What we know

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

First of all, I want to express a heartfelt thank you for your prayers. I have been humbled by the outpouring of love I have received since I shared our most recent news. No matter what happens, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am loved and so is my family. It makes me teary to know I have a small army on their knees for us.

Yesterday was a whirlwind morning. We still don’t know anything concrete but this is what we do know, the doc said it didn't look good. The tumor is large & has undefined borders, perhaps a sarcoma (don’t ask me what that is, I’m not looking it up). Test results reveal it is not wrapped around my nerves but my flexor tendons. The doc suggested surgery & a biopsy (and we actually scheduled one for today at 5:30pm). He played out several scenarios but there is no need to go into that. Because once my sis & I got out to the car, she contacted a few of her friends who are surgeons, and I contacted one of our lifelong friends who is also a surgeon. They all recommended a 2nd opinion. Not because my original doc isn’t capable but because it would be good to go to a surgeon who deals specifically with cancer. (My original doc was an orthopedic surgeon.)

In fact, they all recommended the same surgeon. So, I am going to an orthopedic oncologist this Thursday at 2:30pm. She is one of two in the state and her fellowship dealt specifically with sarcomas, so we feel like I am in good hands. She also partners with a hand specialist (when needed), so we will have a cancer doc & an orthopedic doc on our team. If the results are as expected, there is a possibility of surgery as quick as this Friday or Monday. Of course, there has not been a biopsy yet, so we can continue praying for a miracle & a benign tumor. Wouldn’t that be a kick for them to open me up and God has taken care of it!?

Alexa asked me when I picked her up yesterday, "Is your appointment over and your arm better?" I could only say with complete confidence, "Yes, God is healing Mommy's arm. It's not better yet, but He is taking care of it."

No doubt about it, yesterday was tough, especially since Chris is still out of town. However, I see God’s provision in so many areas. The ability for my sister to come with me (who has connections with many people in the medical field and knew how to handle everything calmly and efficiently). The prayers of so many covering our family and petitioning God’s throne for healing. And the ability to get in so quickly to a highly specialized doc who deals specifically with my potential diagnosis. Chris was able to get a flight home this evening instead of tomorrow and his bosses are very supportive of whatever he needs to do to take care of our family. My dad drove in today to be with me and help out with Alexa.

We will do our best to keep everyone updated on what is happening. We realize this will probably be a marathon although I’m much more in favor of a sprint. Claiming, moment by moment, His grace is sufficient.

My song choice for today . . .