COMMITMENT, CHEMO-HAIR-APY AND A CATHETER

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE...
     Today is our 41st wedding anniversary!  We ask ourselves how can that be possible? Time has a way of flying by, but it is great to know that God is the pilot!  We thank God for each other and for the years He has given us.  When you marry one another you form a covenant relationship.  That's why what you say to one another during the wedding ceremony is called a vow.   Part of that covenant is the promise to commit to one another for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness or in health until...Of course, all of us want "the better, the richer and the health" but that is not guaranteed to any of us.  Hence the value of making a covenant before God and man that will sustain you in the difficult days.

HOME STRETCH TO THE HOSPITAL ...

     We suspect things will be happening very quickly now. This Thursday we will be up at UH most of the morning for our orientation.  We will meet with the financial representative of UH and also tour the donor collection center where Don's stem cells will actually be collected. Friday he will be shown how to give himself injections that stimulate the production of stem cells.  Sunday night we will go up and spend the night near the hospital, then they will install the catheter in his chest early Monday morning.  Either Monday afternoon or Tuesday they will begin the process of extracting the stem cells.  We are both nervous but ready to get on with it.  The process will take 3 or 4 days and once they have enough stem cells (they are collecting enough for 2 transplants in case he should need another one in the future) he will be able to come home.  He will have another 2 weeks during which he hopes to continue to work at Emerge before entering the hospital again on the 7th of May. 

SOMETHING FUN...CHEMO-HAIR-APY!

     Rather than wait to lose his hair at the hospital, Don has decided to buzz it before entering the hospital for the transplant.  We have been told he will receive a major dose of chemotherapy at the beginning, from which he will likely suffer all of the negative side effects, including hair loss.  So, on Friday, April 27th from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. we are having a Chemo-HAIR-apy Party at Emerge Ministries to help raise funds for Emerge's Children's Center.  Everyone is invited to come for refreshments and fun and to watch Don get buzzed.   If you come, you need to do something funky with your own hair and bring a donation for the Children's Center.  You can look at Emerge's website (www.emerge.org)  for specific items that are needed, or you can simply bring a donation in the form of cash or a check.  

PRAISES:

     Friends and family continue to lift us up before the Lord and support us in all manner of ways - spiritually, emotionally, physically and financially.  We have been incredibly blessed by you - our family of believers.
     All of our needs have been and continue to be met.
     God continues to make Himself known in special moments.
     All of the details and plans for the stem cell extraction and stem cell transplant are moving forward.

PRAYER REQUESTS:

     Don's pain has been steadily getting worse for the last 2 weeks and is now getting to be a serious challenge again.  It has shifted to his right hip and is intense when he is in any upright position.  We believe it is because the doctors have reduced the steroid until he is not taking any at all now.  The steroid is what kept the swelling and inflammation down around the L5 vertebrae.  The pain specialists have told us that they cannot do any more until after the transplant and Don's immune system has recovered.
     Don's dear Uncle John in Maryland is also suffering from cancer and a compression fracture.  What a tremendous man of God he has been all of his life!  An example to us in every way.  Hospice care has been brought in to help care for him until he goes on to meet the Lord he has served all of his life.  What a day that will be!  Please pray for Uncle John, who is also enduring great pain, and his wife Olga and family.
     Pray for our meetings at UH on Thursday that we would be able to communicate effectively with doctors and nurses and they would communicate effectively with us.  Also that all the details for each procedure would continue to go smoothly.
     Pray for Don as he undergoes the catheter installation and stem cell extraction next week.

SOMETHING PRECIOUS TO DON:
     "Thank Me for the conditions that are requiring you to be still.   Do not spoil these quiet hours by wishing them away, waiting impatiently to be active again.  Some of the greatest works in My kingdom have been done from sickbeds and prison cells.  Instead of resenting the limitations of a weakened body, search for My way in the midst of these very circumstances.  Limitations can be liberating when your strongest desire is living close to Me."
     "Quietness and trust enhance your awareness of My Presence with you.  Do not despise these simple ways of serving Me.  Although you feel cut off from the activity of the world, your quiet trust makes a powerful statement in spiritual realms.  My Strength and Power show themselves most effective in weakness."  from Jesus Calling (February 16th)

SOMETHING PRECIOUS TO MARCIE:
     "Because he loves me," says the Lord, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.  He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him and show him my salvation." Psalm 91: 14 - 16

As we progress through the stem cell extraction next week I will keep you updated as often as possible.  Please pray earnestly for us both and our children Anthony, Adam and Anne.
Thank you for your love and prayers.

Marcie and Don