Long Story Short

In December 2021, Nikki Healy’s cancer was getting worse…even after a year of aggressive treatment. Season 4 of Long Story Short picks up where Season 3 ended.

Steve Healy gives us a backstage pass to a storm that was intensifying during the first few months of 2022. You’ll hear about a very difficult family meeting, the day Nikki and Steve learned what the cancer was really doing, and a spur-of-the-moment vacation to the beach…Nikki’s happy place.

The Bible tells us to stand firm in our faith. How do you do that when your world is falling apart and there are more questions than answers? Season 4 of Long Story Short will take a hard look at this.

Thirteen hours after the last episode of Season Three was released, Nikki Healy’s battle with stage 4 rectal cancer ended. 

In this episode, we say goodbye. 

Nikki Healy is a young mother of three who agreed to document a year of treatment for stage 4 rectal cancer. That year comes to an end in this last episode of Season 3 as you’ll hear our final conversations during Fall 2021. Nikki’s courage is on display during our last call when she, almost casually, says “I don’t have much to complain about.”

Second Corinthians 12:9 tells us that God’s grace is sufficient. During this season of Long Story Short, we’ve also been working through the question, “Is God’s grace truly sufficient for one of life’s hardest challenges?” We’ll give Nikki the final word on this question at the end of the episode.

On January 21, 2020, Rachel Janous went to the hospital for blood tests before her next round of radiation treatment for stage 4 breast cancer. She never left. 

In the latest episode of the podcast Long Story Short, you’ll hear what happened during the following 39 unforgettable days from Rachel’s husband, Brandon. It’s a story of God’s sufficient grace and how His power is made perfect in our weakness.  

On July 26, 2021, Nikki Healy had a scan indicating her cancer might be spreading. It is devastating news. In fact, the entire summer is really hard for Nikki as her perspective starts to shift.

Season 3 of Long Story Short asks the question…is God’s grace truly sufficient for life’s biggest challenges…like cancer? For Nikki, that’s not a rhetorical question. It never was, but now it’s more real than ever.

When Nikki Healy was first diagnosed with rectal cancer, she felt embarrassed. She considered keeping it a secret. Instead, she made a decision that would change the very nature of her journey with cancer.  

Going public with a cancer diagnosis is a very personal choice. In this episode, Nikki talks about why she decided to let others know was the right thing for her. In this episode, you’ll hear about the impact that’s had on Nikki and so many others.  

During Season 3 of Long Story Short, we are also looking hard at the question of God’s grace… is it sufficient for life’s biggest challenges… like cancer. Nikki’s decision to be open about her cancer might even give us a glimpse into the answer to that question for her.  

Nikki Healy, and her family, left Arizona on Good Friday 2021. During the following weeks, life for Nikki felt normal. But, always lurking in the background was the reality of her Stage 4 rectal cancer. One month after leaving, Nikki returned to Arizona for what her doctor’s called “the knockout punch”.

Fighting cancer is a physical, emotional, and spiritual rollercoaster. Nikki Healy experienced this in full measure during Spring 2021. You’ll go backstage for both the highs and lows of that season.

During Season 3 of Long Story Short we are looking deeply into the sufficiency of God’s grace when, like the Apostle Paul, we are pleading to have removed a “thorn in the flesh that torments us.” What was Paul’s thorn and how does it relate to us today? That’s also part of this episode.

Undergoing treatment for Stage 4 rectal cancer, Nikki Healy is constantly facing life-changing decisions. It’s stressful, fatiguing, and relentless. Each decision can feel like a gamble. Even cancer found very early requires hard decisions.  

In this episode, you’ll meet two women who fought Stage 1 breast cancer and you’ll also hear about the difficult choices each faced along the way.  

Is God’s grace truly sufficient for decisions where your life depends on figuring out the right answer? We continue to unpack 2 Corinthians 12:9…”My grace is sufficient for you. My power is made perfect in weakness.” 

Nikki Healy spent the first three months of 2021 in Arizona getting alternative treatment for her Stage 4 rectal cancer. She was joined by her husband Steve and their three children. Being together was a blessing…and, at times, even fun. But, fighting cancer is hard and the reality of Nikki’s treatment and impact did not meet what Nikki was expecting.  

In this episode, you’ll hear about a side trip that created lasting family memories, how a dangerous medical development took Nikki to a dark place, and how her expectations were changing.  

We also continue to unpack 2 Corinthians 12:9 where God tells Paul that, “my grace is sufficient for you,” and how that applies to one of life’s hardest challenges… cancer.