Halleluia! He's a Survivor!

Jack is all DONE with his last chemo treatment! To celebrate he had an ice cream cake. My pictures are actually in reverse order... this was after church today. I love his smile in this picture. This is the Jack I know and love! :-)

In case you were wondering if he went hog wild... this is his portion of the cake! :-)

It was such a blessing for Jack to celebrate Sabbath at church and see the ones he loves and the ones who love him. Fellowship is sweet! Here is Jack and Chas. She is sporting one of her latest Special Olympics medals! What a special and wonderful friend she is to our whole family.

Here's Mr. Jack getting ready to go to church... all dapper in his new clothes.

He says he is not only a survivor but a "Liver". He is going to LIVE! Praise God for the ability to wear the survivor shirt!

Ready to go... with HOPE. The battle is not completely over. But the does of poison are! Please continue to pray. We can't say enough how much we appreciate your prayers. I will close with a verse that has been encouraging Jack:

but those who hope in the LORD

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:31

Here We Go Again!

Last week was a false alarm, not the beginning of the last week of chemo. Jack had not had sufficient time to recuperate from the other chemo treatment, so his doctor did not feel it was wise to begin the process all over again! This week has been a good time of recuperation for Jack and time for Ruth and Jack to spend together.

The great news is that while he was waiting this week, Jack had a body scan and it came out clear, showing NO signs of metastasized cancer! Praise God!

So, here we go again, tomorrow, Monday, will begin Jack's last week of chemo. We are praying with HOPE and asking for God's mercy and healing. Please pray for Jack as he heads into the battle again. Also pray for Ruth as she cares for him and all those who are helping.

THANK YOU! I'm looking forward to sharing pictures later in the fall of us celebrating Jack's recovery together! We already bought some sparkling pear and sparkling peach juices at Ikea for the occasion. We're looking forward to just being together.

We love you Grampa!

Beginning The End!

I know the title sounds ominous, but it really is reason to rejoice! Tomorrow, Monday, August 10, 2009, Jack will begin his last chemo course! Yeah!!!!!! This of course means that he is standing in the need of prayer. He will go five days, Monday through Friday.


Jack would never complain and probably doesn't like me typing so here, but I have to say that this has been very HARD. (It has been hard on those of us who love him and we aren't the ones having it!) I thought of him this morning when we began our Sunday School study of James with "Consider it pure joy brethren when you face various trials..." I'm sure that there is little joy in chemo or radiation or dry heaves or exhaustion beyond belief. But through it all, I do believe God has been giving both Jack and Ruth moments of Joy. These moments will be their "ebenezer" stones that they can look back on and see what God has done in them, through them, to them and for them. And in this, they certainly will be able to rejoice. (In the photo above, Jack is tending their grapes.)

As Jack begins his chemo this week, please pray that God will heal him totally of the cancer and if you feel led, that somehow miraculously he would not have to endure more side effects. Pray for strength, encouragement and endurance. This is the heat of the battle! It will feel endless while he's in the middle. Please lift him up to the Father daily and moment by moment. (Photo shows Jack with his cousin Dwight and wife Mary looking at the scrapbook of Jack's life that I made for his 60th birthday.)

As Jack faces this battle, please pray for those who love him... his wife Ruth, who is still working during this time, his mother Doris (in the photo above) and for all those who are helping out with rides, visits, meals and care. Pray that they will endure, encourage him and be strengthened for their parts of this battle too. Please pray an extra measure of strength for Ruth.

This is the beginning of the end. This is a reason to rejoice. There are good things to look forward to. We are selfishly excited for a late fall visit with Mom and Jack in our new home. Here Jack is having fun at one of his favorite things... a garage sale!

Thank you to all of you who have touched our lives. Thank you for all the prayers. They are appreciated beyond what we can express. (Here Jack snuggles baby Ezra Jack in church.)