It is Christmas time and the end of another year looms. But for the moment, it is time to celebrate the meaning of one who gave all to come to this earth, born in poverty and low expectations, and take on the greatest responsibilities bequeathed to man. Yes, man he was but God he is! Despite all the commercialism of this season, the shopping and spending, the partying and carousing, one thing is true - the birth of our Savior brings hope to our troubled world. The world economy is recovering from the shambles of the past few years but we look forward in hope to a better time and a better land. Despite the difficult times many of us have experienced, financially, emotionally, physically, and spiritually, the season of Christmas reminds us that the babe in the manger brings us everlasting hope for the future.
For our family, Christmas gives us another opportunity to recall the many blessings we have received, the many good things that have happened to us, and the many joys that we have experienced, collectively and individually. It is no wonder that my blogs have become less frequent in recent months. It is a testament to my improved health and well being. My health is significantly better than a year ago; My wife and I watch our children grow older and take on more responsibilities in their professional lives, as our daughter has finally flown the coop and now lives in Memphis Tennessee. She graduated for law school this year and passed the Florida bar exams. Now, she is a clerk to a Federal Judge in the Western District of Tennessee. We enjoy watching our grand-children grow up bearing the great potential of what God wants them to be.
And so, we wish you and every member of your family, all the blessings that come with the joy of Christmas and best wishes for a new year of good health, fullness of life, and joys forevermore.
With love and blessings,
Len
Friday, December 25, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Health Update XXX
A Time to Review
Two years ago almost to the day, on a Friday evening (April 27, 2007), I awoke from the fog of anesthesia looked at my wife who sat next to my hospital bed and asked the following question: “What did the doctor say?” As she looked at me, the pause seemed like an eternity. I could see a change come over her countenance. Also, in the room were my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, my daughter, mother, sister and brother-in-law. I had entered surgery with the hope that the procedure would only reveal a benign structure that would require a cosmetic dissection and a rapid recovery. Now, I could see the tears beginning to cover her eyes. “Tell me,” I said. But she didn’t have say anything. Soon, she uttered the words that would change my life forever. “You have cancer.”
My emergence from anesthesia has always been an interesting one. I am very energetic, talkative and some say funny. Though bearing the possibility of despair, I was unsurprisingly positive – an extension of my normal demeanor. “Don’t worry sweetheart, I’ll be fine!” was my immediate response. Obviously, at that time I was in no state of mind to assess my condition or understand the gravity of the situation. I was awaking from three and a half hours of surgery. A tumor located beneath my right Eustachian tube was removed as well as several cervical lymph nodes leaving an unsightly scar from my right ear to my chin. Pathological tests revealed that the tumor and lymph nodes were cancerous. The prognosis was for a better than 50% chance of complete recovery after an extensive series of radiation and chemotherapy treatments that would result in excruciating pain and test the limits of my faith.
In a recent sermon at my church, Pastor Vatel illustrated the plight and plea of God’s relationship with his children in Psalm 77 (NIV). Verse 1: “I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me.” Verse 14: “You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.”
Two years later, although my memory is still scarred by the experience, my hope is alive and my health has continued to improve! The reassurance of God’s continual presence, love, and care reinvigorates me. When God intervenes, the prognosis does not matter. What appears to be a curse becomes a blessing. Despair is only a delusion. Anxiety gives way to hope. Fear is replaced by a transcendent joy, and sorrow and gloom dissipates as an excitement for life ensues. That is the legacy of the reassuring presence of life, love, and hope of a living Savior. You have all played a major role in this experience. Your prayers, concern, and encouragement continue to boost my spirit. Thanks for another year of life – to God and to you!
Love and blessings,
Len
Two years ago almost to the day, on a Friday evening (April 27, 2007), I awoke from the fog of anesthesia looked at my wife who sat next to my hospital bed and asked the following question: “What did the doctor say?” As she looked at me, the pause seemed like an eternity. I could see a change come over her countenance. Also, in the room were my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, my daughter, mother, sister and brother-in-law. I had entered surgery with the hope that the procedure would only reveal a benign structure that would require a cosmetic dissection and a rapid recovery. Now, I could see the tears beginning to cover her eyes. “Tell me,” I said. But she didn’t have say anything. Soon, she uttered the words that would change my life forever. “You have cancer.”
My emergence from anesthesia has always been an interesting one. I am very energetic, talkative and some say funny. Though bearing the possibility of despair, I was unsurprisingly positive – an extension of my normal demeanor. “Don’t worry sweetheart, I’ll be fine!” was my immediate response. Obviously, at that time I was in no state of mind to assess my condition or understand the gravity of the situation. I was awaking from three and a half hours of surgery. A tumor located beneath my right Eustachian tube was removed as well as several cervical lymph nodes leaving an unsightly scar from my right ear to my chin. Pathological tests revealed that the tumor and lymph nodes were cancerous. The prognosis was for a better than 50% chance of complete recovery after an extensive series of radiation and chemotherapy treatments that would result in excruciating pain and test the limits of my faith.
In a recent sermon at my church, Pastor Vatel illustrated the plight and plea of God’s relationship with his children in Psalm 77 (NIV). Verse 1: “I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me.” Verse 14: “You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.”
Two years later, although my memory is still scarred by the experience, my hope is alive and my health has continued to improve! The reassurance of God’s continual presence, love, and care reinvigorates me. When God intervenes, the prognosis does not matter. What appears to be a curse becomes a blessing. Despair is only a delusion. Anxiety gives way to hope. Fear is replaced by a transcendent joy, and sorrow and gloom dissipates as an excitement for life ensues. That is the legacy of the reassuring presence of life, love, and hope of a living Savior. You have all played a major role in this experience. Your prayers, concern, and encouragement continue to boost my spirit. Thanks for another year of life – to God and to you!
Love and blessings,
Len
Friday, January 9, 2009
The Promise of Newness
There is a word that sparks excitement to my psyche. The word is “new” or its numerous derivatives. As a New Year begins, it is common for people to think of beginning anew by making New Year resolutions – new diets; new exercise routines; new plans for study; develop new financial plans. The truth is I feel like a new man. After 18 months of medical treatments including surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hundreds of prescriptions, pills of varied color, size, and shape, and thousands of encouraging emails and prayers, I feel like a new being.
The devastating effects of the energy of radiation administered in radiation therapy and the powerful toxic effects of chemotherapeutic drugs are designed to destroy the old and facilitate a regeneration of new tissue; to bring an end to the cells of death and create a new beginning for the cells that would bring life. Certainly, my recovery gives me a new sense of what it is to become new.
This is a new year, a new semester, a new month. You may have new classes, new plans, new job assignments, and new ideas. In a few weeks, Americans will welcome a new President and usher in a new government. But the God of grace and mercy whose hands can heal and whose words can bring a new beginning is able to bring new life and a new spirit here and now, and a new vision of what you want to do this year. Let him give you new strength for this new encounter.
Recently I did a search to find some of my favorite biblical passages that incorporate that word, new, or its variants. Here are a few I want to share with you from the New Living Translation:
Ezekiel 36: 26: I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.
Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared.
Psalm 40: 3 He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
Lamentations 3: 22 – The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 – Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin anew (sic) each morning.
My best wishes to you for God’s richest blessings in this New Year!
The devastating effects of the energy of radiation administered in radiation therapy and the powerful toxic effects of chemotherapeutic drugs are designed to destroy the old and facilitate a regeneration of new tissue; to bring an end to the cells of death and create a new beginning for the cells that would bring life. Certainly, my recovery gives me a new sense of what it is to become new.
This is a new year, a new semester, a new month. You may have new classes, new plans, new job assignments, and new ideas. In a few weeks, Americans will welcome a new President and usher in a new government. But the God of grace and mercy whose hands can heal and whose words can bring a new beginning is able to bring new life and a new spirit here and now, and a new vision of what you want to do this year. Let him give you new strength for this new encounter.
Recently I did a search to find some of my favorite biblical passages that incorporate that word, new, or its variants. Here are a few I want to share with you from the New Living Translation:
Ezekiel 36: 26: I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.
Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared.
Psalm 40: 3 He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
Lamentations 3: 22 – The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 – Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin anew (sic) each morning.
My best wishes to you for God’s richest blessings in this New Year!
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