Home again, home again, jiggety jig!!

As I write this I am sitting in my favorite spot on our couch at HOME, with the windows open and blowing a cool breeze across the room at HOME, having slept in our own bed at HOME, having had supper with all of my family at HOME. Do you see a trend in this post? YES, we are finally at HOME, having departed Spartanburg late yesterday morning and arriving here just in time for supper. It is so good to be at home and be back with the kids!

I'll be spending the next few days mixing rest and relaxation with going through mail and email, and then moving on to working on the desperately late next edition of our ministry newsletter. Also during this time the doctor said I needed to work in a little "light exercise", so I could not resist the beautiful weather today and got out to help Heather get her garden in. Think this is what he meant? (PS Please note the pajama bottoms and slippers...I may be a little slow, but not THAT slow! LOL)

The next day

Today has been restful and quiet. We are hoping to get to head home to KY tomorrow, just have one last thing to check on with Dr. Kinard in the morning. We are SO missing Austin and Heather and SO ready to be home. Pray with us that God woould work it out that we can.

Thought you might enjoy seeing a couple of pictures from last week. The week before my surgery, our church (1st Baptist, Hindman) was doing the church directory photo thing, and although we just had some family pictures done, we went anyway so we could be a part pf the directory. After the pictures were done we had decided we did not want to waste all our dressing up, so we went in to Hazard to have Rachael's (belated) birthday dinner at Applebees. We had a great dinner and it was an enjoyable evening. In spite of myself, don't I have a great family?!?

Released from the hospital...now THAT'S an update!

Well, I guess you could consider this our last “surgery update”, as I have been released from the hospital and am now resting comfortably at the Smith’s home. Since Rachael last updated you yesterday, I made several more “trecs” around the track on the 3rd floor, Dr. Kinard came in yesterday afternoon and gave us the pathology report, which was great, and assured us that now all I have to worry about is getting over the surgery. This morning Dr. Atkins came in gave the final “OK” and we started packing to leave. By 1:00 his afternoon we were headed down the elevator. Best elevator ride I’ve had in years! LOL

Of course there’s still a few “housekeeping details”, like getting the staples out next week (which we can do in KY), and going back in a couple of weeks to see Dr. Kinard. Other than that, I’ll just have to get a CT scan or MRI in 6 months and 12 months and so on. This really has been an amazing journey, and while it’s certainly not over, I have to admit that I‘m glad we’re on the downhill side of it.

Many, many, many thanks for the phone calls, cards, letters, flowers, etc. While they weren’t expected, they certainly brightened up the last few days. Most especially we want to thank you for your prayers. We sensed constantly that we were being lifted up to the Lord continuously. So many times over the last few weeks and especially the last several days there have been occasions where things took just the right turn at just the right moment. We thank you so much for your prayers.

Just a little over four weeks ago when this all started, I wrote in this blog that the Lord had led me to a particular passage. Just to help me keep things in perspective, I’d like to share that with you again. It’s found in Psalm 39…

“LORD, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am. Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my age is as nothing before You; Certainly every man at his best state is but vapor. Selah Surely every man walks about like a shadow; Surely they busy themselves in vain; He heaps up riches, and does not know who will gather them. “And now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in You.

As I said that day, God has given me a new window to look through. He has given me the glorious blessing of being reminded once again that this life is Oh, so short. Whether we have 5, 20 or even 60 more years to live…or maybe just a few more minutes…how will we spend it? Will we make a greater difference with the rest of our lives than we have up until now?

The Lord has indeed made me to know my end and how utterly frail I am. From day one until now and for all time… Our hope is in the Lord. We rest in Him.

Surgery Update #4

Lots of progress since we last talked. Dr. Kinard came in yesterday while I was napping at the Smith’s house and talked more with Jamie. He checked him over said he was progressing well and doing fine. I think he hinted that Jamie needed to do more walking, because when I got back Jamie was ready to take a lap. He didn’t quite make it all the way around last night, but he did this morning.

Dr Dunn came by last night right before we went to sleep. Dr. Dunn is the doctor who did the colonoscopy back in February and referred us to Dr. Kinard when we knew that Jamie would need a urologist. He is a great Christian man and has checked in on Jamie’s progress through Dr. Kinard several times and even stopped by to see Jamie right before his surgery in the holding area. Last night he was checking to see if we needed anything and even offered for us to stay at his lake house after Jamie got out of the hospital if we were not able to go all the way home. How sweet is that?!

Last night was kinda rough, with Jamie waking up about 3am with pretty bad pain and nausea. We got some meds in him and we both got back to sleep about 4:30 and slept pretty good until about 7:30 this morning. Dr. Kinard hasn’t been in yet this morning, so I am headed back to the Smith’s for a shower and a nap.

Thanks for your continued prayers… trust me, we are very aware that we are being lifted up to the Father. Don’t forget to pray for Austin and Heather back at the Campus with my parents, Jan and Earl Heath, and also Gil and Debbie Tomas. We appreciate them “holding the fort down” while we are away. Pray also for the RCDA (Rural Church Development Alliance) Men’s Retreat and Campout going on at the Campus tonight and tomorrow. Many blessings to you and yours!

Surgery Update #3

Well, this is the morning update – turned into noon update.  I have to admit, last night was not the most restful night we’ve ever had. Many trips to the restroom, but at least he’s getting his exercise. I’m going to go hide out at friends house to get a nap this afternoon. Dr. Kinard came in this morning and said that all of the lab work on the remaining kidney looked great. I didn’t realize that the remaining kidney will actually grow somewhat to compensate for the loss of the removed kidney. Everything else is looking good, just a matter now of going through the motions of taking his walks and working through the soreness and resting. Dr. Kinard said Saturday or Sunday we should be able to head home. Thanks so much for your continued prayers.

Surgery Update #2

We’re watching Gunsmoke right now. Well, at least I am. I don’t know why Jamie’s not up to a lot of action yet. He is doing very well today; just felt a little nauseated a couple of times. The doctor came in early this morning and was able to talk to both of us. Jamie really didn’t remember things from yesterday. Of course, I normally don’t remember much the first time either. He felt that everything went very well, and we’re just waiting on the pathology reports to come back to determine the type and stage of the cancer.

We’ve had just the right amount of visitors today, nothing overwhelming. Jamie’s “stash” now includes a Get Well Dad balloon from the kids, a large, beautiful Peace Lily, a get well balloon that sings, a basket full of goodies (chips, candy bars, lollipops) that I’m going to save for myself since he can’t have any. His loss will be my gain, literally. LOL

My parents got here yesterday afternoon before Jamie went to surgery. It’s been a couple of months since we’ve seen them, so they were a welcome sight. They took me and the kids to dinner to a Chinese restaurant (we don’t get much of that type of food). After they brought me back to the hospital, they took the kids with them to enjoy a restful night at a nice hotel. They all came by this morning to hug and kiss on us, then left out for Kentucky.

I actually started working on this earlier in the day, but we’ve had a few visitors and other things, so it is now a little after 6:00 PM. I’m headed to our “home away from home” for a shower and then back for another night here. Thank you so much for all your prayers. We know that we are firmly in the grip of an awesome Heavenly Father, and we also sense very dramatically that many people are lifting us to Him. We are so amazed at how this situation continues to be orchestrated by God and continues to bring Him glory.

We love you all!

Rachael and Jamie

Surgery Update #1

Well it has been a long day, but it has been full of many blessings. Due to some other surgeries that took a little longer than expected, Jamie's 1 PM surgery didn't happen until 4 PM. Dr. Kinard said that everything went extremely well and Jamie will be in the hospital for about 4-5 days. He did say that when he got in to the kidney area to take the tumor out, that part of the tumor was all the way inside of the kidney, and larger than expected, so he had to take the whole kidney out.

Praise the Lord that He gave us two kidneys! Jamie is doing very well tonight. Of course, the pain medication is making him speak a little funny. This time he does have an excuse for mumbling. LOL The kids and I are were also blessed with many people coming to visit and some surprise visits as well. Thank you for the phone calls and the many prayers. The Lord's presence has been felt all through this procedure. Thank you all for lifting us up in prayer.

Resting in the Lord

Psalm 91
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."

Phillipians 1
3I thank my God every time I remember you. 4In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
7It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. 8God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

9And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

Jude 1
20But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. 21Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

We trust in the name of the LORD our God

If you are new to our family blog, we say Welcome.

To catch you up on the latest news, I was diagnosed with kidney cancer a little over 3 weeks ago. I will be having surgery on Tuesday to remove either the tumor and surrounding tissue, or possibly the whole kidney. The doctors expect that I will be in the hospital 4-5 days and then be able to come home (to the Campus), for 4-6 weeks recovery. The surgery is expected to be curative, with no need for any further treatments.

The surgery will be on Tuesday, April 21, 1:00 PM at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center in Spartanburg, SC. It is expected to take about 3 hours and Rachael will have my laptop with her and will update this blog once I am out of surgery and in a room. Rachael's parents will meet us in Spartanburg on Tuesday and will bring the kids back home (to the Campus), probably on Wednesday morning and stay with them until we return. Rachael will be staying with friends in Spartanburg. Many thanks to so many people in the Spartanburg/Greenville area who have offered so much assistance. The Campus will be well taken care of by Gil and Debbie Thomas.

Thank you all for your friendship, your support and most especially for your prayers. God is good, He is faithful and He is worthy of all our trust. We are resting quietly and confidently in Him.

Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He answers him from His holy heaven with the saving power of His right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. Psalm 20:6-7

A couple of changes

Yesterday a friend was asking if there was some way he could get an email when we updated the blog. I told him there was, but then I got on here today and realized that this feature was not enabled. SOOOO....it is now. If you want to be notified when the blog is updated, just scroll down to the bottom of this page and you will see a place where you can sign up to "follow" this blog. Otherwise, you are certainly welcome to just keep checking in at your convenience.

I also went ahead and enabled another feature where you can email a particular post to someone if you want. Just look for the little envelope at the bottom of each post and click on it and follow the instructions. Simple as that. Thanks much for your continued prayers! Blessings to you and yours!

Into each life, some rain must fall...

I drove down to Spartanburg, SC Monday for a meeting that night with a mission team from there, and yesterday morning I had my pre-op appointment to draw blood, etc. I was headed back yesterday afternoon in a hard rain near Unicoi, TN when a car hydroplaned into me. We tangled with each other and the concrete median divider several times and then came to rest up against (and him on) the concrete divider.

Both vehicles were totaled and the driver of the other car was taken to the hospital with neck pain, but other than that, we were not hurt. (Please pray for the other driver, initials are D.S.) I have not heard from the insurance company yet, but I am sure (and so was the wrecker driver) that they won't go to the expense of fixing a '99 with 150,00 miles, although I wish they would.

The Lord really protected both of us. It seems that He is saying that He is not finished with me yet, but I have to admit that I wish He would communicate that message in gentler ways... :-) I was reminded by a friend that maybe this IS the gentler way, so I am being grateful for His gentler ways. :-)

Anyway, I was in our big Ford pick-up truck (we call it the "white whale"), so the upside was that it was big and heavy enough to protect me and the downside is that this was our only means of hauling construction materials, horse trailers, etc. for the ministry. I know that the Lord would not call us to do this work and then fail to provide what we need to get it done, so we will be watching to see how He will do take care of this new need. He certainly has never let us down.


Rachael and the kids came and got me from Erwin, TN where the truck was towed and we enjoyed a relaxing supper at one of our favorite spots, Bob Evans in Johnson City. We got back home around 10:00 last night and fed the horses and headed to bed. It was very good to be back home. Thank you all so much for your continued prayers. There is no doubt in my mind that some of you were praying yesterday around 2:00 pm. "The effective prayer of a righteous man availeth much."

How did all this start...?

Several people have asked how I knew to go to the doctor and/or how all this was discovered. The answer is...God. Really.

Back before Christmas I started having an occasional mild burning pain sensation in the left side of my abdomen. It kept up for a couple of weeks and I went to the doctor here, thinking I had a hernia. He said it was not a hernia, but if it kept up I needed to get a colonoscopy. It did, so I called some friends in Spartanburg, SC and got referred to a great Christian doctor down there. He did the colonoscopy in February - found and removed two polyps, one pre-cancerous, but no big deal for somebody my age. He said if the pain kept up, I needed to get a CT scan, as it seemed like I might have a small incision hernia from my reflux surgery in '97.

I went to see a good friend here in KY (that is in our SS class) and he sent me for the CT. It came back and showed no reason for the pain in my left front, but showed a small spot on my right kidney.

He sent me for an MRI, which basicallly confirmed that I had a small spot on my right kidney. He said I needed to see a Urologost. I called the doctor's office in SC that had done my colonoscopy and told them I wanted a referral to a doctor "just like him". He referred me to Dr. Harry Kinard, a top Urologist in SC and an outstanding Christian man. By the way, google 'Andrew Kinard', (his son) and CMA awards and you'll see what kind of family this is.

We were going to be in Spartanburg for a missions conference so I made an appt to see Dr. Kinard that week. He thought it was probably a benign cyst, but said we can find out easy enough with an ultra-sound. He sent me straight from his office that afternoon, and by the time I got through with that, it was after 5pm. I was headed back to the conference when he called my cell phone (he had stayed in his office to hear the results). He was very compassionate, and very reassuring when he told me that it was definetly cancer and I needed to come back the next day for a better CT.

I did, and the following week I had to go back for an IVP, which confirmed the type (renal cell carcinoma vs. transitional cell carcinoma). It may sound weird, but really the only "bad news" in all of this has been when they decided they could not do the surgery laproscopically and would have to do it with a traditional large incision, meaning more hospital time and longer recovery.

By the way - the burning pain that started all this...? Gone. Haven't had it in about 3 weeks, about the time I got the diagnosis. Maybe the Lord was just pinching me and saying "Go to the doctor." I also have not had a single "symptom" of the cancer. No pain, no nothing. God really is good, He really is faithful and He really is worthy of our trust. We have seen His hand in all this from the very beginning, and He has blessed us with a peace that really has passed all comprehension. We rest in Him.

As the Hebrew boys said so many years ago, our God is able to deliver and we believe He that will. But if not, know this...we will not bow our knee to the fear and panic that Satan wants to bring into our lives. And, one way or another, God will get the glory...and THAT is what it's all about.

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

What a glorious day of worship and fellowship today was! We are so thankful for the wonderful church family that God has blessed us with here, along with so many wonderful Christian friends from many churches in the area.

We had a group here on the Campus this weekend (Eastern KY Regional Deaf Revival) and we stopped by to visit with them at the Alumni Dining Hall when we got back from church. They were finishing up their conference and lunch, but they were gracious enough to take the time snap a picture of us. Many blessings to you and yours.

I will be headed down to SC Monday afternoon to be prepared for my pre-op visit on Tuesday morning. While there I will be meeting with two different Church mission groups about future trips to the Campus. Thanks so much for your continued prayers and love and support. We are still...

Living one day a time, with eternity in view, and giving God the praise and glory for it all! Blessings to you and yours!

The end result

We have one last blog for the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. What a great story of faith this is and what a great example of how God doesn't just allow us to go through the fiery trials, He walks with us through them. But we need to note and remember the end result of the story. No, I am not talking about the deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the furnace. I am talking about the fact that God got the glory.

"Then Nebuchadnezzar said, 'Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego...for no other god can save in this way.'" Daniel 3:28a, 29b

The important thing is not that they were delivered from the furnace. God was ABLE to rescue and He did. But He still would have been good and faithful and trustworthy even if He had not. The important end result of this story, it should be in all of our lives, is that GOD GETS THE GLORY.

4 in the fire

I was reminded yesterday of another of my favorite parts of the story of the fiery furnace. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not alone.

Daniel 3

24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?" They replied, "Certainly, O king."
25 He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods."

God does not abandon us. Jesus told us that He would never leave us. In the words of an old Imperials song; "He didn't bring us this far, to leave us. He didn't teach us to swim, to let us drown. He didn't build his home in us, to move away. He didn't lift us up, to let us down."

An awareness of God's presence in our lives is never so sweet as it is when we are thrown into the fiery furnace. May you find His presence very real in your life today.

God is able

Several people have asked that we share what we learn as we take this journey, and we are glad to do that. No one goes through any circumstance solely for their own personal benefit.

As I said before, we have seen God’s hand in this from the very beginning and have been able to rest in the knowledge that He was orchestrating every step. He has given us a peace about the “c” word that really goes beyond our comprehension. Even before we knew what the treatment options would be and what the prognosis would be (90% 5-year survival), God had already given us a peace and quiet confidence that regardless of our circumstances or outcomes, everything really was going to be OK.

A few days after the diagnosis was confirmed, I took a fresh look at a familiar passage. In Daniel, chapter three, we find the story of 3 Hebrew young men, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, who had been carried off from Judah into Babylon. You may remember them better by the names they were given once there; Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. King Nebuchadnezzar had made a golden image 90 feet tall and 9 feet wide, and ordered everyone in the land to bow down and worship it. Of course, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused, and were summarily brought before the King and given an ultimatum. Bow or die. Their answer to this command is one of the greatest passages of Scripture.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.

You know the rest of the story…God miraculously saves them from the fire that is so hot the soldiers who throw them in are reduced to crispy critters in seconds. But that’s not the necessarily the best part of the story. The best part of the story is the confidence and boldness that God gives them to answer the king with such faith. There is no doubt that not only were they sure that God was ABLE to save them from the fire, but they also believed that He WOULD save them from the fire. But they added, as an addendum; But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.

We know that God is ABLE to eradicate cancer from my body; and we also believe that He will. But we want everyone to know that even if He does not, we will not bow down to the fear and panic Satan wants to see in our lives. If God was faithful and good and trustworthy from eternity past (and He was), then He is still just as faithful and good and trustworthy today. God can and will walk us through this in a way that will bring Him glory, and hopefully will be an encouragement to many. May God bless you richly today as you press into Him.

As for me and my house – we serve the Lord.