Keep the Faith

Well, it's been almost a month since my last update and not much has changed. We had a great Christmas holiday season and had to clear out old toys to make room for the new ones. Noah got his "big bike to ride on" and I will have John post a fun video of him riding his gift from Santa. As far as Noah's condition, he is doing well as far as we can tell. He looks great and still has only a few side effects from his treatments. He started pre-school a few weeks ago and is enjoying his new class. I do have a few specific prayer requests: Noah has an MRI scheduled for next Wednesday, January 27. I don't have an exact time at this point, but it should be in the morning. He will go from MRI to his clinic where he will receive his sixth treatment from his new protocol. John and I are trying to be as confident as we can that he will get a great report and the scan will be perfectly clear, but there is ALWAYS a lingering "what if" that hangs out in the back of our minds. We need the Lord's comfort and control of our anxieties during this scan. Like I mentioned before, Noah seems to be doing really well - he appears to be a normal (almost) 3 year old with a very short haircut - but I have been struggling emotionally. I've heard that this is common, but anytime I see a picture or video from any past treatments or surgeries, or even if I think on it for too long, I feel an even greater emotion than I did at the time of the occurrence and wonder how in the world I was able to keep it all together at that time. It's very frustrating to not be able to control those emotions.
As always, we are very appreciative of all the prayers and help we've received, and we thank you also for continuing to follow Noah's progress (as much as you can with my infrequent blog posts!) and most of all for praying for his healing. We have pictures I will post tonight, from Christmas and with more hair. (Pictures below)
There are a few families we are keeping constantly in our prayers and hearts; please join us in praying for little Lindsey who has been given several months at most and needs a complete miraculous healing from the Lord, for little Joel who has an MRI the same day as Noah and has been fighting really hard for the past year, for Garon and his wife Katye as he is undergoing testing for seizures and waiting for his next brain surgery, and for sweet Emily who recently said goodbye to her young husband who for several years fought a rare cancer called Rhabdomyosarcoma.
A friend sent us this link to a great song of encouragement that I'd like to share; it really describes the attitude of my heart the past year - through the pain and trials of life we never leave God's hands as long as we are seeking His direction. John often says that He never promises us sunshine and rainbows, in fact he promises that we WILL have trouble in this life, but hallelujah He overcomes this world. Keep the faith even when it hurts. We love you.

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