Our family continues to be overwhelmed with gratitude for the love and support we have received since receiving news of my second breast cancer diagnosis. It is still difficult to believe that there were only 7 short months since we heard “No Evidence of Disease”. Cancer is evil and cancer is sneaky.
This new “divine adventure” continues to be a twisty journey.
I’ve felt, once more, like I’m in a waiting room; unable to DO anything (tempering my passion) and unable to FIGURE IT OUT (tempering my desire to analyze). As uncomfortable as it is, God is teaching me, once more, in the waiting room to “Be still and know that He is God” (Psalm 46:10). My prayer has been “just enough light for the step that I’m on”, and He has answered by shedding enough light to make it through the next hour; the next day.
God is answering prayers! In a New Years blog post in 2013, Pastor John Piper has said “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them. Not only may you see a tiny fraction of what God is doing in your life; the part you do see may make no sense to you. There are three granite foundation stones under this confidence: God’s love. God’s sovereignty. God’s wisdom.”
I’ll be sharing how God is working and moving, so we can all give Him, and Him alone, all the glory! I also want to share these so that YOU can be encouraged that God hears your prayers, and you are a part of the story that He’s writing here! I believe God wants us to pray SPECIFICALLY and BOLDLY, so we can marvel at the ways He is working through this terrible disease.
An interesting twist — Dr. Stillwell & the folks at MD Anderson do NOT believe I have Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) after all. I may not have Triple Negative either. The twist is that we don’t know what I DO have yet. (I definitely have cancer — believe me, I asked!) The pathology is being sent off to another lab to “dig deeper” on what the exact biology of this cancer is. That is critical information which will determine the treatment. There are parts of this cancer that are baffling to the pathologist at Lexington Medical and Dr. Stillwell. (Something they have “never seen”). This confirmed our desire to be seen at MD Anderson, who is on the cutting edge of cancer research. I don’t know if my treatments will be local or out of town yet. It does seem pretty evident that chemo will be the first weapon we will use against this disease.
UPDATES & ANSWERS TO PRAYER:
~I have an appointment at MD Anderson!! Monday, January 9 at 1pm with Dr. Chavez Macgregor
~As much as we would have liked for the appointment to be sooner, it is a blessing because our Christmas plans will stay the same. We are on a cancellation list in the case we can get in sooner.
~Confirmation in our desire to be seen at MD Anderson
~We were able to reserve rooms at the Rotary House hotel attached to the medical buildings, which will be nice for convenience for this first visit. It books up quickly so I”m thankful God is working out the logistics
~My repeat scan was Saturday, and the technician said the pictures looked more clear. The problem was something to do with how my body metabolized the radioactive glucose, which they said sometimes happens with smaller, younger people. The radiologist will read them early this week and I will get results sometime in the next several days.
~We shared the news with my precious children about a week ago, and although they are very sad it has given us, once more, another beautiful opportunity to rally together as a family.
New Prayer Requests:
~that God alone gets all the Glory through this trial (that people “see through” me to Jesus)
~that God would use cancer to cause His church to ARISE, in Scripture-saturated prayer (more on this to come)
~That the physicians, pathologists at MD Anderson are able to figure out the biology of this cancer and develop a treatment plan to eradicate it
Please continue to pray:
~For sweet memories with loved ones at Christmas; that Satan would not steal any of my JOY at Christmas or in the weeks ahead
~For God’s miraculous healing of my body
~Pray for Dr. Chavez Macgregor (my new oncologist), that she would be a Christian; who seeks and knows God and prays with me; also praying BOLDLY that the oncologist would be one that supports fighting cancer with nutrition in addition to the “medical weapons”
~proper diagnosis & effective treatment plan
~pray for continued self control in my new “battle diet”
~Hope, Peace, & Joy in the midst for our family (“Team Turner” and my parents, sister, aunts, grandmother, in laws, etc) as we continue to process this news
~That my children – Samuel (age 6), Selah (age 6) and Hannah (age 4) are wrapped in a cocoon of grace and they would not feel the harmful effects of this journey; but only see the good that is coming out of it
~pray for Justin, my husband, for perseverance as my closest companion and “earthly rock” on this journey
~To glorify God through this trial
~praying for people to come to know Jesus through this; beauty from ashes
I don’t think I could ever say it enough, but THANK YOU for your prayers, love, and words of encouragement. Although I have not been able to respond to each one, I have read every single text, comment, and message on social media. Each one encourages my heart and God uses those words to give me strength.
I recognize that I’m not the only one walking through a season of suffering right now. I pray that whatever you’re walking through, remember that God is using suffering to do 10,000 things in it, and through it, in your life, too.
