In the Pink – Mary J Nelson

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.
—John 10:10

Almost everyone knows the significance of pink ribbons. It all started in 1992 when Evelyn Lauder and her husband, an executive for the Estee Lauder cosmetics company, largely financed the distribution of little bows given to women at department store makeup counters to remind them about breast cancer. That effort grew into pink fundraising products, everything from pink Bibles to pink kitchen appliances, congressional designation of October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and millions of dollars in donations to breast cancer care and research. Susan G. Komen for the Cure® was formed ten years earlier and has grown into the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world, having invested more than $1.9 billion to the cause of saving lives and finding cures. The campaign against breast cancer has expanded to nearly every facet of society. Even professional sports teams and players have collaborated with various fund raising initiatives and shown their support through pink shoes, pink cleats, pink caps, pink jerseys, helmet decals, pink balls, pink gloves, and pink wristbands.

I am profoundly grateful to the pioneers of this movement and to everyone who has organized or participated in any event dedicated to creating awareness and raising money for the fight against breast cancer. These efforts have been extremely important to the lives of all women. As a survivor, I have participated in these events myself many times. But, I have to admit I have mixed emotions when I see pink in virtually every place I shop, and everywhere I look. Sometimes the commercialism bothers me. Every business has figured out how to jump on the pink bandwagon and make a profit off of breast cancer by sharing a small portion of their profit with the good cause of fighting it. I’d feel better buying a pink toaster or a furnace cleaning and knowing that 100 percent of the profit went to the cause. I actually find the color pink to be a bit unsettling. It reminds me of “in the pink” a phrase that originally referred to “in the best possible health.” The bottom line is that breast cancer is not a “pink experience.” In fact, without the Lord carrying me through it, it would have been very much the opposite!

There’s a part of me that wonders if all this pink gives a little more glory to Satan than he deserves. Satan, the author of sickness and disease, is the mastermind behind breast cancer. I wonder if he sits back embracing all the pink and takes pride in the pain and suffering He has caused the women in this world. He attacks them at the very core of their femininity. His goal is to steal from them, kill them, and destroy them. This was never God’s plan for His beloved daughters. In the Garden of Eden, man and woman were created to live forever in paradise with no sickness or disease. But God loved us so much that He gave us free choice to follow Him. Unfortunately, Adam and Eve chose poorly. Sin came into the world with the fall, and along with it, cancer. But Jesus came to restore what Satan stole and give us a life of abundance. He died and conquered death and disease once and for all (Isaiah 53:4-5). He gave us the Holy Spirit as a down payment on our future glory (Romans 8:19-23)!

We can run our races and buy pink products, but let’s make sure to focus our hearts on the healing work of Jesus, and not on the destructive work of the enemy. Instead of telling the world how big our problem is, let’s tell the world how big our Jesus is. We will never find a complete solution exclusively through human efforts. We will never find a complete solution apart from Christ. In Him, we are truly “in the pink.”

Father, thank you for the efforts of countless people who have fought the earthly battle against cancer. Help me to proclaim and celebrate your final victory over Satan and his destructive work. Amen.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply