Remarkable. Remarkable. Remarkable!

God is REMARKABLE...

Our day started with good news. Janet's CA 125 level has dropped from 288 to 46 since starting chemo. She was taken into surgery around 11 am and her doctor just came out and shared the good news with us.

In the 2 minute conversation we had with him, Janet's doctor said the word remarkable THREE times. He said it was remarkable that there was no cancer in her abdomen as her previous doctor had seen. He said it was remarkable that it was only seen in her ovaries after the previous doctor couldn't even find her gall bladder because her abdomen was in her words "covered in tumors/cancer". Our God is remarkable. We told the doctor that we weren't the least surprised. God is the ultimate healer and Janet has had so many people praying for her and we know those prayers were heard.

Webster's dictionary defines remarkable as worthy of being or likely to be noticed especially as being uncommon or extraordinary. We think this was an extremely appropriate choice of words for Janet's doctor to use.

She is in recovery right now and we haven't seen her yet. She has said all week that she cant wait to wake up and have Tony tell her the good news and that it is all over. That moment has almost come. She will be in the hospital for three to four days and then will have 3 or 4 more rounds of chemo to lower her CA 125 level to the teens. He sent some of the cancer off for pathology in case we needed that information in the future.

We will update you with how Janet is doing in the next little while, we all can't wait to see her, to hug her and to tell her what she already knows, that God is amazing and has heard our prayers!

--Jenna

"You Are More"

Tomorrow I am scheduled for surgery at Northwest Hospital in Springdale at 9:30am. I will be having a complete hysterectomy and will find out the effect chemo has had on my body the past few months. I can honestly say I have complete peace that I will be in God's hands. I've had so much encouragement from others today through phone calls, texts and people at church. I was surrounded by two different groups of people today praying over me. The youth in late Sunday school this morning then tonight the deacons, ministers and their wives circled around me and Laurie Smith, the pastor's wife, as she will be having back surgery on Tuesday. My brother David came up from Texas to be with us tomorrow as well.



If I could have sung a song at church today, I would have sung "You Are More" by Hillsong. Jordan blessed me by singing it for me this morning in our church service. I have posted the link of the song that you can copy and paste.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8-9uOwDObM

Thank you for all those that continue to pray and have been prayer warriors for me. God is Sovereign and is in complete control of this journey and my Hope is in Him. I will be sleeping peacefully tonight knowing no matter the outcome, He already knows and will be with me and my family. He is AWESOME!!!

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"My Hope"

Today began with "Hope" in the Lord. I read Psalms 130:5-8 "I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption. And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities." I know without a doubt my hope is in the Lord for He has redeemed me. I told Tony no matter the outcome from surgery on Monday, my hope will remain in Jesus. I have received cards in the mail almost everyday since my diagnosis and this afternoon I received one that said HOPE, You can hold on to HOPE-no matter what happens because there's One who's holding on to you. He'll stop at nothing and do anything to make sure you have everything you need. Waiting in hope with you to see all God will do. Again, I don't believe things are a coincidence, God gave me that verse this morning and reminded me again this afternoon from a card to where my Hope is to be found.

We decided today would be a great day to go out and do some biking on the trails for the whole family. David, Jordan's boyfriend, was in for the weekend and was able to join us. Hudson even joined in on the fun too. We had a great time enjoying God's beautiful day that He blessed all of us with.
Bryan, Jenna and Hudson (Hudson wasn't too sure of this adventure at first)

Tony, Me, Jordan, David, Jenna, Hudson, and Bryan

So thankful for the time we all had to share together and the memories that were made. Hudson loved hanging out on the bike. Sad thing is the bike carrier he was riding in broke and Bryan had to carry him in his arms for part of the ride home. Luckily it didn't fall apart with Hudson in the carrier. I'm not too sure biking trails and a baby in a carrier is the best idea.

Jordan and David went to a Naturals game (the rest of us weren't invited) so we went to our downtown square and ate at the "Station Cafe" outside. We decided to go for a walk and visit "Grandma" in the nursing home. On our way back toward the square, Hudson got to spend some time in the tree outside of Studio 412 (where Jordan and I work).

Hudson loves trees!!

David and Jordan at the Naturals Game

I am so grateful for my family and our time together today. God is amazing and His mercies are new every morning, great is His faithfulness.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I rejoiced and was glad in it."

"Pre-Op...... Check"

Yesterday I went for my pre-op at Northwest Hospital in Springdale. Two and half hours later I was done and headed to work. My human side and flesh kicked in and I started missing the idea of getting to go to work. I know it sounds weird, but I really am so grateful for my job and love what I do. I had to fight my emotions and not be a cry baby. Not sure why it was hard to think about having time off, normally I would think it was a great idea. I have been blessed to be able to continue to work and I've said many times, being around others really lifts my spirit. Today was a much better day and I am thankful to have a dear friend, Susan Byrum, take over for me while I'm gone. We visited and went over everything. The month of May is a very busy month for the youth ministry at our church and I have complete peace that she will step right in and do a great job. Thank you Susan for such a sweet spirit of helping out at Studio 412 while I'm gone. You are such a huge blessing to me.

My surgery is on for Monday, April 30th and the time has now changed to 9:30am. I know people are praying for me because I am not fearful and have complete peace in whatever the outcome may be. It will be a big day for me and my family. I had blood drawn yesterday to find out what my cancer marker will be. It's called CA125 and we want that number below 30. When I was first diagnosed, it was at 288. I am praying for Dr. Ivy to have wisdom and also to have rest for him over the weekend so he will be refreshed to do my surgery.

God has continued to be so faithful to me on this journey and constantly shows me His love everyday. I also know that when you put your focus on Him and try to tell others about His grace and love, Satan tries to take away your joy and will do whatever he can to take your eyes off the Lord. These last few days have been a test for me and it has been easy to let "things" creep in and take away your joy. I am thankful to have God's word to keep me focused on what is most important, His love and peace that only He can give. Here is what I read this morning and it was exactly what I needed. Psalms 122:6-9 "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! May they be secure who love you! Peace be within your walls and security within your towers! For my brothers and companions sake, I will say, Peace be within you! For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your good." It would be so easy to take my eyes off the Lord and dwell on selfishness, but He continues to give me the peace that He is in such control and I would be the one losing out if I stayed on my own path for life. I am thankful His word is active and a living source we can cling to in our time of need or weakness.

II Peter 1:3-8 "His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

I don't want to be unfruitful for Jesus and I want His name to be glorified in all I do. He is the reason that I have peace and He deserves my very best attitude that I can give to let my light shine for Him.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."

"Amazing Race Audition Video"

Thanks once again to my son, Bryan, for helping me get a video set up to put on my blog and also helping with the application process for the "Amazing Race".
My brother and I should find out in June or July if we make it through the first round of applications. The actual taping for the upcoming race won't be until November/December. What a way to finish out the year of 2012 to be on the "Amazing Race" and have a chance to win $1,000,000. We both are very competitive and would love a chance to compete and travel around the world. David thank you for being so supportive of me during this season of my life.

Amazing Race try out from Bryan Buettemeyer on Vimeo.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"Never Once..... God You Are Faithful"

Psalms 23:1-4 "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pasture. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness, for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

Today has been a little different for me. I woke up feeling good and was thankful to go to church to worship. I need to remember to always wear waterproof mascara when I go to church. The very first song we sang tears began to fall from my eyes and all I could do was stand there and listen to the song without singing. It was a great morning of worship. During the offering our assistant worship leader, Andy Muskrat, sang a beautiful song I had never heard before called "Never Once". I love to hear songs of God's faithfulness. I have posted a link you can copy and paste to hear it and also the lyrics of the song are below. Thank you Andy for allowing God to use you with amazing gifts to minister to others like me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1bXG4WIesA

"Never Once"

Standing on this mountaintop
Looking just how far we’ve come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us

Kneeling on this battle ground
Seeing just how much You’ve done
Knowing every victory
Was Your power in us

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Kneeling on this battle ground
Seeing just how much You’ve done
Knowing every victory
Was Your power in us

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Carried by Your constant grace
Held within Your perfect peace
Never once, no, we never walk alone

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Every step we are breathing in Your grace
Evermore we’ll be breathing out Your praise
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful


Before church this evening I was feeling a little anxious about my upcoming surgery that is one week away and thinking of having more rounds of chemo didn't sound to exciting. I began to let fear and doubt creep into my mind. I could see where on a day to day basis, if you allow him, Satan could sneak in and take your joy away. Tony and I went too church and I am thankful for God and His people in my life. Being in the presence of others, lifts my spirit. After church we went to dinner with the Knipple's, Frank's, Cameron's and Smith couples and I needed that time to refresh me. God is faithful and I am thankful that I never have to walk this journey alone. He will never leave me or forsake me.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"Testimonies Shared"

Jordan and I were blessed to be asked by Courtney Kerr (a former youth at FBC Bentonville) to speak at Second Baptist in Springfield, MO to their girl's college ministry. We drove there yesterday afternoon and spent the night and spoke this morning. Such a great group of young ladies. We had a time of worship, then Jordan spoke. Their theme was "Masquerade" and Jordan shared about Singleness, Purity and Unbelief. I was so proud of her and what a blessing that we were there together to share. After Jordan spoke, then I was able to share my testimony of all that God has done in my life. She and I were both blessed by these young ladies and their hearts to listen.

Beautiful Girls from 2nd Baptist, Springfield, MO

I am so thankful for this season of my life to have Jordan with me and all that God has done in our relationship. I never want to take for granted the mother/daughter relationship we have. I know this could be a short season of life for us to be together so much and I want to enjoy every moment. The beauty God has blessed her with is just as real on the inside if not more. I Peter 3:4 "but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious." Jordan thank you for honoring God with your life and trusting Him to be your everything.


We arrived back home this afternoon and went to Bogle Park to see all the beautiful girls in the Prom dresses. The guys cleaned up pretty good too. :) I was able to come home and plant flowers in my front beds. It felt so good to be able to work in the yard and to get it ready for the summer. This has been a very fast weekend with all our travels and I am so thankful to be feeling so good and to enjoy life.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"The Amazing Race"

Jordan, Hutch and I started yesterday with a road trip to Hawkins, Texas where our church camp will be. We may be a little crazy because we made it a day trip verses an overnight trip, 6 hours one way. Less than 1 hour into the trip Hutch was pulled over on I-540 going 88mph in a 70mph zone. He thinks a large hill caused him to be going so fast. On the way there we talked about the "Amazing Race" and decided that I should try and get on the show. I made a phone call to my brother and asked if he was interested in joining me on the application process and he agreed immediately. We have until April 25th to turn everything in, including a video together. My brother David lives 2 hours from the camp so we decided if the video together was going to happen, it had to be yesterday. My bald head is a great attention getter for a video so he went home to shave his head again so we could be bald together and share my story.

We arrived to the camp at 2:30pm and were given a tour of the 1100 acres. Our students are going to be blown away by this camp! My brother David arrived at the camp around 4:00pm. He finished out the tour with us then we did our video together for the "Race". I will have to fill out the application and turn everything in this next week. The camp served us fajitas for dinner and they were amazing! David left around 6:30pm on his new Harley. What a blessing to have a brother ride so far just for a few hours to see me. Thanks David for being such an amazing brother!

Thank you Jordan for painting on our heads

Me and my amazing brother :)

On our journey home we were traveling on the back roads and we passed a young kid on the side of the road lasso-ing with a rope (very random moment) The name of our camp is Allaso Ranch so we decided to turn around and get a video of him for our camp video. He loved showing off for Jordan on the video, then Hutch got out of the car to get a lesson from the kid. It was entertainment for all three of us.

Hutch getting a quick "lasso" lesson

Lesson failed

We arrived home at 1:00am this morning and now Jordan and I are getting ready for another trip to Springfield, MO to speak at Second Baptist tomorrow to a group of college girls. "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord my rock and my redeemer." Psalms 19:14

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it"

"Arms Up"

What a beautiful day we were blessed with here in Northwest Arkansas. Tony and I decided it was a great day for taking our bikes out onto the trails. We were both born and raised in West Texas and I don't remember ever seeing more amazing terrain than what we have right here in Bentonville. We rode our bikes on several different trails tonight and had a great work out.





As we were riding along the trails, I began to sing the song below. I couldn't remember all the lyrics but I felt the strength of the Lord as I was riding. I was tired before we began the bike ride, but it felt so good to be out and enjoying His nature all around us in the hills.

Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord,
wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord.
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord,
wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord.

Our God, You reign forever
Our hope, our strong deliverer.

You are the everlasting God,
The everlasting God.
You do not faint,
You won't grow weary.
You're the defender of the weak,
You comfort those in need,
You lift us up on wings like eagles.

Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord,
wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord.
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord,
wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord.

The Lord is the everlasting God,
The creator of all the Earth,
He never grows weak or weary,
No one can measure the depths of His understanding,
He gives power to the weak, and strength to the powerless,
Even youth will become weak and tired,
And young men will fall in exhaustion,
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength,
They will soar high on wings like eagles,
They will run and not grow weary,
They will walk and not faint,
Isaiah 40:28-31

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhMdWjL2kiU



The pictures do not do justice on how amazing these trails are above. The picture below is after we finished the trails and Bryan and Jenna have taught Hudson to put his arms up when they say "arms up". Tony would not take this picture unless I put my "arms up" so this picture below is in honor of Hudson.

"Arms Up"

As we were headed back to Crystal Bridges we were commenting on how no one was out on such a beautiful night and came around a corner and saw Luke and Leanna McCollum jogging. We stopped and were visiting with them, then we saw Bruce and Shonda Painter walking. These are both couple friends from church and we enjoyed a visit out on the trails.

I am thankful for the continued friendships and love God pours out over us. He continues to show us His faithfulness everyday and we are blessed beyond measure.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, and we can rejoice and be glad in it."

"Waiting Upon the Lord"

Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." This is one of the verses Bro. Phillip read this morning. I would love to say I practice all of them, but today one of them stands out clearly in my mind, "Patience". Everything has been going great for me. I feel great and I am truly enjoying each day to it's fullest. My problem is I am trying to rush my life. My surgery is two weeks from tomorrow and I am so ready to have it and move on and get everything over with. I know God has a plan for everything and I need to rest in Him. The verse that stays in my mind is Psalms 46:10a "Be still, and know that I am God." His purpose and plan is far greater than mine and I will trust Him and pray my rest stays in Him.

We have been blessed with lots of rain today and I love to hear the thunder. To me it's a reminder of God's power and that He is control of ALL things in our lives. Job 37:5 "God thunders wondrously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot comprehend." The rain was coming down hard after church and Jordan and I needed to get from the church to across the street to our youth building. Tony had already left and we had no umbrellas. I mentioned to Jordan that we could run across the street and here is her comment to me "you don't have any hair to worry about" I had to laugh and tell her that was very rude. She only said it because she knows I really am okay without hair. Just another blessing of being bald. I helped host a wedding shower yesterday and was trying to figure out what to wear and I told Tony I feel like I stick out like a sore thumb wearing a hat and here is his comment to me "Lucy you stick out like sore thumb cause you are bald". I am thankful my family and I have embraced the fact that I am bald and we are all okay with it.

Me & Jordo after church spared by the rain thanks to Steve Tucker giving us a ride to the youth building.

The Cameron's had us over for lunch today. Randy said since he didn't shave his head or wear a hat, he wanted to do something else in my honor, so he and Linda decided to cook my favorite meal I usually cook for them. They made brisket, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, cream corn and rolls. I must say the meal was delicious!!! The love and sweet spirit that was put into making the meal was priceless. Randy led the blessing with a moment of tears and silence thanking God for the goodness in our lives. Thank you Randy for truly blessing me with your kind words and I am so grateful for the bond we share through Jesus.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"Head Shaving Video" part II

Here is another video that Jordan my daughter put together for me. This was taken the night the youth boys, men and young kids at our church shaved their heads on my behalf. Thank you Jordan for doing such a wonderful job of capturing these moments. Thank you to all the ones that participated on this night with shaving the heads as well as those that were shaved. You can see why this journey I am on is such a blessing because of ALL the love that God continues to show me through other people's lives. Psalms 9:1-2 "I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High."

Head Shaving from Bryan Buettemeyer on Vimeo.

Thank you Bryan for always helping me get videos put onto the blog!

"Blessings of Great Health"

If you were able to get out of bed this morning and see God's creation, you are blessed. Jordan and I watched a show the other day where a young girl had recently become paralyzed and was about to get married and her dream of walking down the aisle with her dad would never happen, he would have to push her down the aisle. She said if only she could stand one more time. I don't think we realize how blessed we are until something is taken away from us. I am thankful today that I was able to wake up after a great night's rest, stand on my own two feet, see, feel, hear, touch, smell, eat, laugh, and enjoy all of the many blessings God continues to shower upon me. Psalms 119:28-29 "You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast loves endures forever!"

Tony, Jordan and I went for a bike ride after dinner. We all have mountain bikes and haven't been out on the trails by Crystal Bridges since the end of last year. I wasn't sure how it would go, but I must say, it was amazing!!!! We went on 3 different trails and I was praising Jesus that I was able to enjoy the ride and had lots of fun doing it. We have 3 weeks left until my surgery and I want to enjoy as much of this great Spring weather as possible.



Tony and Me
Jordan and Me

"Today is the day the Lord has made, and I can say I rejoiced in it."

"Easter Hats"

Matthew 28:5-6 "But the angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay." Easter is the day we celebrate life in Jesus because He is alive and gives us hope and life in Him. Thank you Jesus for all you did for me on that Cross and that your Holy Spirit lives inside of me.

I had asked the youth girls and those that read my blog to wear hats today for Easter. As we were driving up to church I began to see hats. Oh, how blessed I am to have so many show up today wearing hats in my honor. If there were visitors at our church today they might have thought they were going to the Royal Wedding. Can't express how overjoyed my heart was to see all the hats. I had as many that could, to meet in the choir suite for a group picture. I do know there were at least 10 others wearing hats that could not make it for various reasons, but I really am so thankful for all the ones that took part in wearing hats on my behalf today. I had no idea what to expect and I had asked Gary Withrow to take a group picture for me and I think I counted 72 total wearing hats.

Thank you to everyone that participated!!! My heart was so blessed!! (You can click on these pictures to see them larger)

I'm the bald one in the middle :)

Love this young lady!!!

God's love is shown to me daily through the love of others. I am so thankful to be part of such a wonderful church body. I am also thankful for those that don't even know me that reach out and show me His love. Tony's assistant Stephanie has 2 sisters that I have never met, and they wanted to give me something special and this is what Tony brought home to me the other night. The art is hanging on our wall by the dining room table.



"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."

"SUFFERING"

My family attended a "Secret Church" event last night for Good Friday. Over 50,000 joined in by simulcast to hear David Platt speak on "Suffering". Here is a brief description of what Secret church is about:

When we think of "church" in America, we think of going to meet at a building, singing, praying and hearing a message from a Pastor or teacher. But in many places around the world, "church" meets in a home, an apartment, even in secret. These small groups of Christ-followers often meet for many hours in study, prayer and fellowship, as it is dangerous to travel to "church" and they want to make the most of their time together. Secret Church is our "house church," where we meet periodically for an intense time of Bible study--lasting 4-6 hours--and prayer for our persecuted brothers and sisters across the globe.

Suffering is something everyone faces in this world, whether you're a Christian or not. Some believe Christians shouldn't suffer and that the road should be easy because of God's love, and then when things go wrong, God is the first one they blame. Jesus Christ paid the ultimate suffering on the cross that was undeserved, and He did it all for us. God is sovereign, and before the world ever began He had ALL things in His plan. If we lose our faith when we suffer because we want to blame God, did we really have faith to begin with? If we can truly trust Him for our salvation, why can't we trust him through our trials in life? God is the orchestrator of every detail in your life. I can honestly look back over my life and see how God had a plan and that I was never the one in control. Lamentations 3:22-25 "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in him. The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him."

When this recent journey began for me and my family, I knew it was all part of God's story that He wanted to use me to show others His great love and mercy. I pray that He will continue to use me and allow others to come to know Him and that ALL glory belongs to Him. We started our time together last night at 6:00pm and ended at 1:30am and in the end we sang the song "It Is Well With My Soul". I could not sing the words without tears running down my face, because I can say "It is well with my soul". I have complete peace and trust that God is working ALL things out for my good and His glory, and I am thankful He is allowing me to fit into His story for my life.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Refrain:
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!
And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

"Today is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."

"Breaking the Fast"

A month ago on March 7th our youth group and adults that were present at our monthly "FUEL" service, heard a message about fasting. Everyone was challenged to fast for 28 days from something that would be difficult to go without. They were asked to turn in a piece a paper of what they would be fasting from and for something that they needed prayer for. There were a lot of hurts and needs on those pieces of papers that I don't feel should be shared. Students and adults were giving up facebook, twitter, soft drinks, sweet tea, a meal a day and other things to draw closer to the Lord and also to commit to pray for my healing until our next meeting, which was tonight. Ed Newton is our monthly speaker and he asked for a junior high, senior high and college student to share what they had fasted from and what this past month had done for them and their relationship with Jesus. Emily Horton, the junior high student, gave up facebook and twitter, George Sisson, senior high student, gave up his cell phone and Pooky Darst, college student, gave up all food and drinks. Pooky only had pita bread and water for the past 28 days. Thru all of this they all drew closer in their relationship with the Lord and saw His hand move in their lives in different ways. They all 3 gave up so much and remembered to keep me close in their prayers. I was then asked to share so here is what I said to the students and adults tonight:

I have had 3 rounds of chemo and this last one was so different from the other two. I had very minimum side effects and never lost my appetite like I did the first 2 rounds. The first two times I lost my appetite for several days and even though I felt hungry, nothing tasted good. This last chemo my appetite stayed good and everything tasted good to me. I knew a lot of people were praying for me, but it didn't really hit me until last night on the phone with Susan Goss when I was sharing with her, that so many people gave up so much for me over the last month and were earnestly praying for me, that God answered those prayers on my behalf and showed me His mercy and grace by carrying me and giving me an appetite. Wow!!!! I am blown away by God's grace and for His love through others that I can truly say, joy has overwhelmed my soul. If you don't believe God is real or that prayer works, I can testify that He is ALIVE and so real and is hearing prayers. Our timing or paths we want to take may not be the same as His, but He ALWAYS knows what is best for our lives. He's never failed me and I continue to put my hope and trust in Him. Thank you to all the young people and adults that gave up something this past month to pray for my healing. God is listening and I don't think I could ever communicate how blessed I truly am and how much I appreciate all the love and prayers for me.

After I finished speaking Ed had me to sit on the steps and had everyone come and surround me to pray over me as a group. What a humbling and precious moment this was to me. Thank you Anna Egle for sending me this photograph.




Psalms 103:20-22 "Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will! Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!"

"Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"Hats for Easter"

Ladies, Easter is coming soon and I found my Easter hat yesterday. Don't let the picture below scare you and if you bought this hat, you might not have anyone sitting close to you. :) Here in Bentonville there is a store called "Charming Charlies" and they have any style and color of hat you could imagine. I'm excited to see who all will be wearing hats to FBC Bentonville this Sunday. We have 2 services and I would love to get a picture with anyone that wears a hat. If you could meet me in the choir suite at 10:00am and we can get one group picture. Early Service is at 8:30 and late is 10:30, so this should be a good time for all of us to meet.

Not my Easter hat, but what a fun hat!!

I had a sweet friend, Kristen Shepard, bring me a gift today from her mom that I don't even know. She gave me a Teal Scarf that is so pretty. Kristen also gave me a card that I love the saying of:



I am so thankful for how great I have felt and the very few side effects from chemo. How blessed we are today that man has come so far with treating patients that have been diagnosed with cancer, but more blessed that God is fighting for us that know Him and carries us through the fight! IJohn 5:4-5 "For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" Easter is coming and I don't want it to be about me and ladies wearing hats, but I truly want others to know where my hope and faith is found. It's putting your hope and trust in Jesus Christ and knowing He has already overcome all the things in this world.

Carly Sorey, a former student in our youth group is in massage therapy school and came by today and gave me a foot rub. Sweet to have a job that I can stop and be pampered. :)

Thanks Carly!

"Today is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."

We Love Hudson!!

Jordan bought me a new hat. I'm thinking it's time to invest in another hat rack.
I love my new yellow hat!!! Thank you Jordo!!!

Jordan and Me

Hudson is not a child that sits still very long but he has recently discovered Bubble Guppies on Nickelodeon. What a wonderful feeling having him in your lap even if he doesn't realize how sweet it feels to us or that we are soaking in the moment for ourselves.

G-Pa and Hudson

G-Ma and Hudson

Jordan and I wanted to go for a walk at Crystal Bridges and thought Hudson might enjoy it as well and we are so thankful his parents are willing to share him with us.

Jordo, Hudson & Me

Jordo & Hudson

Hudson wasn't too fond of the pig!

Hurry and take the picture cause I don't like this pig!

I am so grateful for my family here in town and so thankful that we enjoy time together. God's timing is always perfect and He knew how precious these moments would be for all of us to share this journey together.

"Today is the day the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it."

"A Mighty Fortress Is Our God"

Our youth choir sang "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" this morning and what a blessing to sit there and hear those words and know I could claim the victory through Him for my life. He is my Mighty Fortress and I pray my eyes never turn away from Him. There are so many things out in the world that wants us to take our eyes off of Him, but when it all comes down to it He is the only thing that will carry us through this life's journey. We have to keep our eyes on Him in the good and the bad. He is my Mighty Fortress!!!! Psalms 18:2 "The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." Psalms 31:3 "For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name's sake you lead me and guide me"

Our God is, a consuming fire,
A burning holy Flame, with glory and freedom
Our God is, the only righteous judge,
Ruling over us with kindness and wisdom

We will keep our eyes on You
We will keep our eyes on You

A mighty fortress is our God
A sacred refuge is Your Name
Your Kingdom is unshakable
With You forever we will reign

Our God is, jealous for His own
None could comprehend, His love and His mercy
Our God is exalted on His throne
High above the heavens
Forever He’s worthy...

We will keep our eyes on You
We will keep our eyes on You

We will keep our eyes on You
We will keep our eyes on You
So we can set our hearts on You
Lord we will set our hearts on You!

Go to this link to hear these beautiful words sung by Christy Nockels and I pray these words will encourage you while you sit and listen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRQp1bUJkBE

I know there are a lot of people hurting and going through some difficult times right now and my prayer is that others will see Jesus through our lives that have Hope in Him. We are still here because there are those that need to know what a Mighty Fortress He truly is. May I never forget all He has done for me and bring glory and honor to His name and not my name.

"Today is the day the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it."