Heart thread - 02/22/2009

I went to bed early again, so awoke to an update sent last night from my niece:

Spoke with Jeremy this afternoon; Katie's Dr has said that he will try oral meds starting Monday. If this works she may be able to go home at the end of the week. Praise The Lord! (Jeremy is scared and has mixed feelings) Pray for continued patience; (this is quite a stress for a new marriage) Safety for the babies and parents...Jeremy is running on very little sleep, trying to work and spend time at the hospital. Strength and comfort for Katie...hospital beds are awful and with the IV, monitors, and of course, the twins wrestling, Katie spends most of her time looking for a comfortable position.
Katie's mom has made arrangements to stay for another week. Please pray for all the grandparents as we continue to deal with the worry and seeming helplessness of this situation.
God is in control, We just want to help him in dealing with this!! :)

Jann has a great sense of humor; hence the emoticon at the idea of helping God. [If you come to this late, my grandnephew's wife began very early labor and they are trying to keep the twin babies growing in the womb. My niece is a pediatric intensive care nurse so she is more aware than most of both possibilities for treatment and risks to the babies.]

I am running behind on other updates and requests but here are some more.

From Mimi (on Friday):

There is good news from Arkansas this morning!

Roseann's MRI results are in, and there is NO BREAK! She suffered a very bad bruise, and is being treated with some pain meds and Attavan for the anxiety. She ate some dinner last night and following dialysis this morning she will go home.

There will be a breast biopsy done in March, but that was expected.

She is greatly relieved, and Thanks the entire OCICBW blog Community for the prayers and good wishes sent for her and Gary.

You folks are simply awesome!!

Blessings to you all.

Sue

To which Mimi added this good news last night:

Roseann Is Home!
You can talk to Roseann at her blog now. She is so glad to be home, and she's quite emotional, which is understandable, and I have to say that I am, too. Please continue to pray for her and for her husband who has much to do as he works two jobs and takes care of things at home, too. Roseann can't do much now. I am so happy for her!

I lift this longer-than-usual one from OCICBW. It comes from KJ who just had a birthday.

With the excitement of my birthday past, it's time to get back to the business of prayer, for which, I find myself in need.

First, my sister, Karen, wishes to send thanks for the prayers of the community (She's a very proper sort, but can't resist a laugh when I quote the Mad One.). She is doing well as her breast cancer treatment heads toward completion in July.

Now, since the praying, and non-praying, of the OCICBW community has proven to be the stuff of sustenance, I bring a few more requests.

At the end of last year Mom, 80, was diagnosed with adult hydrocephalus, but defers the treatment necessary (placement of a shunt to decrease cerebrospinal fluid). Given other medical conditions, I cannot fault her. However, the symptoms wax and wane, primarily causing greatly reduced mobility.

However, today (Friday the 20th), I'm off to the doctor with my dad (81). A mass, assumed to be malignant (Biopsy will confirm, but the docs seem pretty certain on the call.), has been discovered in his colon, and the process toward surgery initiated. Dad is a man of deep faith, and lives the difference between "adversity" versus "adventure." Of course, he worries about the care of my mom as he receives the care he needs. We'll get that sorted.

On a more personal note, something I'm not terribly good at, the past few years have been rather challenging for my partner and I as he has faced multiple back surgeries, which have unfortunately resulted in long-term pain management with the use of the "big gun" paid meds. This is further complicated, and compounds, long-term mental health challenges. All of this has resulted in the docs and his employer placing him on long-term disability. His employer has been generous, and with SS income, I believe we'll be fiscally solvent, but all has transpired with emotional challenges as the loss of what was, or what we thought would be, becomes the new "normal." I'm working on that "adventure" versus "adversity" stuff and seeking the help I need. That does not come easily for me. Being the OCICBW prudish post-evangelical poster boy (The OCICBWPPEPB) helps, as do long walks. The attached picture is from a recent walk through one of our local wetland preserves. As you can see, it's still winter in the the Pacific Northwest.

Peace of Christ,
Kevin

In my own muddled way I have been keeping Karen in my prayers ever since I first saw KJ's request, even though I could never remember which one of the OCICBW regulars was her brother. Maybe now I will be able to pray for "Karen, KJ's sister."

+Maya gives an update on here canon to the extraordinary, Jane R:

My Jane is a little on the tired and discouraged side, so she's not being as creative as she might be. She's also working hard because she teaches in the early morning and all evening the first half of the week and then there are meetings and then she wants to sleep. What she really wants to do is sleep some more and also be a solitary writer. She's having trouble making sentences these days, though. Also she wants a vacation. I think she will get one, in a few months, but right now it's not there. I am compensating for this by taking extra naps. I am even more beautiful and soft than usual these days and Jane is noticing. So she's not completely in the Slough of Despond.

They are lovely; see photo here.

Jane also begins a discussion on intercessory prayer.

Kirstin has another moving post, sharing all the precious things she is learning through the most difficult process. We must not forget her. Prayers for strength and focus and abiding hope and deep connectedness - don't forget coherent expression as she does her seminary work! Hugs all around.

spiritual maturity is holding heartbreak and hope in healthy tension

--from Margaret's notes on Parker Palmer talking with Bill Moyer

Tobias has sent off the page proofs of his book. Prayers for blessings on his ministry of reasoned discourse!


Bob Herbert had a column yesterday in the NYT called "The Invisible War." It is a grave cause for prayer and action.

Perhaps we’ve heard so little about them because the crimes are so unspeakable, the evil so profound.

For years now, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, marauding bands of soldiers and militias have been waging a war of rape and destruction against women. This sustained campaign of mind-bending atrocities, mostly in the eastern part of the country, has been one of the strategic tools in a wider war that has continued, with varying degrees of intensity, since the 1990s. Millions have been killed.

Women and girls of all ages, from old women to very young children, have been gang-raped, and in many cases their sexual organs have been mutilated. The victims number in the hundreds of thousands. But the world, for the most part, has remained indifferent to their suffering.

For the cessation of all war crimes, this included, and for the healing of the minds and bodies of these women and girls.

As always, feel free to add your own requests and thanksgivings in the comments.

--the BB