe this cannot be defeated.”
In that exact moment, a friend appeared on the trail, someone I rarely see there. She had changed her plans and felt led to walk.
God knew I needed reassurance.
The Gut Punch
June 30, 2025
At 11 AM, Jon received a video call with the final pathology results:
Glioblastoma.
It was devastating. Just weeks earlier, we believed it was low-grade. Before that, a cyst. Now, everything changed again.
The treatment plan shifted radiation and chemotherapy immediately, starting within days.
We were overwhelmed. Heartbroken. Trying to process something that didn’t feel real.
But even in that moment, we clung to what we knew:
Jesus was still with us.
And then the community came.
People showed up. Prayed. Brought meals. Sent messages. Sat with us. Cried with us.
We were not alone.
Time Reveals
July 3, 2025
Another appointment brought another shift.
Our neuro-oncologist explained that Jon’s case was unique. His tumor showed only one of the typical markers, and there had been no progression since October.
Because of this, the team reconsidered the treatment plan. Instead of doing everything at once, they chose to separate treatments, protecting Jon’s immune system and allowing for a more strategic approach. What once felt like lost time suddenly felt purposeful.
God had been working, even in the waiting.
God Is in the Story
From the beginning, we’ve told our kids:
God is in the story.
And we’ve seen it again and again.
In the timing.
In the people.
In the unexpected shifts.
In the peace that doesn’t make sense.
We are facing glioblastoma. It’s heavy. It’s scary. But we are not walking this road alone.
We are holding both grief and gratitude.
Fear and faith.
Tension and trust.
Doctors help guide the journey, but they are not the authors of our story.
Jesus is.
And we are believing for a miracle.
Scriptures That Have Anchored Us
“You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds, O God our Savior. You are the hope of everyone on earth.” -Psalm 65:1
“You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance.” -Psalm 65:11
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” -2 Corinthians 12:9
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” -Romans 8:18
“The Spirit helps us in our weakness… and in all things God works for the good of those who love him.” -Romans 8:26–28
“You have collected all my tears in your bottle.” -Psalm 56:8
“Do not fear, for I am with you… I will strengthen you and help you.” -Isaiah 41:10
