What's In a Name

In Shakespeare's classic play, Romeo and Juliet, Juliet uttered the words, "What's in a name." In simple words, she implied that names don't really matter. All we need to know is what something is not what it is named. In a romantic play, that phrase rings true, but in real life, names as well as the descriptions have deep connotations. Take the word shrunk for example, which means to draw back or lessen in size. Even though in many cases, shrunk can be descriptive of a negative situation, it can be a giant of a word when size matters.

As with Harry. The moment that his oncologist used the word shrunk, we were empowered and exuberated. We were finally hearing the little old word that we had longed to hear, that we had hoped to hear, and that all of our friends and family have prayed would be said. Over and over again, as his oncologist discussed Harry's scans with us, we heard her say that the tumors had shrunk in size. The tumor on his collar bone shrunk from 8 cm to 2 cm, the tumor on his adrenals shrunk from 5 cm to 4 cm, the tumor on his hip from 8 cm to 5 cm, and so on.

The work of God in your life can be difficult to put into words, but we'll try. When God intervened in the course of our lives, turning an inevitably terminal situation completely around and bringing new hope, Harry and I were momentarily caught between two worlds. We experienced a momentary jet lag until we finally caught up to what God had done. It finally sunk in, and we were filled with awe and a deeper respect for the God that we serve. We believed it, and through faith expected it, and at that moment, our expectations materialized. Harry was going to be okay.

To say that we, including Harry's doctor, were joyful is a understatement. She hugged us both and Harry thanked her many times over. Then as he went down the hall for his chemo treatment, everyone he encountered received a dose of what God had given to him that day. Harry shared God's love through a exuberant greeting or a joyful shout of praise the Lord.

What's next? Because Harry will continue to receive chemo indefinitely, he decided to have a port inserted to make the administration of the drug easier. This minor surgery will be done on Tuesday, November 29. Then on December 1, Harry will undergo surgery to have the tumor removed from his hip. The orthopedic surgeon said that the tumor has damaged Harry's pelvic bone, so he will repair it once he removes the tumor. We really have no choice in the matter, if Harry is to have the highest quality of life possible. 

Please pray that there will be no complications during the surgery and for Harry to recover speedily. And continue to pray for his total healing. Our God is able. Thank you for your faithful prayers. May God's blessings overtake each of you and may you be overshadowed by His love and goodness.

Learning to Wait

Whoever said, "Patience is a virtue" understood human nature. The difficulty of waiting on anything goes against the grain of the lives that we hope to experience. We want what we want now, and that's it. This is especially true when something sidelines us. When this happens, we fight with everything we have to get on with life. In many instances, this is the right thing to do. However, there are some things that just cannot be rushed.

Speaking for my husband, this was a lesson that Harry learned this past week. In our last blog, we celebrated the awesomeness of God who has blessed Harry beyond what we or Harry's doctors could imagine. Tumors were shrinking, and new treatment had been recommended. He was on track to recapture the quality of life that had been sidelined by cancer.

Charred grass from backyard fire

However, Harry raced ahead just a bit and caused a little setback. As far as we can see and the doctors know, the cancer is still stable. But because he felt better, Harry tried to reinstate some things that his body was not ready to do, like working a little too long in his office, not resting when he should. This stressed Harry's body, and it was further stressed when he rushed outside to put out a grass fire in our backyard. Our neighbors left a fire in their yard unattended and it got out of hand. Harry actually prevented our house from catching on fire. But this was a lot for someone in his condition.

Harry's body gave in and he became ill when he sat in our Jacuzzi tub after he had already spent time in the whirlpool at the Y two days before. This raised his body temperature and caused him to become sick. His strength was zapped and he began to deal with the same problems he had while on chemo--loss of appetite, fluctuating temperature, weakness, and so forth.

Harry recognized his error in pushing ahead of what his body was ready to do. He spent the weekend in and out of bed due to illness. Yesterday, we went to the hospital for his scheduled chemo treatment, however, the doctor chose to delay it for two weeks so that he can get stronger. Instead, she ordered intravenous fluids because of fluid loss and x-rays to make sure he did not have an infection. With this setback, she also scheduled CT scans for next week to check on the tumors.

Then Harry's doctor compassionately scolded him and encouraged him to listen to his body more. Harry confessed that he had ignored God's promptings to wait, and he promised that he would concentrate on his health all the way. Note that Harry's doctor called today and revealed that he does have a mild case of pneumonia. He has been placed on antibiotics.

Harry said he learned a valuable lesson on waiting. He referred to what the Bible says about waiting on the Lord and being patient. "But," he said, "we all want to get better and be healed quickly, even me. Sometimes we just have to be patient."

Through this journey, Harry has demonstrated trust and faith in God. He knows that God is with him, and last week he recognized his need to remain with God and not ahead of Him. Please pray that Harry will find rest and peace in walking next to God and not ahead of Him. Pray too that Harry will quickly recover from this setback and continue toward healing. Love to you all.