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And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you.” (Joshua 3:5 NKJV)

I am here at Moffitt, dancing with my Chemo pole as my partner. Wherever I go, there goes the pole with me. It’s a good thing that I decorate the thing, because without my additions, it’s not all that handsome a partner. A doctor that rode the elevator up with me a little while ago, asked if they were putting something extra in the bags . . . like what’s in there isn’t poison enough! But he walked off the elevator with a smile on his face that he will take with him to the next patient or co-worker he comes across. Mission accomplish.

Pam is with me. She drove me up yesterday. We are having a great time with our pajama party. We arrived to check in last night just before shift change at 7:00p. I knew it wouldn’t be a popular time with the nursing staff to show up. “There you are! We have been waiting for you all day!” translated to “Oh, man! It’s five minutes until we are off! Where have you been all day? Now we have to enter you in OUR logs!” I guess we could have waited fifteen minutes and help the day shift out a bit. Oh, well. I haven’t found the exact perfect time to check in yet. I guess I never will.

With all the hustle getting me settled in on the forth floor, I didn’t get a chance to write yesterday. It took some time for Pam and I to make the tiny room I was assigned work for us. We had to fit in the cot for Pam. To do that we had to re-arrange the room a bit. Lol And the amount of stuff that the two of us brought with us to keep busy was enough to clutter up the place quickly. I am not the typical resident of Moffitt Central. In between the comings and goings of the staff, I had to decorate my room with the scripture signs and the art work that I made and the art work the children made to make me smile. And then I had to get the Chemo Cart decorated. When the cart first shows up, it is loaded with IV fluids and the Thiamine that keeps me sane. “This is going to sound funny, but could you please leave me the hanger in the front there empty?” “Empty?” “Ya, I . . .a. . .decorate my cart–I hang stuff from the hooks there. . .” “Oh, ya, now I remember you.” heheh Gotta love me, it’s a rule. It was after 11:00p when the chemo was finally hooked up and flowing through me. I was pretty tired by that point. We turned off the lights and both went to sleep.

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But yesterday was an awesome day. I woke up early and had a quiet house for an hour. I watched a couple different preachers on the TV before I had to start waking the family. “It’s the Lord’s Day! Wake up!” The next preacher had country singers on. I grabbed Robbie and made him dance with me! Haha “If you don’t learn to dance with your momma, your wife will be very mad at me!” “OH MOM!!!!” But he did dance with me. I loved it. And my seven year old baby boy loved it too. . .he just will never admit it. As I twirled Rob around the living room to the music of an old country gospel song, nine year old Jaymi who was on the couch watching the dance said, “Mom, how do people have cancer and not believe in God?” “I don’t know how people that don’t believe in God handle having cancer, honey.”

She was watching me.

We piled in the car and headed for church. The three in the back were going over the Bible passage the children’s pastor wanted them to memorize. The first one who recited the passage correctly would get a dollar!

Jaymi worked very hard over the last week. “Matthew 25:21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’”

Brandi did not go to church last week because she was sick. But she struggled through the passage with a few reminders.

“Robert can you say Matthew 25:21?”

“Yes.”

“Let’s here it.”

“Matthew 25:21”

(Little did they know it, but they had just played out the entire parable.)

The kids went to Kid Church, and Dan and I went to the Sanctuary. The Pastor stopped us on the way in to ask how the scans went on Thursday. The couple that prayed for me last week came to ask me the same question. They were the only ones that we told. Not many in the church knew that I had cancer. When I walk in the door of the church, I do not look like a cancer patient. Go figure.

The music began and I joined in the worship. As always it was very moving and I had a hard time keeping the tears from my eyes. As we were singing, I found myself saying to God, “If you want me to stand and share my story with people, you’re going to have to teach me how to do it without crying.”

“Trust me.”

In the middle of the worship time, we celebrated “Staff Appreciation Month” by the giving of gifts to the Assistant Pastors. Soon we were sitting, listening to the sermon. Pastor was preaching on the Holy Spirit and the things the Spirit’s gifts can help you do. He was pacing and very passionately delivering his message. (Pentecostals . . .tend to be passionate! lol) Then he stopped and said, “I need the hand microphone. Where is the mic?” I could see it placed on the back of the alter wall, but just before I was about to raise my hand I figured out what was happening. The Worship Leader was on her feet to get he microphone and the Pastor was headed in my direction saying, “I didn’t get permission to do this, but I don’t think it’s going to be a problem. This family has not been here very long, but I think they have something to share.” As he handed the mic to me, he said, “You knew I was coming over here didn’t you?” “Yah, I did.” Dan said, “I didn’t!”

We stood up and I just began. “My name is Teresa and this is my husband, Daniel. We came here from Oregon for . . .for Chemo treatments.” With a tug on my wig (I’m a blonde now, by the way) I confessed, “This is not my real hair.” That broke the ice. We all laughed. “The first time we came here, I wore a mask. Then you prayed over me, Pastor, and I knew that God wouldn’t send me to a church that would make me sick. I haven’t worn a mask since.”

I went on to say that sometimes God doesn’t take things away, but he gives us what we need to get through it. “I pray everyday to be healed, but God says, ‘Not yet.’ He is using me for a bigger purpose. Meanwhile, the chemo is working. In January, there was about 100 spots on my lungs and now there are around forty. That’s 60% gone!”

I told them how we were told that the chemo would be so harsh that I wouldn’t be able to care for my children. We came here for the help of my family. “After we leave here this afternoon, I will be going up to Tampa where I will stay at Moffitt until Thursday. When I get there, I will paste scriptures on the walls and decorate my IV cart. They said I wouldn’t be human, but I check myself in the hospital and I DANCE in my room! The people at the hospital are watching me. AND I am doing better than anyone could ever predict. There is no other explanation except, my God is bigger than Sarcoma!”

To a chorus of “Amens” and Hallelujahs” I handed the microphone back to the Pastor and gave him a hug. I thanked him as he thanked me. He resumed his sermon on the book of Acts and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit without the pacing but even more passionate than before. I looked at Dan and we just shook our heads in wonder. I did it without letting the tears fall from where they sat in my eyes. Go figure.

At the end of the service, he asked for everyone to bow their heads for prayer. Then he asked if there was anyone in the congregation that would like to ask God for the very first time for the Gift of the Holy Spirit that was given to the believers on the Day of Pentecost. Several people came forward. Then he asked if there was anyone who had already received the Baptism of the Spirit, but maybe it was a long time ago and they feel they needed a refresher. Again, several people came forward, including my dear Dan. Then the alter workers went forward to pray over those assembled. And the congregation added our hands to the prayers. It was fantastic. The church was on fire for the Lord. I couldn’t hold back my tears this time.

God was there.

I could hear my Dan praising God in the language of Prayer from my place several rows back from the alter. I thanked the Lord for giving me a Godly Husband. I am so blessed. When he came from the alter, I held him and we cried some more.

The service was going longer than normal for us. I went to get the children from their service so that I could bring them into the sanctuary so they could see what was happening. After that we joined the rest of the congregation in the kitchen for a Staff Appreciation Reception. “Let them eat Cake!”

While we were partaking of the cake, the Pastor came to us. “Teresa, I need to tell you something about your testimony. Every Sunday, a core group of people get together to pray for the service that day. While we were praying, I told the group that something was not right. Something was blocking the Spirit in the church.” He said he didn’t know what it was, but it was there. “Even when I was preaching, I could feel it.” That is when he decided to ask me for my testimony. “When you were done with your story, a Spirit of Faith went through the congregation and whatever was blocking the church was gone. Three people received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit for the first time after your testimony.”

As if the day hadn’t been amazing enough! I tell you. This is someone else’s life I am living now. I don’t recognize it.

And if all that wasn’t enough, Jaymi won the dollar for memorizing the passage of the week! “Well Done, Good and faithful Servant!”

Don’t forget that we came to Moffitt on Thursday, hoping for an open bed so that I could get a head start on the Chemo. God knew better. I am glad He said No!

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8:30p

Pam and I spent today chatting about this and that. I worked on this post off and on all day. (It took so long because Pam and I talked too much!) This morning, the Hospital Pastor came in and we had a nice long talk with her about faith and what it can do for recovery. And then she asked if she could pray for us. Oh, but of course! Pam asked that she also pray for everyone on the floor as well. And that we did. This afternoon, we went to the art studio and painted with watercolors. That was very relaxing. I have had more Christian staff members so far this cycle. Nurses and Doctors as well — talking to me about faith and strength of the Lord. That is different. And I had my favorite tech, J all day today. What a treat.

It’s business as usual here on the forth floor. So far so good. I am tired, though. I didn’t have a nap this afternoon and you never get more than a couple hours of sleep at a time in the night around here. I am going to lay back here on my bed and chill out for the evening.

Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.” (Joshua 3:5 NIV)