1-year-old boy succumbs to cancer on Christmas

Joshua Johnson, the 1-year-old terminally ill Phenix City boy whose parents lived their faith through adoption and diagnosis, succumbed to cancer on Christmas.

The funeral service for the son of Chris and Melissa Johnson will be 10 a.m. Saturday at Philadelphia Baptist Church, 7807 Lee Road 246, in Smiths Station. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations can be made to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

The family announced his death Thursday on the Facebook page called Joshua's Journey.

"Joshua went to heaven this morning," they wrote. "He got the best gift of all -- he is in the arms of Jesus."

Two days earlier, Joshua was admitted to inpatient hospice care.

"These are the most challenging days of our lives," the family wrote. "Please continue to lift up our family."

Chris, a graphic designer at the Columbus State University Coca-Cola Space Science Center, and Melissa, a labor and delivery nurse at St. Francis Hospital, have been lifting up each other since the struggle it took to adopt their other child, Sarah Ruth, now 3.

When the Johnsons shared their story with the Ledger-Enquirer in October, Melissa said she has prayed, "Lord, heal Josh so he can give his testimony about what God has done in his life."

Then she has thought, "But maybe it's us who has to give the testimony."

Chris said in that story, "Any child is a gift. With adoption, they are truly gifts, because we don't have to have them. We're not guaranteed anything, and our children are on loan to us. They don't belong to us. Angels come in all sizes."

Some people who aren't usually prayerful have told Chris that Joshua's battle has "pushed them to their knees."

Which made Melissa wonder about her son, "Maybe that's his mission."

Mark Rice, 706-576-6272. Follow Mark on Twitter@MarkRiceLE.

This story was originally published December 26, 2014 at 9:19 PM with the headline "1-year-old boy succumbs to cancer on Christmas."