“For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord; plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope. Then, you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 We made it to Houston and back this week. We stayed once again at our friend Bev’s home, near MD Anderson. At Bev’s, we were acquainted with Shelly and Scott Richardson from Arkansas City, KS. Shelly was to begin chemo treatments just that morning for what will be weekly treatments over for the next 2 years. Please join us in praying for them. Truly through the Lord’s providence, we were not able to arrange a shuttle flight for the return trip to Ponca City this time so Misty and I drove to Houston. Driving to Houston turned out to be a blessing because the earliest shuttle we could have boarded was cancelled due to Hurricane Ike. So immediately after Misty’s 15th chemo infusion, we headed north on I-45 with evacuees from the Gulf Shores, well ahead of the hurricane’s initial surges. The procession was slow but it was steady and free of gridlock. The congestion caused a delay of 4 hours getting home – I can think of many times where I’ve waited longer under less trying circumstances. We listened to Bluegrass music on XM radio and enjoyed a picnic fare with excellent weather. With the greatest travelling companion I’ve ever known in the next seat, I call that a pretty decent trip. Yes, it’s been quite a trip. Since we didn’t size the tumor this visit with an ultrasound we can only say there is essentially no palpable mass at this time. That bodes well for what the surgeon hoped would happen and I’m truly praising our Creator! Misty’s next and final chemo treatment will be done here in Ponca City first week in October. We were advised to make arrangements for surgery at that time. The next trip to Houston will be pre-surgery testing and consultations and even a visit with a radiation oncologist to line up radiation treatments for sometime after surgery. The last part of the trip will be the surgery itself and recovery. It’s somewhat of a revelation to realize we’re not overly concerned about the next POA (“plan of attack”). I guess we’ve come to realize there’s so much going on beyond our control and limited means (if we could be in control). Instead, we’ve enjoyed beyond measure the resting comfort of thankful prayer, yours and our own. God has brought about so much in so short a time that I can’t imagine things moving along any quicker than they are already. Worrying changes nothing but prayer changes everything. We’ll never quit asking you to pray for us because we’re convinced that’s what God wants (Col 4:2). Thanks. Blessings, Steve
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