Dear friends and family,
Have you ever felt so sick, or so in despair, that you
couldn’t pray for yourself, not to mention for all the others on your prayer
list? Well that’s how these last two
weeks have been for me. “Jesus help me,”
three little, but powerful words, were all I could utter on many days.
I completed chemo number two of my fourth, three-week-in-a-row chemo cycle, a little over two weeks ago.
And the day after those drugs went into my veins, plunging my immune
system to dangerously low levels, I became quite ill with some combination of
viral and bacterial infections. Sore
throat, sinus infection, sneezing, coughing, fever, vomiting, laryngitis—you
name it, I had it—with daily nosebleeds thrown in just for fun, as a result of
my low platelets. As someone who
normally walks four miles a day, it was very difficult to be housebound, and
indeed, glued to the couch with a plethora of tissues, tea, and medicines all
around me, day after day, while I lay there with no energy at all. Needless to say, they ended up cancelling the
final chemo in cycle four, as it would have made me sicker and probably sent me
to the hospital.
I found on many of these days that I was so sick and
discouraged that I couldn’t find the words to pray for healing for myself or my
other friends who are dealing with serious health issues. So I would offer up those three words I could muster—“Jesus, help me,” followed
by five more words before collapsing back into my cocoon of illness—“Jesus,
help everybody else too!”
The Bible says that when we are weak, or don’t know how to
pray for ourselves or others, God does it for us. “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not
know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us
through wordless groans. And
He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27
What a
comfort it is to know that the God of the universe prays for me--and for you--when
we can’t find the strength or the words.
And though many of us have a love/hate relationship with Facebook, it
was a comfort to me throughout my most recent illness each time someone on Facebook
told me they were praying for me. I knew
I was in good hands with my Facebook friends praying for me, my family praying
for me, my Bible study friends praying for me, the God of the universe praying
for me, and even my beloved Aunt Julianne, the last person on earth you’d think
would pray—having finally capitulated to pray for me (and when she does, God
responds with weather…thunder,
lightening, torrents of rain)! I tell her He has to find some way to let her
know how happy He is to hear from her!
I am
slowly recovering, day-by-day, and was able to walk again yesterday for 45
minutes along the flat route at Alki Beach.
Oh how glorious it was to be outside, along the water, moving my body
without feeling as though I was about to pass out! My chemo break is to continue until July 3,
when we will resume with the start of cycle five. And one week of this blessed chemo break will
be spent at Cannon Beach, Oregon, where I will be both physically and
spiritually refreshed at the Cannon Beach Christian Conference Center family
camp week. After that week of walks,
naps, pizza, games, and reading good books on the beach, I should be fit and
ready to resume chemo, and five days after, to celebrate Renee and Riley’s
wedding day!
I want
to close by encouraging those of you who hit bottom sometimes, either
physically, spiritually, or emotionally, and who find it hard to pray during
those times. Maybe you are in this place
right now. Please try two things. First, text me, or any combination of friends, and let us know you need prayer. Next, just utter those
three little words, “Jesus help me,” then rest and wait as the God who made you and
loves you, as well as all the rest of us who love you, take it from
there. You will be in good hands.
Love,
Gabrielle
P.S. Congratulations to Daniel, who completed his third year of medical school at the University of Washington last week! One more year to go!
P.S. Congratulations to Daniel, who completed his third year of medical school at the University of Washington last week! One more year to go!
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Jericho loves baths with his sea animals, and can name every sea creature in the tub! |
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Nothing like resting in the sunshine on the back of our boat while Steve drives! |
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Look who's learning to ride a bike?! |
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We decorated cupcakes with sour gummy "J's" from Trader Joes and candy "3's" from Michaels to celebrate Jericho turning three at the end of May! |
Jericho loves DJ and his girlfriend, Adrienne! |
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Riley gives Jericho his haircuts in our kitchen, then Jericho loves to vacuum up the mess! |