Day 9 – Saturday (9/01/18)

Today was not super eventful.  There has been no change or update to my health status.  The next step is tomorrow at 10:30am when I get a PET scan.  Nobody has told me, but I’m pretty sure the results will not be immediately available to me.  I assume that the doctor will review, and I will likely hear from them on Tuesday.  I believe at that point we will also know if the pathologist has had any luck finalizing the results, or if another biopsy is needed.

I spent most of today at my parent’s house.  My Dad has been teaching my son the art of woodworking, and my son is entering a whirlybird into the NC state fair.  I am truly impressed how patient my Dad has been to let my son do all the work.  He taught him safety, how to make and use jigs, how to get good paint layers, etc.  The bird turned out super awesome.  My daughter is also entering a water color painting into the fair.  The only thing left to do on it is to mount it to the backing for display/hanging.  I think we will take care of that tomorrow afternoon.  My brother and Grandma on my Dad’s side were at the house as well, and it was nice for all of us to get to talk and solve the world’s problems (haha).

My Dad emailed me a song the other day.  It was “The Voice of Truth” by Casting Crowns.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaVg0cWkgAw  While it wasn’t the first time I had heard it, I found the song really spoke to the current situation for me.  Also, it may speak to a situation any of you fellow blog readers may be going through.  I know we all go through trials at some points in our life.  This song talks about having faith and trusting God (like when Peter walked on water), and having faith in tough situations (like when David went up against Goliath).  It cautions about listening to the lies the devil will tell you.  Lies that you are not good enough, that you don’t deserve God’s love, etc.  Instead, we must make sure that we listen to the voice of truth.  Don’t let yourself go to the dark place Satan’s lies can lead.  If you find yourself struggling in whatever your current situation is, make sure to talk to other people… your pastor, a family member, a friend.  You are not alone.

Getting this song emailed reminded me that Casting Crowns lead singer Mark Hall recently had his own bout with kidney cancer.  I found this article on his story, and I highly recommend reading it (it’s a quick summary read).  https://www.guideposts.org/inspiration/inspiring-stories/stories-of-faith/what-cancer-taught-casting-crowns-mark-hall  I found it gave me encouragement in my current situation, and may give you encouragement to see how God works, and how awesome He is.  A song that Mark wrote while he was undergoing treatment was “Just Be Held”.  Here is a link to it also.  The words are very powerful.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yutmTFtalKs

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for a wonderful day spending time with my family.  It is awesome that I have so many family members and in-laws that live so close to me.  I think I took that for granted until recently.  Thank You for using my current situation to show me this.  Help me to keep priorities in line, even when I’m through this storm.  I pray for our pastor’s father-in-law as he preaches tomorrow.  I know I can’t be there due to the PET scan, but I pray that You would speak through him to those who can attend.  Help the Holy Spirit move through the sanctuary, and stir hearts and souls as needed.  I pray for a good night’s sleep tonight, and that the test tomorrow goes smoothly.  I pray it will show good, accurate results, that can guide the doctors in the steps moving forward.  Thank you for all you do each and every day, amen.