"Memorop": Salvation for the Chemo Impaired?

Recently, I went to my first professional networking event since my latest bout with cancer. Sad to say, my legendary memory became exactly that...a legend!



Gone are the days of meeting a person once and putting together a name AND face, kids' names, professional background and funny trivia. I do well to keep from saying, "Are you sure we met?!" I've read studies that say that chemo can affect the brain for 10 years or longer. Discouraging news if you're in business for yourself or in sales. Thank God that software developers are honest and create programs for real people. My new fave app on my smartphone is Memorop, a cool tool that let's you input info on people that helps you remember who they are & how you met them. Touted as a "relationship manager" app, it's perfect for folks like me plagued by chemo brain ChB means I may not remember where I put my keys 2 minutes earlier--and that's no exaggeration!



Visit http://memorop.com and take Memorop on a tour. The best feature? It's free!



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Relay for Life 2010

I have always felt the American Cancer Society's "Relay for Life" event was a transformative opportunity for myself and my family. This year, I had the unique honor--blessing, really--to bring several friends to experience Relay with me. I was astounded at what I learned from them and what we took away in our hearts after spending over 24 hours together.

Mid-day Saturday, we loaded up tents, sleeping bags, a cooler full of snacks (some healthy, others less so), a change of clothes and cooler weather gear and got underway. My teenage companions came to my house and my girlfriend drove over so we could leave together. All of us were excited because we weren't quite sure what would happen. Of course, I had reviewed the itinerary with them, but one just has no idea who'll be at the event, the impact of the survivor stories shared or just how it will affect you knowing and hearing that many families will be remembering loved ones who lost their battles with cancer. Relay is a powerful celebration, not a memorial. Yet, it gets into your heart!

So, we set out together, excited and jittery. Once we arrived at Osprey Park in Hunters Creek, FL, it was obvious that the crows had doubled--perhaps event tripled--from the previous year. The parking lots were packed and folks were busy setting up tents, tables, outdoor grills and so on in preparation of an incredible weekend. Tired from just loading up, I slumped into the first lawn chair I could reach and my friends jumped right into pitching our tent. After some sweaty moments of frustration, several gentlemen from a nearby campsite helped us out and raised our 10-person tent. God bless you, dudes!

That was a great start to hours of comraderie, serving, comforting and many acts of precipitated kindness and sense-"full" acts of caring. While thousands of dollars were raised in the hopes of eradicating cancer in this generation, the multitudes of families with cancer survivors or remembrances of loved ones gone on showed up to celebrate life. People came to remind the community that cancer survivors, like our men and women in uniform, are fighting an unseen enemy openly and bravely. I have many memories, mostly watching the young people who were with me make choices to get involved in the battle against cancer. As the event motto stated and I'm paraphrasing, Thanks for helping me to enjoy some unexpected birthdays and many more to come!

Real Power to Heal...ME!

“When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases,…” (Luke 9:1)

Many of you know of my 10 year battle with cancer and how I’ve come close to going to eternity many times. We don’t always know God’s plans, but we who believe put our hope & trust in Him. Recently, I’ve asked many of you to pray more earnestly for me. My recent round of PET scans revealed a spot on my lung that appeared to be growing—rapidly. My doctors were very concerned and feared my current chemo treatment had stopped working. The options before me weren’t positive: 1) I could continue taking the chemo I’m currently on and add another chemo (IV or pills); 2) my doctor would put me on 1 or 2 completely different, stronger chemotherapies; or 3) I could choose to end all treatment and prepare my family and myself for the possibility of death.

Let’s just say, I have spent the last 3 months thoroughly praying about ALL of these options. None of them were appealing to me, so I prayed for a 4th option: that God would take ALL of the cancer away. And why not?! Hasn’t He shown us His power time and time again! My life has been FULL of miracles and I am not about to lose faith now!!

So, I want to tell you that God has EXCEEDED all of my prayers! A week ago, my doctor and her staff couldn’t wait to tell me that the results of my most recent scans showed the cancer to be stable. Yet, when I saw her last Thursday, she went into greater detail. Not only did the scans show that the curious spot that worried us so much in December is not even cancer, further investigation revealed that there are NO signs of cancer in my body at this time!

What does all of this mean?! It means that they cannot find ANY cancer in my chest at this time! We prayed for a miracle and God has delivered me once again!! I keep praying for the impossible and He keeps showing me His power! If you have tried to reach me and couldn’t within the last week or so, it’s because I’ve been out celebrating!

We’re overjoyed and just wanted to share the good news with you. Please continue to pray for me as I endeavor to make the five-year mark. Hopefully, if I continue at this rate, I can come off of at least half of my current chemo dosage within the next 12 – 18 months. And then, who knows! J

Thanks for your prayers, encouragement, love and support! I could not have made it through any of this without my beloved family and friends. We are a testament to God’s glory!

Love,
 
Janet

Excerpts from a letter to a friend

It’s great to hear from you! Please give my love to your family. Let them know that because of their prayers and those of many others literally around the world, I am a walking miracle! I wanted to write to you and let you know exactly what has been going on with me since we last saw one another.

In 2006 I was diagnosed for the second time with breast cancer, I was told I was now in Stage IV, a sharp contrast to having been in Stage 0 five years earlier. This recurrence was more complex and very agressive. The cancer was growing at an alarming rate. Since that first doctor's visit, I’ve had more surgery to the left (and cancerous) breast, several rounds of chemo, and radiation. Eventually, I had to have over half my sternum removed.

Late 2007 the cancer started to spread again, causing my lungs to collapse (again) and for my organs to fail. I was nearly comatose and my husband and family were told I would not survive. Yet, I DID survived! I can only credit this as a miracle due to God’s incredible mercy, grace, and the prayers of hundreds of brothers and sisters in Christ, family members and friends around the country and overseas. My damaged lungs healed themselves even though doctors thought I would need further surgery to remove the blood and other protein clogging them.

Today, I am still feeling stronger, although I’m still on a very strong chemo medication. I am grateful to God just to be here with my family. When my daughters asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I responded that I wanted our family to go and encourage other cancer patients at MD Anderson Cancer Center, the facility where I have received treatment for nearly 4 years. It was a tough time for all of us seeing other families hurting and going through the pain of disease and treatment. Yet, giving to them filled our hearts with gratitude and we received many hugs and teary-eyed thanks from the patients and their loved ones. I feel compelled to share the story of my miraculous healing whenever I hear someone feeling overwhelmed or in despair. I believe it is my purpose and God's desire for me to fulfill His plans for me.

I feel blessed to be able to do what I have always wanted to do: to be a missionary. At one time, I thought it was in the plans for Joaquin and me to go off to a third-world country and preach the Gospel. Little did I know that cancer would provide for me a mission and people eagerly seeking God--right here at home! “Yet not my will but your will be done,” Jesus said. And I try to have that same heart every day.

Am I a Lover or a Prostitute?

THE QUESTION THAT CHANGED MY LIFE

by David Ryser

A number of years ago, I had the privilege of teaching at a school of ministry. My students were hungry for God, and I was constantly searching for ways to challenge them to fall more in love with Jesus and to become voices for revival in the Church. I came across a quote attributed most often to Rev. Sam Pascoe. It is a short version of the history of Christianity, and it goes like this:

- Christianity started in Palestine as a fellowship
- It moved to Greece and became a philosophy
- It moved to Italy and became an institution
- It moved to Europe and became a culture
- It came to America and became an enterprise

Some of the students were only 18 or 19 years old--barely out of diapers--and I wanted them to understand and appreciate the import of the last line, so I clarified it by adding, "An enterprise. That's a business."

After a few moments Martha, the youngest student in the class, raised her hand. I could not imagine what her question might be. I thought the little vignette was self-explanatory, and that I had performed it brilliantly. Nevertheless, I acknowledged Martha's raised hand, "Yes, Martha."

She asked such a simple question, "A business? But isn't it supposed to be a body?"

I could not envision where this line of questioning was going, and the only response I could think of was, "Yes."

She continued, "But when a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?"

The room went dead silent. For several seconds no one moved or spoke. We were stunned, afraid to make a sound because the presence of God had flooded into the room, and we knew we were on holy ground. All I could think in those sacred moments was,"Wow, I wish I'd thought of that." I didn't dare express that thought aloud. God had taken over the class.

Martha's question changed my life. For six months, I thought about her question at least once every day. "When a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?" There is only one answer to her question. The answer is "Yes."

The American Church, tragically, is heavily populated by people who do not love God. How can we love Him? We don't even know Him; and I mean really know Him.

I stand by my statement that most American Christians do not know God--much less love Him.

The root of this condition originates in how we came to God. Most of us came to Him because of what we were told He would do for us. We were promised that He would bless us in life and take us to heaven after death. We married Him for His money, and we don't care if He lives or dies as long as we can get His stuff.

We have made the Kingdom of God into a business, merchandising His anointing. This should not be! We are commanded to love God, and are called to be the Bride of Christ--that's pretty intimate stuff. We are supposed to be His lovers. How can we love someone we don't even know? And even if we do know someone, is that a guarantee that we truly love them?

Are we lovers or prostitutes?

I was pondering Martha's question again one day, and considered the question, "What's the difference between a lover and a prostitute?" I realized that both do many of the same things, but a lover does what he/she does because he/she loves. A prostitute pretends to love, but only as long as you pay. Then I asked the question, "What would happen if God stopped paying me?"

For the next several months, I allowed God to search me to uncover my motives for loving and serving Him. Was I really a true lover of God? What would happen if He stopped blessing me? What if He never did another thing for me? Would I still love Him? Please understand--I believe in the promises and blessings of God. The issue here is not whether God blesses His children; the issue is the condition of my heart. Why do I serve Him? Are His blessings in my life the gifts of a loving Father, or are they a wage that I have earned or a bribe/payment to love Him? Do I love God without any conditions?

It took several months to work through these questions. Even now I wonder if my desire to love God is always matched by my attitude and behavior. I still catch myself being disappointed with God and angry that He has not met some perceived need in my life. I suspect this is something which is never fully resolved, but I want more than anything else to be a true lover of God.

So what is it going to be? Which are we--lovers or prostitutes? There are no prostitutes in Heaven, or in the Kingdom of God for that matter, but there are plenty of former prostitutes in both places. Take it from a recovering prostitute when I say there is no substitute for an unconditional, intimate relationship with God. And I mean there is no palatable substitute available to us (take another look at Matthew 7:21-23 sometime).

We must choose.


Dr. David Ryser (italics mine)

A Chat with the Hunter's Creek Chamber of Commerce

Why Should Business Support "Relay for Life"?

"Relay for Life" is an instrumental part of the American Cancer Society that allows individuals and communities to get involved in the war against cancer. Across the country, thousands of men, women and their families come together for a weekend to unite in expanding knowledge concerning cancer prevention, treatment and increasing research funding. It is a fun-filled experience that honors survivors and those who have succumbed to cancer.

In November 2007, I had the opportunity to share my battle with breast cancer. I was initially diagnosed in 2001 with Stage 0 breast cancer. I underwent a full mastectomy and reconstruction; my doctors felt further treatment was unnecessary. I had nearly 5 years (actually, 4 years and 10 months) of good health--a cancer patients answered prayer! Yet, it was not to be. March 2006, I saw an oncologist in Orlando, FL, who stunned me with the information that my cancer had come back with a vengeance! I now had metastatic breast cancer--it had spread to my sternum and rib cage--and was classfied as Stage 4

My journey has included endless testing, poking, prodding and reading. I've undergone mastectomy, reconstruction, chemotherapy, radiation, more surgery and medical appointments. Yet, I attribute my prolonged life to my faith in God as well as the astounding advances in medicine since my initial diagnosis. As I say to all of my fellow "overcomers" (people facing all types of physical challenges), if I can do it, anyone can! I'm an ordinary person who serves an extraordinary God!

Many of us do not realize the staggering numbers of people finding out they have cancer in one form or another. Cancer is the #6 cause of death for women in the United States. While the rate of death due to cancer is decreasing in the US, we have a long way to go to stop the numbers of new cases each year. All of us can take part in spreading the word to our family and friends to closely examine our eating habits, lifestyles and stress levels in order to avoid cancer.


I was grateful to persuade members of the Chamber of Commerce to support and/or take part in this year's "Relay for Life". Employers are both directly and indirectly affected by cancer. Employees battling cancer lose productivity, increase health insurance premiums, and cannot remain in key business roles to advance the company's goals and objectives. What is needed? Earlier detection, more funding for research, sound plans for insuring ALL Americans -- basically, dollars and more dollars!

In recent years, the American Cancer Society and "Relay for Life" have raised millions of dollars toward the goal of eradicating cancer in our lifetime. Small, local teams have contributed tens of thousands of dollars by simply doing what comes easily to them: sending emails, phone calling, hosting parties, having yard sales to raise dollars for Relay. We can all do something to protect our loved ones from cancer. No idea is too small and no effort is wasted; we each have a positive impact on this mission.

Please join me in supporting the 2009 Relay for Life in your community! Go to the ACS web site at http://www.cancer.org/ or to http://www.relayforlife.org/ and join a team in your area.

Expecting a Miracle...Today!

"In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation" (Psalm 5:3). With GREAT joy, I am so glad to share with you that I just received my best test results in the last 2 1/2 years!!!

Recently, I've been battling worse-than-usal aches and pains. My doctor ordered a set of tests--bloodwork, x-rays, the usual. When I didn't hear back from her last Friday, I'm sorry to say that I became slightly concerned. The adage that "no news is good news" doesn't always apply if you have stage IV cancer, so I was kinda worried. Just keepin' it real. Anywho, I called my oncologist's office Monday afternoon to find out what's the dealie!

She told me the following: We have GREAT news! The x-rays showed that the chemo has been working!! In fact, the large cancerous lesions that were on the linings of your lungs are almost invisible. The right lung is clear and the lesion on the left lung is nearly undetectable. That's miraculous!

If you know even a little about my health crisis last summer, my cardiologist and pulmonologist did not give me much chance to live. To come back this far in just over a year is nothing short of a miracle! I want to thank EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU for pouring your hearts out to God on behalf of me and my family! God hears and answers prayers! I marked my prayer list by writing the date of 10-13-2008 by it.

Love always,

Janet