
By Pete Semple
Faced with two debilitating diseases, Paul Guay says he had no one but God to ascribe his strength and perseverance. He points to I Peter 4:11. “If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”
Guay, the pastor of Mabton (Wash.) Grace Brethren Church, has spasmodic dysphonia, a condition that causes spasms in his vocal cords and makes speaking difficult. It’s a crippling blow for a man who preaches every Sunday. Botox injections temporarily relieve the spasms, although until recently, he couldn’t take them. His radiation treatments for nasal cancer interfered.
Diagnosed with cancer in 2005, he underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments that seemed to remove it. The cancer returned in 2007 and with it, reduced odds of recovery. He was given a 95 percent chance of recovery the first time. On the second occasion, it was only 25.