"Cancer."A quiet modern epidemic that intersects almost everyone's life—as the illness of a loved one, a neighbor, a church member, or us. The specific pastoral needs of people fighting cancer—indeed, of most people facing a life-defining health crisis—create powerful moments of conversation, of silent presence, of participating in the suffering of another that can teach us much, whatever our context.

I sat down with Percy McCray and Philip Olson, two men whose pastoral ministry has found a unique home in the Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). In 2013, CTCA released "Our Journey of Hope," a ministry program and curriculum for people fighting cancer.

The unique role of pastoral ministry in CTCA's patient treatment process is innovative—and with crucial takeaways for ministry in other contexts. I caught up with McCray and Olson in the shade of a palm tree in Anaheim, California to learn more.