Neal and I arrived at the U of C yesterday at 12:15 for Neal’s CT scan. We waited, he drank his stuff, waited some more and finally had the scan. We then went to the hospital admitting and waited for a room. We got up to our room around 4pm, got settled and then they did his bone marrow biopsy in the room. I stayed and watched–very interesting! He received his pre-meds and then started Retuxin and a steroid. About 4AM today Neal started methotrexate which will run for 24 hours. During the night he had a bad headache and trouble sleeping so he received something to relieve his pain and help him sleep. He’s been in and out of sleep yet this morning. I am sleeping on a cot in his room which isn’t too bad.
We did revceive some good news this morning that Neal’s CT scan did not show cancer in any other part of his body other than his tumor. Praise God!
We are waiting for the doctor to come in to receive part of his treatment. More on that later.
I want to share what I read in a devotional this morning:
“Let me (God) infuse My peace into your innermost being. As you sit quietly in the Light of My Presence, you can sense Peace growing within you. This is not something that you can accomplish through self-discipline and willpower; it is opening yourself to receive My blessing. In this age of independence, people find it hard to acknowlege their neediness. However, I have taken you along a path that has highlighted your need for Me: placing you in situations where your strengths were irrelevant and your weaknesses were glaringly evident. Through the aridity of those desert marches, I have drawn you closer and closer to Myself. You have discovered flowers of Peace blossoming in the most desolate places. You have learned to thank Me for hard times and difficult journeys, trusting that through them I accomplish My best work. you have realized that neweding Me is the key to knowing Me intimately which is the gift above all gifts.”
As a good friend reminds me often, “Thank you God for making me need You!”
On the journey,
Trish
Neal,
I could feel your heaviness in the last blog you penned – about as heavy as the writer of Psalm 42. Praying the Lord will shield your liver and kidneys and for a bold witness. There are some believing nurses on TN600, tell Aimee I said hi. And for some light reading when you have some laptop time – http://godswordisflawless.org/When%20Gods%20Wants%20a%20Man.html. Tell Trish you both are constantly in our thoughts – we’ll continue to update our fellowship on your progress.
Your brother in Christ,
Steve
Thank you Trish for taking your precious time to write so that we may feel a part of your days and know how to pray.
We are thanking God for no other cancer signs in the CT scan and for His goodness in directing your devotional time–And, thank you for sharing; these are words that we, too, can be blessed by.
All our love, Aunt Gene and Uncle Keith