When Life Gets Hard: Little Daisy Merrick

For whatever reason, a number of family and friends have been going through rough times recently with physical health issues (concussion, stroke, difficult pregnancies, babies with complications), so it’s been on my mind a lot lately. You may have noticed it’s been on my mind since I’ve recently blogged twice about the topic (baby Katie Beth and Allison/Ashley), and I guess God wanted me to camp out on the subject a little longer because as of Saturday, I am sick again for the third time in three months, in addition to messing up my ankle, knee, and toe a month ago. I’m not one to get angry with God or question Him and his reasons for things (it’s just not my natural inclination), but it does make me sad that so many wonderful people are dealing with such hardships right now.

As I’ve been thinking about and praying for these people, God reminded me of Daisy Merrick and her family. From 2003-2007 I attended college at UCSB, and while there, I went to a church called Reality Carpinteria. It is a wonderful church with a God-fearing pastor, Britt Merrick. After I graduated, I stayed connected to friends who still live in Santa Barbara and attend Reality Carp, and I heard a couple of years back that Britt’s 5-year-old daughter, Daisy, had cancer. Since then, I have followed her blog off and on, and have been in prayer for her and the Merrick family. I hadn’t checked the blog in a while with all the craziness of our lives this last year, so I checked it again a few days ago. After two bouts with this cancer, the latest update posted four months ago says she is cancer free! Praise God! There have been so many people praying for this little girl around the world, and she is living proof that prayer is powerful and effective.

I posted below a poignant short video of her journey with cancer (the first time around, I believe). I also posted two longer videos (40 minutes each), which are worth watching if you have the time. They are two sermons by Britt about his reaction to Daisy’s cancer (and hard times in general), and they are very powerful and encouraging (particularly if you are dealing with something difficult right now). I hope these videos speak to your heart like they did mine:

Update- This post is out of date now; if you are looking for recent information on Daisy, click here: Daisy Merrick Updates

Daisy from Reality on Vimeo.

When My Heart Is Overwhelmed from Reality on Vimeo.

Britt Merrick – Struck Down But Not Destroyed from Reality on Vimeo.