Back Again

It has been a few days since our last post, which is actually a good thing because it means there is nothing really new to report. Overall the weekend went very well and Michelle continues to recover from her surgery at a good pace. We only had one setback, if you would call it that. On Sunday evening, after her busiest day yet, her back and neck muscles tightened up which brought on a pretty bad headache which, in turn, brought on some slight nauseousness. Some light massaging, 800mg of Ibuprofen, and a decent nights sleep seemed to do the trick so that by Monday morning she was feeling pretty good. By the end of yesterday she seemed to be feeling her best yet, Praise the Lord!

The swelling has pretty much subsided except for one specific area, right of the left edge of the incision, which is still protruding about an inch and a half out from her side and about the size of a, ummmmm, maybe a tangerine in shape. Does that make sense? The discomfort level is such that she is not taking anything for that which is great. In fact, I think the thing that is bothering her the most is a rash that is on her back brought on by the adhesive used for the vitals monitoring patch; it itches and she keeps complaining about it! Sheeesh... The only other news at this time on that front is that the stitches come out tomorrow afternoon!

We were able to attend church on Sunday morning and heard the first part of what promises to be a wonderful message series entitled, "When God Calls You Friend." As I listened to the message I wrote in my notes, "Friendship begins many times because we have things in common... common interests, hobbies, social and political views, beliefs about God, etc. As friendship deepens, we go beyond those things and begin to take on the others likes, dislikes, behaviors and character, allowing them to impact our way of thinking and living." I believe this is true in life when it comes to our earthly friendships but many times we do not look at our relationship with Jesus in the same way.

In John 15:15 Jesus calls us friend... I guess the question is, knowing that Jesus is definitely our friend (he showed that by dying on the cross for us among SO MANY other ways!), are we truly His friend? As I meditated on what I wrote above a truth came ringing through, loud and clear. We show that we are Jesus' friend by taking on His likes and dislikes, behaving as He does, and displaying His character in our lives. Practically, this is played out by how we treat the family of God, our brothers and sisters in Christ (do we love them, even those who are unlovable or are not like us?), and by how we behave in this world (do we display Christ to a lost and dying world?). Pondering that, the question that hit me upside the head was,"What does my life speak about my being a friend of Jesus?" There is no doubt He is my/our friend, but am I/are we His?

Please continue to pray for Michelle's continued healing and strength, for everything to go well when the stitches are removed tomorrow (should be routine!), and for the post-op treatment plan as we will be meeting soon with the Oncologist to determine what that will be (pray specifically no chemo!). Be blessed this day... we love you all! -Steve and Michelle-