Enough!

We received a sobering call today from Alan and Jenny -- some dear friends of ours. Alan and Marc have been known each other since Marc's days at Infocus. His wife, Jenny, has become a beloved friend of mine. We have had the pleasure of hanging out at work retreats and parties, sharing stories about our kids and encouraging each other when times are tough.

This past year has been a challenge for them. Their oldest son endured major surgery on his vertebrae and legs in Seattle this summer. The surgery and recovery were complicated, but the results were encouraging. Despite their own trials they remained supportive to us. I could always count on Jenny for an encouraging phone call, a Bible verse texted to my phone, or a hope-filled email. It was always humbling to us to know that they were thinking of us and praying for us in the midst of their own tough challenges.

Jenny called me this morning to share that she has Triple-negative breast cancer -- an aggressive form of breast cancer that often metastasizes to other tissues. In her case, her lymph nodes have tested positive. She begins her treatment the first week in March. Like Marc, her tumors must shrink before they can operate and remove the cancer. Sound familiar? She and Marc will both be on the same treatment regimen. Our only laughter today came from the idea of both of them going bald together.

Marc and I were both undone by this news. What is going on?!? Enough!!! Our hearts break with theirs. We know all too well the emotions that they are experiencing right now. It's hard enough to go through them ourselves, but to now watch another family go through it is overwhelming. It doesn't seem fair. We don't understand. Yet, we acknowledge that God hasn't changed. He is still our loving Father. If we watch closely, good will come of all of it. We are all being refined. I just keep wondering if there will be anything left when He is finished with us, though. We really don't feel like we are being refined right now. It feels more like a cruel beating that will pummel us to nothing. We know that isn't true, but have mercy...it is painful!

Our requests today aren't for ourselves. Please pray for this dear family. Jenny and Alan have three young children. Speaking from experience, nothing about this will be easy. Please pray that Jenny will tolerate the treatment well and that she can have her surgery. Give her courage and strength to fight. Pray that she can beat this monster! Pray for Alan. He has the tough role of caretaker and spouse. He also has three children to take care of, one of which is special needs. He is going to need physical and emotional stamina. To put it simply....we all need the healing hand of God to touch us. We need miracles.

Thank you all. We are sad today. We are grateful for your support and prayers.

With love and gratitude....