Gray finished his induction round of chemo and got to go home to Tuscaloosa on he and Ashley's second anniversary. It has been a tough month but his mass is gone and he is in remission. He will find out what the next phase is until he gets his bone marrow transplant. The next round of chemo is to keep him in remission until the transplant. We are praying for a perfect match from the registry since neither his brother or sister were a match.
God is faithful and has taught/is teaching us so much through this journey.
Originally this blog was for my sister and a friend who were going through chemo at the same time. I would send a Cheer Song to encourage them every day.Now, our immediate family has been touched by the beast. Our oldest son had a deadly blood cancer, is in remission, but is fighting GVHD through photopheresis treatments. The Lord has been faithful every step along the way!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Saturday is a new day
Happy Saturday! Thank you for allowing me to express my heart honestly. There are points along this journey when you just have to let it out. It is God’s way of helping me see that I am incapable of fixing the situation. A friend’s sister sent an encouraging email about our situation that said that it is such a comfort to know that when we are hanging by a thread that He is the one holding the thread and will never let go. He is the one to give us strength to put one foot in front of the other, especially when we feel like we can’t stand up. Thank You, Jesus! I am working on Gray’s Caringbridge site and hope to have it up soon. Ashley and their dogs are staying with us this weekend. God is good all the time. Have a Super Saturday!
Today’s devotional and prayer are from “Girlfriends in God”:
What If Jesus Were in the Boat With You?
Sharon Jaynes
Today’s Truth
“I will never leave you nor forsake you,” (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV).
Friend to Friend
She was among an eager group of four-year-old children crowded around my feet as I taught their Sunday school lesson. I was the teacher and they were the students – or at least that’s how it started out. The pint-sized audience listened intently as I tried to create a mental image of Jesus and His disciples trapped in a thunderstorm on the Sea of Galilee.
“The winds bleeeeeeew and rocked the little boat back and forth, back and forth. The waves were soooooo big; they splashed over the wooden sides and got the men all wet. Then water started filling up the boat – and do you know what happens when a boat gets full of water?”
“It sinks,” they chimed together.
“That’s right.” I continued with a wrinkled brow and concerned look on my face.
“That’s not all. The lightening was sooooo bright; it looked like fire in the sky. And the claps of thunder were sooooo loud; they could feel it vibrate in their chests.”
After painting this picture of impending doom and thinking I would have my “congregation” just a little worried about the fate of these men trapped in a storm, I asked the question. “Now if you were in a tiny boat like this, caught in a terrible storm like this, would you be afraid?”
Then one precious little girl, confident and unshaken by the entire scenario, shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Not if Jesus was in the boat with me.”
I will never forget that answer. As her words have echoed in my mind, I’ve come to realize that this is the answer that calms all our worries and fears. Just as the disciples had the storm raging all around them, many times the storms of life rage around us. A friend discovers she has cancer, a husband loses his job, and a child is born with birth defects.
These are storms with waves of emotions so high that our lifeboat fills with tears and appears that it could sink at any moment. Waves of fear rock our boat and threaten to spill us into the depths of despair without even a life jacket to keep us afloat.
“Tell me, would you be afraid?”
“Not if Jesus was in the boat with me.”
And guess what? He is. God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV). Jesus said, “Surely I am with you always, to the end of the age,” (Matthew 28:20). Although the storm may be fierce, you don’t need to be afraid, because Jesus is in the boat with you. His power can calm the storm you’re in and calm the storm in you. So hang on to Him and He’ll pull you through.
Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, I am so glad that You are always in the boat with me. When I feel like I’m sinking – You’re in the boat with me. When the sail is full and I’m gliding along peaceful seas – You are with me. No matter what, no matter where, You are there by my side…and I praise You.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Think back on the most difficult situation in your life. Now close your eyes and picture Jesus standing right beside you. He was, you know.
Is there someone in your life who is experiencing a terrifying storm in her life?
Perhaps today would be a great day to write her a note of encouragement. You might even want to consider sending this devotion to her as a way of reminding her that Jesus is going through this storm with her. She is not alone.
What is your favorite verse that reminds you of God’s promises during the storms of life? Let’s share atwww.facebook.com/SharonJaynes
. Your verse might be what someone needs to hang onto today!
Today’s Cheer Song is “Don’t Be Afraid” by, John Bell of the Iona Community. Enjoy! Love, Carol
Don't Be Afraid :
Don't be afraid, my love is stronger,
My love is stronger than your fear.
Don't be afraid, my love is stronger,
And I have promised to be always near
Today’s devotional and prayer are from “Girlfriends in God”:
What If Jesus Were in the Boat With You?
Sharon Jaynes
Today’s Truth
“I will never leave you nor forsake you,” (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV).
Friend to Friend
She was among an eager group of four-year-old children crowded around my feet as I taught their Sunday school lesson. I was the teacher and they were the students – or at least that’s how it started out. The pint-sized audience listened intently as I tried to create a mental image of Jesus and His disciples trapped in a thunderstorm on the Sea of Galilee.
“The winds bleeeeeeew and rocked the little boat back and forth, back and forth. The waves were soooooo big; they splashed over the wooden sides and got the men all wet. Then water started filling up the boat – and do you know what happens when a boat gets full of water?”
“It sinks,” they chimed together.
“That’s right.” I continued with a wrinkled brow and concerned look on my face.
“That’s not all. The lightening was sooooo bright; it looked like fire in the sky. And the claps of thunder were sooooo loud; they could feel it vibrate in their chests.”
After painting this picture of impending doom and thinking I would have my “congregation” just a little worried about the fate of these men trapped in a storm, I asked the question. “Now if you were in a tiny boat like this, caught in a terrible storm like this, would you be afraid?”
Then one precious little girl, confident and unshaken by the entire scenario, shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Not if Jesus was in the boat with me.”
I will never forget that answer. As her words have echoed in my mind, I’ve come to realize that this is the answer that calms all our worries and fears. Just as the disciples had the storm raging all around them, many times the storms of life rage around us. A friend discovers she has cancer, a husband loses his job, and a child is born with birth defects.
These are storms with waves of emotions so high that our lifeboat fills with tears and appears that it could sink at any moment. Waves of fear rock our boat and threaten to spill us into the depths of despair without even a life jacket to keep us afloat.
“Tell me, would you be afraid?”
“Not if Jesus was in the boat with me.”
And guess what? He is. God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV). Jesus said, “Surely I am with you always, to the end of the age,” (Matthew 28:20). Although the storm may be fierce, you don’t need to be afraid, because Jesus is in the boat with you. His power can calm the storm you’re in and calm the storm in you. So hang on to Him and He’ll pull you through.
Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, I am so glad that You are always in the boat with me. When I feel like I’m sinking – You’re in the boat with me. When the sail is full and I’m gliding along peaceful seas – You are with me. No matter what, no matter where, You are there by my side…and I praise You.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Think back on the most difficult situation in your life. Now close your eyes and picture Jesus standing right beside you. He was, you know.
Is there someone in your life who is experiencing a terrifying storm in her life?
Perhaps today would be a great day to write her a note of encouragement. You might even want to consider sending this devotion to her as a way of reminding her that Jesus is going through this storm with her. She is not alone.
What is your favorite verse that reminds you of God’s promises during the storms of life? Let’s share atwww.facebook.com/SharonJaynes
. Your verse might be what someone needs to hang onto today!
Today’s Cheer Song is “Don’t Be Afraid” by, John Bell of the Iona Community. Enjoy! Love, Carol
Don't Be Afraid :
Don't be afraid, my love is stronger,
My love is stronger than your fear.
Don't be afraid, my love is stronger,
And I have promised to be always near
A Not so Cheerful Friday post
Before Gray started chemo on Wednesday, Dr. Lopez, the doctor regulating the chemo and bone marrow transplant, wanted to do a spinal tap to see if there were cancer cells in his spinal fluid. He got the results Thursday morning and they did find cancer in the fluid. They will do spinal taps twice a week, injecting the chemo he is getting in his catheter into his spine. They may have to do radiation on that area at some point and time. They aren’t sure yet. Also, when they were putting in Gray’s Hickman catheter they punctured a hole in his lung. That is what the chest x-ray showed that he had on Wednesday afternoon. It has created an air pocket so he is on oxygen through his nose to expand it and fill it up. The chemo is causing continuous hiccups. The night nurse, Catherine, gave him a breathing machine that helped tremendously.
I’m going to be real honest with you. It’s just plain hard. I could tell you all the things that I should say if I was trying to be super spiritual but I’m not there. I’m sad and angry, and devastated. I do know that God is in control and my hope is in Him. I just hate cancer and the pain that goes along with it. Gray and Ashley are handling the news well. Kelley and I are hurting as his parents to watch our child go through such suffering. Please pray that we will hold onto Jesus with all our strength even though it feels like we’re hanging on by a thread at times.
Thank you,
Carol
I’m going to be real honest with you. It’s just plain hard. I could tell you all the things that I should say if I was trying to be super spiritual but I’m not there. I’m sad and angry, and devastated. I do know that God is in control and my hope is in Him. I just hate cancer and the pain that goes along with it. Gray and Ashley are handling the news well. Kelley and I are hurting as his parents to watch our child go through such suffering. Please pray that we will hold onto Jesus with all our strength even though it feels like we’re hanging on by a thread at times.
Thank you,
Carol
Friday, August 17, 2012
Get your Friday feet on!
Happy Friday! Get your Friday feet on and kick all your trials right to the Lord’s loving hands. Yesterday Emily and Russ went to get their blood tested at UAB. Gray doesn’t have the results back yet but they called from the clinic and said they wanted the kids tested. Good Lord willing we will hear something tomorrow. Gray met with several of his friends in Birmingham to play Frisbee golf. They all went back to Tuscaloosa to eat dinner at a friend’s house. Emily had to work in T-Town and Russ went up there as well so they could all eat dinner together with friends. We are so happy that Gray has the energy to enjoy physical exercise and fellowship with friends and family before the draining road of treatment. Yesterday also would have been Mama and Daddy’s 66th wedding anniversary. I’m so blessed to have the legacy of love and prayer that they’ve passed on to me. Have a Fabulous Friday!
Today’s devotional and prayer are from “Today’s Verse” by, Phil Ware:
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
—1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Where does your heart live? That's what these verses are all about. It's about where we spend the most time with our hearts. Is there a constant awareness in your life that God is present? Is he the unseen but always present companion in all your ups and downs? Or is God here when it is convenient and gone when things are busy or we feel that everything is going okay? Joy comes from knowing we are never alone. Prayer is the ongoing conversation we have, Spirit to Spirit, child to Abba, human with God. Thanksgiving and joy are the great reminders that we have been blessed no matter what the outward circumstances imply.
Prayer...
Precious and Righteous Father, thank you for being there, always. Give me a deeper appreciation and a more profound awareness of your presence today. May my life reflect the joy you have given me by saving me by grace. And may my heart always find its home in you. Through the name of Jesus my Savior and friend I pray. Amen
Today’s Cheer Song is a song I wrote for Mom and Dad’s anniversary one year. It is called “A Legacy of Prayer” Enjoy! Love, Carol
A Legacy of Prayer
1. You taught me that prayer is like breathing
Communing all day with the Lord
Nothing is too small for His notice
Commit everything unto Him
Chorus:
A legacy of prayer you’ve given to me
Trust in the Lord and His sovereignty
You taught me through actions and not just your words
The wondrous treasure of life in the Lord
2. Sometimes the hurts were so painful
Receiving the taunts from the world
But our family devotions each morning
Gave me courage to take what they hurled
Chorus
3. I pray that our children are seeing
This wonderful gift you gave me
And that one day in the future
They’ll pass down this great legacy
Chorus
The wondrous treasure of life in the Lord!
P.S. Gray heard from the oncologist this morning. The cancer is not in his bone marrow yet. He will go for an echocardiogram on Monday to amke sure his heart is strong enough for the intense chemo he will be starting on Tuesday. He will receive 7 days of chemo and 28 days of recovery in the hospital. We are so thankful that it hasn't spread and they are treating the cancer so aggressively.
Friday, August 10, 2012
Get your Friday feet on!
Happy Friday! Let’s get our Friday feet on and kick the cancer beast to the curb! Rare, never heard of before, and blood cell cancer that’s a form of leukemia are not the words you want to hear come out of the doctor’s mouth. They are the words that we heard yesterday morning. Gray has a type of cancer that is usually found in old men in their 70’s or 80’s. The doctor said that it will not be localized and usually presents with skin lesions. Gray does not have lesions so we hope that it was either caught early or misdiagnosed. Either way, it is only treated with chemo and possibly bone marrow transplant. We were all devastated in the morning but by the time we went for the PET scan we were encouraged and ready to do battle against the beast. We would love the Lord to do a miraculous healing, but know realistically we are in a tough battle. As a friend of ours whose son battled leukemia and is well now told us, “You are not only a battle with cancer; you are in a battle for faith”. We have been showered with love and support from all over. My friend, Sissy, came down for the PET scan. Kelley’s former boss and his wife brought us dinner. One of our dear friends from church was here when we got back from the scan. Four of Gray and Ashley’s friends came down from Tuscaloosa. The phone calls and emails have been comforting. The oncologist office called and Gray’s appointment is on Wednesday at 11:15. We don’t know if we will have the scan results before then. God is faithful! Have a Fantastic Friday!
Today’s devotional was from friends of ours from the church. It is from “Streams in the Desert”:
STREAMS IN THE DESERT devotional today from Ps. 84:5...Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee....
I thought of all of you. Here is an excerpt from it:
When night....needful night....gathers over the garden of our souls, when the leaves close up, and the flowers no longer hold any sunlight within their folded petals, there shall never be wanting, even in the thickest darkness, drops of HEAVENLY dew...dew which falls only when THE SUN HAS GONE DOWN!
I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the "God of all comfort" was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
So we'll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or brignt;
For we've proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night.
Today’s Cheer Song is “My Life is in You, Lord” by, David Gardener. Enjoy! Love, Carol
My Life is in You, Lord
My life is in You, Lord,
My strength is in You, Lord
My hope is in You, Lord
In You, it's in You. (Repeat)
I will praise You with all of my heart.
I will praise You with all of my hope.
With all of my life, and all of my strength.
All of my hope is in You.
Today’s devotional was from friends of ours from the church. It is from “Streams in the Desert”:
STREAMS IN THE DESERT devotional today from Ps. 84:5...Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee....
I thought of all of you. Here is an excerpt from it:
When night....needful night....gathers over the garden of our souls, when the leaves close up, and the flowers no longer hold any sunlight within their folded petals, there shall never be wanting, even in the thickest darkness, drops of HEAVENLY dew...dew which falls only when THE SUN HAS GONE DOWN!
I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the "God of all comfort" was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.
So we'll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or brignt;
For we've proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night.
Today’s Cheer Song is “My Life is in You, Lord” by, David Gardener. Enjoy! Love, Carol
My Life is in You, Lord
My life is in You, Lord,
My strength is in You, Lord
My hope is in You, Lord
In You, it's in You. (Repeat)
I will praise You with all of my heart.
I will praise You with all of my hope.
With all of my life, and all of my strength.
All of my hope is in You.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
The beast hits closer
I have decided to start blogging again as the beast has hit even closer to home. Our oldest son had sinus surgery yesterday and a mass was biopsied as cancer. We will not know what kind until later this week, hopefully. The doctors are right on top of the situation. There have been so many things the Lord has done that we are thankful for. We are devastated but know that God is in control. I keep remembering the words of Elliot Patterson Williams, "Don't tell God how big your storm is, tell your storm how big your God is". If you have never heard the sound track from "The Preacher's Wife" with Whitney Houston, you need to. One of my favorite songs on it that is going through my head right now is, "I Go to the Rock". It was sung by Whitney and here are the lyrics.
I Go to the Rock
Where do I go?
When there's nobody else to turn to
Who do I talk to?
When nobody wants to listen
Who do I lean on? Oh
When there is no foundation stable
I go to the rock
I know he is able, I go to the rock
[Chorus:]
I go to the rock of my salvation
I go to the stone that the builders rejected
I run to the mountain
And the mountain he stands by me
When the Earth all around me is sinking sand
On Christ the solid rock I stand
When I need a shelter I go to the rock
Where do I go, where do I go
When the storms of life are threatening
Who do I turn to when those winds of sorrow blow
And is there a refuge in the time of tribulation
Go to the rock, I know he is able
I go to the rock
[Repeat Chorus (2X)]
I go the rock when I need a friend
I can go to the rock
I go to the rock when I need a shelter
You can go to the rock
You can go to the rock
You can go to the rock
I can go
I go to the rock
I can go to the rock
I can go to the rock
I can go, I can go to the rock
I can go when I need some shelter
When I need a friend
I can go
And when the Earth around me is sinking sand
On Christ the solid rock I stand I can stand
When I need a friend
I go to the rock
I can go to the rock
Hey hey hey oh yeah
I Go to the Rock
Where do I go?
When there's nobody else to turn to
Who do I talk to?
When nobody wants to listen
Who do I lean on? Oh
When there is no foundation stable
I go to the rock
I know he is able, I go to the rock
[Chorus:]
I go to the rock of my salvation
I go to the stone that the builders rejected
I run to the mountain
And the mountain he stands by me
When the Earth all around me is sinking sand
On Christ the solid rock I stand
When I need a shelter I go to the rock
Where do I go, where do I go
When the storms of life are threatening
Who do I turn to when those winds of sorrow blow
And is there a refuge in the time of tribulation
Go to the rock, I know he is able
I go to the rock
[Repeat Chorus (2X)]
I go the rock when I need a friend
I can go to the rock
I go to the rock when I need a shelter
You can go to the rock
You can go to the rock
You can go to the rock
I can go
I go to the rock
I can go to the rock
I can go to the rock
I can go, I can go to the rock
I can go when I need some shelter
When I need a friend
I can go
And when the Earth around me is sinking sand
On Christ the solid rock I stand I can stand
When I need a friend
I go to the rock
I can go to the rock
Hey hey hey oh yeah
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