God's Great Grace

   We are still scrambling to get caught up with the blog in the midst of a really full schedule!  It may end up like the Gospel of John, not so much focused on chronology as it is on theme... Today we traveled 7 hours by train from Dnepro in Eastern Ukraine to the capital City of Kiev.  It has been a whirlwind trip and more  than we could ever adequately record but we are so humbled by our God's blessings, love and grace!!   I have to stop at this point and just give thanks to God for the tremendous impact so many of you have had with your prayers and fasting!  It has impacted every single day that we have been here!  I pray all that you have done for Christ would be returned on you and your loved ones many times over!  

Before we left Seattle I received a message that one of our dearest friends, who we have known all of his life, was terminally ill with leukemia.  They believed that it was not properly diagnosed for over a year, so when he was finally committed to the children's cancer hospital, that we have been partnering with for the last 20 years, they felt there was little hope!  His parents of course were overwhelmed and devastated!  He is a beautiful young man in character and appearance... When I heard this, immediately God said you need to put your hands on him in faith and pray. Sue and I had a chance to do just that in a surprise opportunity, even though he was in isolation.  But even after that prayer and treatment with a new cancer medicine, his cancer count not only got worse it was three times as bad as when we had first arrived.  It went from 24 to 74, and people's hearts began to break... God was unmoved and told us to stand on Mark 5:36, without wavering!  Things didn't change for a while and then Zhenya's blood cell count started looking good, then last week his bone marrow, which produces red and white blood cells, came back clear!  These were all great markers but there was one more test that was supposed to have definitive results last Sunday, but it didn't happen, then Monday and no results, then Tuesday...finally on Wednesday, yesterday, we received a video with Zhenya slumped down over his bed, no hair, painfully thin and just sobbing for joy!  The note at the bottom said, the doctors just came in to tell him that he is entering into remission and he will be able to go home soon.   The doctors here have been cooperating with a team in Kiev and they are all stunned, 'startled' for the shocking turn around!  What a Great and Gracious God we serve!!! Psalm 34:1-3 comes to mind...  

For those of you who have been following the blog, we had another young man who was critical after they left him unattended for three hours following his arrival at the hospital with a burst appendix.  When the surgery finally happened at midnight it was a mess and left a 'huge hole' in his right side.  He needed two more surgeries in the following three days to try to repair the damage and remove the massive infection!  But our God is more than able!  And within a few days Jury came home in time to hear me speak at church that night!  Both of these young men were saved by the power and grace that is in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ!  Our God  always has purpose behind everything He does and I can't wait to see all that He has planned for these wonderful young men (Eph. 2:10) who have been resurrected from the throes of death and their loved ones who have witnessed a miracle!