The Scan Results

I have felt so bad that I did not update this blog with the results of my scan.  I posted to Facebook thinking that people who read this are also there but that wasn't very considerate!  So sorry.

My scan results showed no change in the cancer.  It has not regressed or progressed.  I was disappointed about the lack of change in a good direction but I guess I won't complain since there was no growth either.

I so appreciate all of you who have prayed for me.  I hope that this is not discouraging to anyone after all of that praying and fasting.

September the 8th has arrived... and so has the Church

Oh wow, I can't even begin to express the gratitude I feel towards the hundreds of people posting encouragements on my Facebook page, texting, praying and fasting for me!  I am in awe of the army of people I call the Church that has rallied in support of me. A million thank you's would never be enough. But again thank you so so much!
I decided to post to this blog through the day.  It will just be songs, verses, and etc that have been an encouragement to me that hopefully will be to you as well.



Hillsong United-Oceans:

Kari Jobe- Forever

Matthew 17: Jesus Heals a Boy

14 Jesus and his disciples returned to the crowd. A man knelt in front of him 15 and said, “Lord, have pity on my son! He has a bad case of epilepsy and often falls into a fire or into water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but none of them could heal him.”

17 Jesus said, “You people are too stubborn to have any faith! How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy here.” 18 Then Jesus spoke sternly to the demon. It went out of the boy, and right then he was healed.

19 Later the disciples went to Jesus in private and asked him, “Why couldn’t we force out the demon?”

20-21 Jesus replied:

It is because you don’t have enough faith! But I can promise you this. If you had faith no larger than a mustard seed, you could tell this mountain to move from here to there. And it would. Everything would be possible for you.[a]

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1 Kings 18:16-40New International Version (NIV)

Elijah on Mount Carmel

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?”

18 “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the Lord’s commands and have followed the Baals. 19 Now summonthe people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

20 So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel.21 Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”

But the people said nothing.

22 Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. 23 Get two bulls for us. Let Baal’s prophets choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. 24 Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.”

Then all the people said, “What you say is good.”

25 Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire.” 26 So they took the bull given them and prepared it.

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. “Baal, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.

27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.”28 So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. 29 Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Your name shall be Israel.” 32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs[a] of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.”

34 “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again.

“Do it a third time,” he ordered, and they did it the third time. 35 The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.

36 At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”

38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”

The fear of September 8th.

Andrew and I have set the fast date.  We will be fasting on September 8th, the day before my next CT scan.  That scan is scheduled so that we can measure how quickly the cancer is spreading.  In theory, this will allow us more information on how long I have had it and a possible estimate on how long I have here on earth. Theoretically.  However, if God will perform a miracle then there will be no cancer to measure or it will at least have shrunk, and I will sing praises to the high heavens.

I am having short moments of fear.  There are all the 'what if's'.
What if all of you have spent so much time and effort fasting and praying and the answer is no. I certainly don't want to have discouraged anyone.  I have joked that people have been so nice to me that I am not telling anyone if I am healed. I would not truly want to do that. I also don't want to feel like I need to tell people I feel better if I don't.
I fear what my own reaction will be if it is a no. I am concerned that I will be deflated or depressed at that.
We are traveling to Sierra Leone soon and I am so excited to see our African children.  I am also terrified.  The last time I left it was crushing to me in a way that I felt like I might not make it through that time. I don't want to have to leave them again-especially now with this extra burden.

I have been given so much peace in this situation so far and I am so thankful for that.  My prayer right now is that God will grant me that peace even after this scan, even if it shows growth instead of shrinkage of my dumb old liver cancer.

There has been such an outpouring of love towards our family and it has been so encouraging!  I tell you the truth that this experience would not be as endurable without all of you. Thank you to all of you who have stood with me in prayer and fasting and are lined up to do it again on September 8th.  I will be praying through the day for every one of you as well, thanking God for the provision of great friends and asking that he bless you 10 fold for your service to me.




Please watch this sweet video of my Sierra Leonian family praying and singing to God on my behalf(led by Pastor Daniel). Katie Milazzo I cannot thank you enough for sending this to me!