God has a Good 'Plan B'

Yesterday marked the sixteenth anniversary of my becoming a widow. My late husband had been diagnosed with cancer. He had taken the traditional medicinal route, and the treatment that was supposed to keep him free of cancer ended up killing him. I will never forget that day. I was 42 years old at the time. Interestingly enough, I had just heard an inspiring message entitled “God has a Plan B”. This went totally against my personal belief system. You see, I thought that God had Plan A, and if you were consistent and worked through the plan, then you would always stay in His Perfect Plan I had been taught about the ‘perfect will of God’, and the ‘permissive will of God.’ The ‘permissive’ was less desired because it contained detours

However, I liked the missionary who was speaking, and while I did not understand the significance of her talk at the time, the title of her talk was imbedded in my brain. I will tell you that within two months of my going to that meeting, my husband died. Even through the pain of death, I could not accept Plan B.

I had been studying holistic health as a hobby at the time of the diagnosis, but I did not know enough to work through the ‘standard of care’ protocols. The Bible says “My people perish for lack of knowledge.” Hosea 4:6 Had we had any options, we might have made different choices. We did the best we could with what we knew at the time.

Romans 8:28 states that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Though his death was tragic, the pain pushed me to know more about the body’s innate ability to heal itself. Through the ensuing sixteen years, I have used the pain to press through studies both in the US and internationally in order to be fully prepared to lend a hand to those who find themselves in the same position I was sixteen years ago: wanting a viable option to ‘standard of care’, but not knowing where to turn. The pain has been a catalyst for knowledge. The knowledge has led to clinical results.

Sixteen years later, I have remarried, and my current husband supports the work I do unconditionally. He is my partner in the clinic that we own, and while he does not occupy a clinical role, without him, we could not touch the lives that we do.

I am still in contact with the woman who spoke at that meeting. I have told her and I can tell you. God does have a Plan B. My theology has been messed up. It is still hard for me to believe that a Perfect God can have more than one plan for my life. I mean, perfection means getting it right the first time. My life script called for me to marry once, and to celebrate a 50th Anniversary. Divorce was never an option, and though I said the words “Till death us do part,” death was not part of the script. Many times during those initial days, I had to remind myself: I had not died; there must be a plan for my life. Over and over “God has Plan B” cycled through my brain.

Today, sixteen years later, I know the truth of the above mentioned scriptures. God does have a Plan B, and He does cause all things to work together for our good.

Until next time,

Dr. Polly

  • Linda Hill says:

    Thank you for sharing this, Polly. Very, very inspiring & I needed to read this.

  • judith Ditrich says:

    I am so glad God made you a part of His plan for my life. Even your words of wisdom bring healing to our souls. Thank you for all you do for His glory and the good of His people. May His blessings be upon you.

  • Lance Ivey says:

    Dr. Heil-Mealey, I was referred to you by pastor friends of mine in Winnie, TX. They mentioned a teaching or recording you had on sleep benefits/habits, along the line of own the night to take the day. Do you know how or where I can obtain a copy of that information? Thank you.

    Lance Ivey