ASH

Posted on December 11, 2014 by Dana

Over 26,000 people gathered in San Francisco this past week for the American Society of Hematology Conference, where doctors and researchers shared progress being made in the fight against blood cancers. I was invited to speak to a group committed to find a cure for multiple myeloma.

Susan and I flew to the West coast Friday and walked around Fisherman’s Wharf, taking in the view of the Golden Gate Bridge and other beautiful sights. We rode the famous cable cars up and down the steep streets of the city and ate seafood on the bay. We had a great day.

On Saturday, we made new friends at a nice dinner given to survivors and support group leaders. Three other patients joined me at a reception where we shared our experiences and expressed appreciation to those who work to help those dealing with cancer. We were with doctors and researchers from Japan, Italy, Australia, India, and the US.

Brian Durie, one of the world’s leading multiple myeloma doctors, introduced each patient before we stood to speak. Susan and I flew to Los Angeles in 2001 and met with Dr. Durie to ask advice about six months after I was diagnosed. I don’t think he remembered us, but I was able to thank him, my doctors in Atlanta, nurses, and researchers for their contributions to my health.

I also thanked Susan in front of a crowd well aware of the role care givers have in the life of a cancer patient. The Person I thanked above all was Jesus, who has walked with me and given us all peace through the years. I told about people who prayed for us and of incredible answers God has given. Though I don’t consider myself a polished orator, several thanked me for speaking from my heart.

If our hearts are full of God’s love, maybe that’s what Jesus wants us to do. “Go and tell how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you,” Jesus told the man who had been delivered from a legion of evil spirits. That’s what I want to do too.

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…” I Peter 3:15

Posted in stories | Comments Off

amigos

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Dana

Karlyn and I had a great week in Nicaragua. Thanks for your prayers! Our team of eighteen joined about fifty other Americans who came to work along side our Nicaraguan friends in a small village called La Chuscada.

John Bland founded Amigos For Christ after he visited Nicaragua in 1999 in the aftermath of a devastating hurricane. Soon after that trip, he and his family moved to the city of Chinandega and began serving communities in practical ways.

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus sometimes asked people when they came to Him. If Jesus asked outlying villages of Nicaragua this question, the answer might be, “We need clean water to drink,” or “We would like our children to have the chance to get a good education.”

The goal of Amigos For Christ is ‘to make Christ more visible.’ La Chuscada received running water in their community last Thanksgiving, and this year we worked with the citizens of the village to build a school. What a sight it was to see two hundred people working together every day to dig foundations, pour concrete, and erect the framing of an eight-room school building!

Until now, school was held in the dirt under the trees. When it rained, plastic was draped above the desks. Two dedicated teachers did the best they could in difficult circumstances, but now they are so excited about the future.

Once again, I feel blessed to witness the Body of Christ loving the way God loves. Even as we do seemingly simple things, Jesus becomes more visible and God is honored.

“In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Posted in missions | Comments Off

go

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Dana

Our college daughter Karlyn and I are taking fourteen high school students to Nicaragua tomorrow so I won’t write next week. We will be working with an organization called Amigos For Christ to help bring water to a community. We would appreciate your prayers!

We know Jesus told His apostles to go into all the world to make disciples and to baptize and to teach the ways of Jesus. And while it is right to see the Great Commission as an important command, it is also possible to see it as an invitation.

“I am with you!” What beautiful words! Jesus wanted His love and His death and His resurrection to be known beyond Israel. He wanted those who had never even heard of God to know Him. He wanted the pagans, the savages, and the heathen to see His Father… one who loved the world so much that He sacrificed His only Son.

Every apostle except John is thought to have died a violent death in his effort to spread the Gospel; John was exiled on the Isle of Patmos. Would they say it was worth it? I think so… and each would say: “Jesus was true to His word… He was with me.”

He’s with us too!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

“All authority in heaven and earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

Posted in missions | Comments Off

enter

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Dana

“The Kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”

Jesus not only proclaimed that the Kingdom of God was at hand; He revealed the secret to entering it. The important attitude is ‘humility’, the only entrance is the Son, and the rule of the Kingdom is ‘love.’

“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

How can we enter God’s presence except humbly? He created us, He knows all, and He has all power. Only in humility can we recognize and accept the passageway to the Father.

“I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep… I am the gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved.”

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

On earth, Jesus walked in fellowship and in submission to His Father. He lived in the Kingdom and the mark of His life was love. Love led to compassion, healing, truth-telling, and sacrifice. Love flowed from the Father as the Son obeyed. This is the rule of the Kingdom for us. We walk in love as we receive love from our Savior.

“Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” Amen.

“As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Now remain in My love. If you obey My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: love each other as I have loved you.” John 15:9-12

Posted in Jesus | Comments Off

celebrate

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Dana

photoLast year, our son Taylor led his volleyball team to the state finals and lost in the championship game. This past Saturday, his team returned to the finals and won!

I stood at the top of the bleachers most of the match, feeling the excitement and stress a coach experiences in the heat of the battle. After the last point was won, my hands shot up in the air as the celebration began. This was not a premeditated move… it was an automatic reaction to the joy I knew our son and his team was experiencing. They had quite a year.

The greatest celebrations are those fueled by love. Jesus told a story to a group of people that needed to know God better. When a wayward son came home after a season of rebellion and sin, a father not only ran to meet him, but he completely forgave him and then poured out gifts and blessings.

The father invited others to join him in the joyous occasion. “’Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate! For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.” (Luke 15:23-24)

But not all were happy. A jealous older sibling only focused on his brother’s wrongdoing. He challenged his father’s mindset and proclaimed injustice. “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!” (Luke 15:29-30)

The older son did not have the heart of the father. He was not motivated by love. He could not understand that sometimes a father cannot help but celebrate.

“We had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” (Luke 32:32)

Posted in family | Comments Off