One of the most meaningful parts of writing Turn Your Fear into Fuel has been getting a chance to connect with real people and hear their stories of struggle, strife, and the ability to overcome.

Today’s very personal story from the “Share Your Story” campaign comes from Kevin Mohler. I hope you’ll read it and be as inspired as I was by the words he shared. 

“I was designing a custom ring for my then-girlfriend, Julie, to propose. She lived four hours north of me in Birmingham, Alabama, and we visited each other every weekend. I would drive up one weekend; the next, she would drive down. She had moved there to care for her mom during her second battle with breast cancer, as her father often traveled for work.

I was running multiple companies, including opening a center for kids with special needs. Julie was to be the Director of Occupational Therapy. During the same period, my own mother, who had undergone over twenty surgeries in my lifetime, needed a second brain surgery, so my soon-to-be fiancé and I flew to Colorado to be with her.

After a few days, Julie flew back to Birmingham to return to work and to help her mom through her breast cancer treatment. While I was standing in a hotel lobby, Julie’s mom called, crying hysterically. She had found her husband, passed away from a heart attack.”

Children who grow up to care for their parents have such a heart of service for others. Even while you’re trying to maintain your own long-distance relationship, you’re staying focused on family and how you can be there for everyone else. It’s really a testament to your character and sense of devotion. 

“A week after the funeral, Julie and I took a trip to the beach. She got sunburned and fell ill. She was diagnosed with Lupus, an autoimmune disease. Her health declined rapidly, and despite numerous treatments, specialists said they could only slow her inevitable death.

We married during this time. I recall a specialist who told me, “You’re young; you’ll remarry.” 

“Julie went into kidney failure but was denied a transplant due to her condition. She weighed less than 100 pounds. We were also told that it was impossible for her to get pregnant, and that even if she did get pregnant, the child’s heart would never form properly. 

I had heard of a cancer center in Tijuana, Mexico, that had successfully treated terminal cancer patients. They had also treated some Lupus patients, though with uncertain success.

One evening, I came home early and found Julie in intense pain, lying on the tile floor, trying to blow-dry her hair after a shower. She had blood coming out of her nose. She was skin and bones, thin as a pencil.” 

You know, sometimes when I hear people share stories similar to this one, I hear them get knocked down so many times. You experienced so much illness, so much turbulence in your lives, and even an unexpected death. Then a terminal diagnosis on top of it all. What I don’t hear in your story is that you were ever ready to quit, no matter how bleak it may have gotten. 

“The next day, I prayed about taking her to Mexico for treatment. I felt a sense of overwhelming faith, and God spoke to me, stating that Julie would be healed and that we would have a child. This communication did not come with any instructions though, so the only thing I thought I could do, in fact, was book an appointment.”

Not everyone is spoken to as directly as you were. I imagine it would have taken a tremendous act of faith on your part to overcome that fear to take that next step, even when you’ve been spoken to. This is the moment of a lifetime; the one where fear either holds you back and you never find out, or faith motivates you and you change the course of the rest of your entire lives.

“We spent 36 days in the hospital in Mexico. Julie’s kidneys began functioning normally without medication. We returned several times for further treatment and even journeyed once to the country of Panama.

After returning from Panama, Julie was able to start training for a half-marathon. Later, she became pregnant despite medical predictions that it was impossible. Our son was born healthy, which we consider a miracle.”

I am certain that if you look back now, all this seems like an answer to a prayer, but none of it would have been possible without your ability to act despite your overwhelming fear. And Julie’s ability to act seems quite strong as well. A half-marathon on the other side of this previously terminal illness? She summoned up the will to reach her goals of having a happy, healthy family, and being happy and healthy herself, and then she went for it. 

“Today, my wife is the Clinical Director of our special needs center and a stellar mother to our almost 4-year-old son, DJ. I have the autism center, a foundation for kids with special needs, a decentralized finance agency, and two men’s ministries. We live on a homestead farm in South Alabama. God is good!”

Reflections

This is an extraordinary story. It asks us all to evaluate our relationship with our own mortality and weigh it against our commitment to and desire for vitality. It never fails to inspire me to learn what other people are able to overcome, even when it flies in the face of modern medicine.

From Kevin’s story, we can learn:

• A service-centered mindset can keep our compass oriented on what’s truly important in life.
• Faith in miracles can pave the way for them to happen.
• Acting despite overwhelming fear is the only way to find out what’s truly possible.

To Kevin: Thank you for sharing a story from such a vulnerable point in both your lives and for all the selfless work you continue to do in the many lives of those around you.

Find Turn Your Fear into Fuel on Amazon today!