Be anxious for nothing

Restless night for all of us. Trying to "be anxious for nothing" but still had trouble sleeping. When I arrived this morning, Ron's nurse informed me he'd had a rough night with a spike in his temp, 102.2, as well as another decrease in his hemoglobin (now 9.0) and increase in white blood cell count (17,000). It was good to see doctor in early. He is not overly concerned with any of this. They've been debating changing his PICC line thinking this could become a source of infection so have decided today is the day...he believes this could attribute to the fever and increase in white cell count. The fact that his hemoglobin is slowly going down does not alarm him...they draw blood multiple times a day so that in itself will decrease the hemoglobin count some. It was encouraging to hear him and see his demeanor. We were reminded that he is recovering but still has a long road ahead of him and these "bumps" are to be expected; so the blood clot, as well as these other issues, don't surprise him. We're still on track to have the CT scan tomorrow.

Thank you so much for lifting us up....we have definitely felt your prayers bring us peace, comfort, strength and hope. It's amazing how we could feel the calm, soothing Spirit as we gathered in his room this morning. We know God is in control even though things aren't going the way we think they should go...His plan is perfect!

Ryan reminded us of when Aaron was in the hospital we had such a difficult time understanding why he had to go through the many weeks of infection and surgeries to contain the infection. It was after all was said and done we could see how God had used that time to keep him in a coma as He brought healing to his brain. What we saw as harm, God had used for His good!

Last night, as I was reading my devotional (Unto the Hills by Billy Graham) the scripture reference was James 1:2 -3. It talked about how we ARE going to face trials and we should strive to be like Paul who learned to be content no matter what his circumstances. We are to REFUSE to allow our circumstances to determine our joy (or lack thereof). We are not to live in defeat but to know "the joy of the Lord is my strength".

New Living Translation: "when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. "
The Message: "Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way."

This morning, Ryan received an e-mail to encourage him and it was quoting a book that was teaching on James 1:2-3! Isn't God amazing, how He brings everything together just when you need it???

....If you are at a place in your life where you feel like you can't take one step without the Lord's help, be glad. He has you where He wants you. If you're wondering, "Have I done something wrong?," the answer is most likely, "No, you have done something right" God has you on this path, no matter how difficult and impossible it may seem right now, because you are willing to follow Him. He wants to accomplish great things through you that can only come out of a life of faith. He wants your undivided attention because you can't do these things on your own. The path is not a punishment; it's a privilege. It's not a restriction; It's a reward.

"......count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience" James 1:2-3
(Thanks, Stacee for sharing this!)

Our God is still on His throne and our hope is still in tact!

Praise:
blood pressure and heart rate are more stable today

Prayer:
for things to go smoothly as they put in a new PICC line today
for Kristin as she travels back to Abilene this afternoon and as she prepares for 3 tests over the next 3 days
for Aaron as he travels back to Abilene tomorrow morning; as he prepares for finals and as he searches for a job here in the DFW area (if you know of anyone who is hiring he would love any help he can get; his degree is in Exercise Science with minor in Psychology but is willing to look at anything; he enjoys the business field as well)
for Ryan and all the changes taking place as he prepares for the Texas law portion of exam to move his license to practice Physical Therapy here and looks for a job
for me as I try to balance getting work done each week, dealing with Ron's business and home stuff (the world still goes on...bills have to be paid, etc. etc)

Huge thanks to all of you....you have gone way above and beyond to see that our needs are being met! This is what life is all about, family, friends and a wonderful church family to rely on for support and encouragement!

Much love to each of you!