Happy Thanksgiving! We know what we're thankful for...

Dear Friends and Family,

I am beyond happy to say that Mark is officially cancer free!!!! Did you hear the shout about 4:00 today from Marietta, GA?? I'm not surprised if you did - I told the kids that NED - "No Evidence of Disease" are my new favorite letters! What a wonderful thing to hear prior to leaving for Thanksgiving.

To be honest, neither of us were surprised. Mark had total faith that God had healed him. Last night I went to bed praying for a good report and a word from God...I fell asleep praying and then I woke up in the middle of night as I rolled over toward Mark and the words from the song "God of this City" were as clear as a bell as I heard "greater things are yet to come and greater things are still to be done..." and then I just knew that God wasn't finished with us yet and that God had taken away the cancer!

No matter how, why, when are where we are just praising God for ALL He has done and for the miraculous healing that we have experienced!!

This morning the verses that I read were Exodus 14:13-14 “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today... The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."

THANK YOU for all your prayers!!!

Next steps - routine colonoscopy to be done December 3 - it had to be rescheduled from last week - then the port will come out December 8 and then we don't have to go back to Cancer Center for 3 months!

In January we are prayerfully considering going on the Hallelujah diet to be proactive in keeping the cancer cells away. We both believe nutrition is a huge part of the puzzle.

We wish you all a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving.

Much love and appreciation,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 121:5-8

The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all harm—
He will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before Him with joyful songs.Know that the LORD is God.
It is He who made us, and we are His;
we are His people, the sheep of His pasture.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving
and His courts with praise;give thanks to Him and praise His name.
For the LORD is good and His love endures forever;
His faithfulness continues through all generations.

Praise the Lord! Chemo is finished!

Friends and Family,

Mark came through the last round of chemo and we are more excited than I can say to have that behind us!

Next step - On Wednesday, November 17 he will have a colonoscopy and an endoscopy and then on Thursday, November 18 they will scan him. We meet with our oncologist on Tuesday, November 23 in the afternoon to get the word on how things look!

Please join your hearts with ours and pray for great test results and in that, for God to get all the honor and the glory!

We have so much to be thankful for - God has truly been with us this whole time and we have felt so much peace and strength made possible only thru Him. The prayer support has been huge and we couldn't feel more blessed to have you praying for us and keeping up with us. I truly do not know how anyone can go thru hard times without faith and trust in God. The body of Christ has surrounded us and supported us in every way.

I could tell story after story about something "going wrong" or something being upsetting to us or just plain "having a bad day" when something would happen - a card with signatures of people praying for us, a phone call, an e-mail or God sending someone in various ways at the very time we needed it - that is something only our loving God can do and we thank Him and we thank you for being vessels and allowing Him to work through you.

I will post after we meet with our oncologist to tell you the great news! We are excited to hear what the doctor has to say and are trusting God for the results of the testing.

Thank you again for your prayers - we love you and we truly thank God for you!

In Gratitude,

Mark and Lee

Romans 5:1-5

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that triublations produces perseverance,
and perseverance, character, and character, hope.
Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

One More Round to Go!!!

Friends and Family,

Mark finished a round of chemo last Thursday so now he is recovering and gearing up for his last treatment, next Tuesday, November 9th!

This last round was OK - he didn't feel very good toward the end but for the most part it was tolerable. Now we are so excited that he only has to do this one more time! After the last treatment he will have a scan to see how things look as well as a colonoscopy. After those two tests and we get the all clear he will have his port taken out and won't have to go back for 3 more months!

We are praising the Lord that we are almost to the end! God has allowed Mark to come through this treatment in a remarkable way! There are so many people that meet him that don't even know what he is going through! A couple of weeks ago we had "Fields of Faith" with FCA and when Mark was up at the microphone speaking I could see his pump - I sat there listening to what he was saying, seeing how good he looked and knowing that pump was every few minutes pumping more chemo into his blood - I sat there in awe of what God has done for us and in us - it truly has been amazing to see God work in so many ways!!

Please pray for Mark on this last leg of the treatment and for a cancer free diagnosis after all testing is complete!!

We don't know what we would have done without all the prayer support that we have had - we are humbled by the support and grateful beyond words!

With love and gratitude,

Mark and Lee

Jeremiah 32:27
Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?

Psalm 92:1-2
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord...to show forth Thy lovingkindness in the morning, and Thy faithfulness every night.

Luke 1:37
For with God nothing shall be impossible.

James 4:8
Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you.

Psalm 104:34
My meditation of Him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord

Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

One more round behind us - Two to go!

Friends and Family,

It's Friday and the Lord has given us beautiful weather here in Georgia! The blue skies and the fact that fall is in the air sure helps to put us in good spirits!

This week Mark completed another round of chemo which means we only have 2 to go! After his last round they will scan him for any evidence of the disease - will you join me now in praying for this test and for absolutely no signs of cancer anywhere in his body?? I know that our God can heal and so no matter what the odds usually are in our case it doesn't matter because we are not dealing with a usual God! We have put our faith and trust in Him and we continue to do that. He gives us the peace and the strength that we need day by day!

The next round of chemo will be October 26th - 28th.

Thanks for your continued support and prayers!

Much Love,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 103:1-3

Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

3 John 1:2

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

Romans 10:17

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Hebrews 13:8

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Counting Down...3 Rounds of Chemo to Go

Dear Friends and Family,

I apologize for not keeping you updated for a few weeks - life certainly got busy with the FCA golf tourney, our biggest fundraiser of the year, and just getting back to normal life after the wedding, etc.

Enough excuses - back to business - Mark is doing well - since the wedding he has gone through two more rounds of chemo which he tolerated pretty well and was also able to take the trip of lifetime to Laramie, WY to go antelope hunting! We praise the Lord that he was physically able to do this! Just to let you know how great this was, there are days when taking a walk in our neighborhood is difficult because of the heaviness in his gut from the surgery, etc. Out in Wyoming he walked for miles in a day and went hunting 3 days in a row! He LOVED being out in nature and getting away from it all and we are so thankful he was able to have this opportunity! And, oh, yes, he did get an antelope!

Mark's side effects are minimal and comparatively we have absolutely not complaints. He does have some trouble with taste and with cold - there are days when he doesn't feel like eating anything and he absolutely has to force food down. Thankfully it stays down and he has been able to keep his weight up.

I sometimes forget that there are those in similar circumstances who are not near as well off as we are - they are not able to work and are constantly sick. I forget that not all of you are around and do not know that Mark keeps a relatively normal schedule. It is not unusual at all to see him on the week of chemo show up at schools, meeting, etc with his chemo pump on. You can tell he's not feeling 100% but he's not giving in and he keeps going. One of the things he doesn't like about the week of chemo is that on Tuesday he is "stuck" at the cancer center waiting for them to do all they do to him so that he can take off! I know while he is at the cancer center he works on FCA business but he also visits with the other patients. I honestly think he looks around at all of the cancer patients and forgets that he is one as well! That's just the kind of attitude that he has has through this whole ordeal! We praise the Lord for the strength in body and in attitude that God has given him and realize that not everyone in this circumstance can say that. We are very blessed!

Please continue to pray for complete healing! In November when they are finished with the chemo they will re-scan and see what is going on inside. We look forward to good results!!

With much Gratitude,

Mark and Lee

John 16:33
These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Matthew 5:16
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your food works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Isaiah 41:31
But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 147:1
Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.

Wedding over - getting ready for another round of chemo

Friends and Family,

Nathan and Kristen's wedding was this past Friday night and it was amazing!! We loved seeing so many of our friends and family and celebrating this union!

We got to spend so much time with friends and family this week-end and Mark gave his testimony at church in word and song and that went well - all in all we just had a great week-end with many answers to prayer.

One huge answer to prayer was how well that Mark felt - I know so many of you prayed for that and to look at him Friday night you would never know he was in the middle of chemotherapy! We praise the Lord for that!!!

Tomorrow, September 14th start another round of chemo - after this one he will have four more to go.

Thank you for your continued prayers for his complete recovery and for his side effects to be minimal during this time.

With much love and appreciation,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 100

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!

Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.

Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Wedding Ahead!

Friends and Family,

Well, Mark completed round 7 of chemo so we have 5 to go! He did have some side effects this time so we may need to adjust the chemo a bit - had some numbness in his hands when they got cold and a few other things. Overall it wasn't a bad round and for that we are so thankful.

This week Mark is feeling better and we are getting VERY excited! Nathan is getting married on Friday night so we are gearing up for that! It's hard to believe that the wedding is already here but it is and we have tons of family and friends coming in for the event. We are so anticipating seeing everyone and just having a great time on Friday.

Mark has been given the opportunity to share our testimony in word and in song this coming Sunday morning at our church. If you are in the area and would like to stop by he is singing and sharing his story in both services this coming Sunday morning, September 12th at Wildwood Baptist Church, 4801 Wade Green Road, Acworth. Services are at 9:30 and 11:00.

We feel so blessed as people continue to pray for us - we got a card this past week from a church in Pensacola, Florida with signatures of people who have prayed for us! I can't begin to tell you how much that touches us. We FEEL the prayers and know that we have been forever touched because of them! Keep it up!!! :)

Because He Lives,

Mark and Lee

Genesis 18:14

Is there any thing too hard for the Lord?

Psalm 25:4

Show me Thy ways, O Lord; teach me Thy paths.

Psalm 62:8

Trust in Him at all times...pour out your heart before Him.

Jeremiah 29:12

Call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you.

Psalm 104:34

My meditation of Him shall be sweet; I will be glad in the Lord.

Ephesians 1:16

Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers.

Half Way Through Chemo!

Dear Friends and Family,

This past week marks another round of chemo behind us and for every time we can say that we are very thankful! While we know it could be much worse it isn't an easy week and we're glad to be to Saturday! We covet your continued prayers as we journey towards the next 6 rounds.

By way of explanation - when they found more cancer this past March the protocol was 12 rounds of chemo and surgery - Mark had 4 rounds prior to surgery, then surgery and since surgery has completed 2 rounds so now we have 6 more to go!

We are getting very excited as Nathan and Kristen's upcoming wedding is in just 3 weeks! We are looking forward to seeing a lot of friends and family members. My prayer request is that Mark will be feeling good so that he can enjoy all the festivities!

We praise the Lord for all He has done for us and for sustaining us through every day of this journey.

Thank you for your continued love and support!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 56:3-4

When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

John 16:33

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

Romans 8:28

We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.

Psalm 55:22

Cast all your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you, He will never let the righteous fall.

Another Round of Chemo behind us!

Dear Friends and Family,

Mark started back with his chemo treatments this week. He is doing well although he is nauseated and weak. He doesn't really feel like eating much and most things don't sound appealing to him - when something does sound appealing we jump on it so that he can keep his strength up!

As you may recall when they found the tumors back in March the protocol was going to be 12 rounds of chemo plus the liver resection.

He completed 4 rounds before the surgery, had the surgery and has now completed another round - that means we have 7 rounds to go before we are finished.

As before he goes in on Tuesday and come home with a chemo pump that he has to stay hooked up to for 48 hours and then they take it off on Thursday - he will do that every other week until we are finished. We look forward to the day that we write it is the last round of chemo!

For now we will take it a step at a time - God specifically led me to scripture this past week that has been such a help. We look to God for guidance and for each of our steps that is for sure!

Thank you for your continued prayers - we feel them and we know that God has honored those prayers in a very real way.

With overflowing gratitude for your support,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 119:105

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Isaiah 30:21

And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

Psalm 32:8

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.

Recovering from Surgery - Preparing for Chemo

Dear Friends and Family,

It will be 3 weeks tomorrow since Mark's surgery and if you saw him you would never even know he had surgery! We praise the Lord for the strength that He has given Mark! We knew it could have been a very hard recovery with this being his 3rd major surgery in 15 months (4 minor ones) but God has been good and has made this as easy as possible.

We were able to go to WV for a class reunion of a class that Mark taught years ago and it was wonderful to be able to visit with so many old friends! We had a wonderful time with my parents and was just a great time to relax!

Mark got his staples out this past Wednesday and then drove down to Callaway Gardens to speak at an FCA golf camp. Again we praise the Lord for the strength and ability He has given Mark to be able to do this - there were 3 decisions made that night and we thank God for the opportunity to proclaim the power of God and His mighty works!

Now that the surgery is past we have 8 more rounds of chemo to get through. They have scheduled his first round to take place August 3. He will then go every other Tuesday for his chemo treatment, come home with his pump and go back on Thursdays to have it taken off.

We covet your prayers through this time of chemo - it will take its toll on Mark's body and will be a difficult time going through this but we know that God will guide our steps and will be there for us as He has been every minute of every day!

We praise Him for His healing in Mark's body and praise His name for all He has done! We firmly believe that He has honored the prayers of His people on behalf of Mark and that we are able to stand because the body of Christ has rallied around and lifted us up in prayer!

We love you and thank the Lord for you!

Mark and Lee

Matthew 7:7-8
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

Psalm 25:1
To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul;

Psalm 37:7
Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him.

Psalm 5:3
My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning I will direct my prayer to You, and I will look up.

John 14:13-14
I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it

Phillipians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Colossians 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Thursday, July 15 - Another Praise!

Friends and Family,

It's about 12 noon on Thursday and I think I'm about to go to bed!! We ended up at the emergency room this morning around 2:30a.m.

Yesterday Mark started having some pains in his lower abdomen. We called the doctor and decided to wait and see what happened. The pain got better but about 10:00 it started again in a little different place - he felt it was near the colon - it was sharp pain and we couldn't figure it out. Again, the pain subsided so we went to bed but about 2:00 he woke me up and he was in terrible pain - we went to the ER....

The ER doctor checked him out and ordered blood work and a CT scan. After hours of waiting we actually got to see our doctor about 9:30 and he read the CT scan for us.

The drain that was in to drain the liver got displaced on the inside and it was moving around all the areas he was having pain - the part of the tube that was inside him was about 14 inches. So...the doctor took the drain out completely and problem solved and so yet another praise!

I marvel at how He takes care of things before we even know there was a problem. It is a miracle that Mark agreed to let me take him to the ER because he usually wants to wait out the pain. We are going to WV this week-end for a reunion and had he tried to wait it out we may have ended up in the hospital up there without our own doctor who knew exactly what to do! We are just praising the Lord for His great timing and for taking care of us so completely!

Mark is doing well and now that the drain is out is really feeling good.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support!!!

Love you,

Mark and Lee

Enjoy the words of Chris Tomlin's song "How Great is Our God"

The splendor of a King, clothed in majesty
Let all the earth rejoice
All the earth rejoice

He wraps himself in Light, and darkness tries to hide
And trembles at His voice
Trembles at His voice

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Age to age He stands
And time is in His hands
Beginning and the end
Beginning and the end

The Godhead Three in One
Father Spirit Son
The Lion and the Lamb
The Lion and the Lamb

Name above all names
Worthy of our praise
My heart will sing
How great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Home Sweet Home!!

Friends and Family,

They say a picture is worth a 1000 words so I will let the picture talk for itself!

We are home and Mark is sore but doing well! We are so thankful for the great way in which God has allowed Mark to heal!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your prayers!!

We have 4 weeks to rest and get his body ready to start 4 months of chemo so please continue to keep us in your prayers.

With much love and extreme gratitude to our Lord,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations

Up and Walking - Friday, July 9 - Update

Friends and Family,

It's 3 days since surgery and things are going very well! Mark looks great and is up and walking really well. I am so pleased with the way his recovery is progressing.

Just wanted to let you know that all is going well and we are so thankful to the Lord for that!

As always thank you for your continued prayers and support - hopefully we'll be going home on Sunday!!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 46:1

God is our refuge and strength; an ever present help in trouble.

Isaiah 54:10

"Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken no my convenant of peace be removed" says the Lord who has compassion on you.

Psalm 91:15-16

He will call upon me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.

Psalm 139:7-10

Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens you are there: if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

Even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

Thursday, July 8 - Update

Friends and Family,

First of all please allow us to thank you for all you are doing for us - we are continually amazed at God's provision to us through His people! From the smallest detail to the largest God has laid things on your hearts and you have responded and we are the humble recipients and we thank you very much!

We have heard of COUNTLESS people who were praying for Mark on Tuesday and we believe all of those prayers affected the great outcome of the surgery and for that we are so very grateful.

Last week I read that when you have a mountain to climb that the higher the mountain the greater the view on the other side! I can say today that is true because leading up to this surgery was certainly a mountain to climb and now that it is behind us and it was successful the view is awesome!

Mark is doing well today - he looks great and feels great - he was able to get up and walk a little today which is another answer to prayer and he will continue to get up and go as much as possible.

They will keep the epidural block in for 3-5 days which blocks all the pain of the surgery and is truly a blessing - he is not feeling much pain at all!

We HOPE to be able to get him home on Sunday but if not then he should be able to get home by Tuesday latest.

Thank you for your continued prayer - pray that we will look for opportunities to witness and that Mark will continue to improve daily.

With much gratefulness,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 84:11

For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

James 1:2-5

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;

Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Romans 5:1-5

Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Wednesday, July 7th Update

Friends and Family,

Mark had a good night - not a lot of rest with all the people in and out but this morning has been feeling very well!

They gave him an epidural that will be in for 4-5 days which keeps the pain very minimal - only problem is they did such a good job making sure the epidural was working it shot down into his left leg and he has no feeling at all in that leg. They have adjusted the medication so we are just waiting for the feeling to come back. We need for the feeling to come back so that he can start getting out of bed and walking the halls so he can get better. So please pray for the feeling to come back completely!

He looks great - Dr. Ellwood came by this morning and said he knew Mark would be up and ready to go - he told me out in the hall that Mark didn't even look to him like he had surgery yesterday - I said I know - he's amazing! God has been so good to allow Mark the strength and determination in his recovery. His attitude is amazing - right now he's on the phone talking to guys about a softball tournament this week-end!

Thanks for your continued prayers - we love you!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 150:1-6

Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.

Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.

Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.

Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.

Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

Out of Surgery - Praise the Lord!

Friends and Family,

I'm sorry for the delay in posting after surgery - I have had technical difficulties with Mark's laptop and had to get Cameron to bring me his.

The surgery went very well and I am just praising the Lord!

They started the surgery at 1:45 and it lasted just over 3 hours - I spoke with Dr. Elwood around 5:15 and he had all good news! The tumor on the right lobe was removed successfully with plenty of margins and the tumor on the left lobe was in a very good location so they didn't have to cut out as much of his liver as they thought which was good news and the great news was that they didn't see any new cancer!

He was in recovery for about 2 and a half hours while we waited for them to assign him a room. We finally got up here around 7:45 - we are in the green tower at Kennestone room 512 - right across the hall from where we were before - we've already had a couple of the nursing staff remember us from before.

We are currently in our private room and he is resting very well. He is on a lot of pain medication and feeling very well. He told everyone around here that it's our 25th anniversary and that he wanted to take me away to a place with a private room and 24 hour room service! What more could we ask for!

We thank you all for your prayers and love and support - we feel it and we appreciate it more than you could know!

I will post tomorrow and let you know how he's doing.

With much love and gratefulness,

Mark and Lee


Psalm 34:1-4


I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul shall make her boast in thee Lord the humble shall hear thereof and be glad.

Oh magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt His name together.

I sought the Lord and He heard me and delivered me from all my fears.

Surgery Scheduled for July 6

Dear Friends and Family,

After getting the good results from the scan we weren't sure if we would still have to go the route of surgery or not.

We talked with our oncologist and found out that they still recommend that Mark have the liver resection to completely rid his body of the cancerous tumors and then continue with 8 more rounds of chemo to make sure any chemo seeds or hidden tumors are taken care of.

A liver resection is not the easiest surgery to recover from so we covet your prayers as Mark prepares for the surgery in two weeks.

We are very thankful for this past week-end as we spent time together in Charleston, SC to celebrate our 25th anniversary which just happens to be July 6th so we are happy to have been able to make the trip before our upcoming hospital stay!

Our prayer requests:
Complete healing for Mark
Endurance through this next surgery and recovery
Faith
Find opportunities to be a witness of God's grace in our life.
Our daughter Jessica as she is leaving for Italy for either 5 weeks or 2 months to be an au pair (nanny) for a family there. (leaving Friday, June 25)

Thank you so much for your continued love and prayers,

Mark and Lee

James 5:14-16

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Good News!

Friends and Family,

Praise God! Praise God! Praise God! "No new spots and the spots that were there have decreased significantly" were the best, sweetest, most touching words I have heard in a while!

We are SO excited about these results and are just praising and giving thanks to God our Healer!

There's really not much else to say! Mark will have an appointment next week with his liver surgeon and find out where he wants to go from here.

I will let you know when we do.

Thank you for your prayers and please join us in thanking our Lord for this good news!

With thankfulness oozing out of us,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 30:11-12

Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing; Thou hast loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness; That [my] soul may sing praise to Thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to Thee forever.

Psalm 100:4

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him, bless His name!

1 Thessalonians 5:18

in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Chemo - Round 4 - Scan this week!

Dear Friends and Family,

Last week Mark finished his 4th round of chemo. He was a bit sick but not terribly and is very thankful that it is now behind him.

I apologize for not blogging last week and have had some people ask me about it - the week got away from me so quickly!

This week-end went well - every Saturday we have softball games and since Mark has been sick he is the coach and doesn't play. I got to the game late to find my husband running from 1st to second in the middle of the game! What?? Yes, he played a game of softball! Should he have? Probably not. He was very exhausted afterward but I'm happy that he had fun and got to get out there with the guys!

Sunday was a huge blessing to me as I watched Mark sing on the praise team at church as they sang Chris Tomlin's "Our God" and we worshiped together singing "
Our God is greater, our God is stronger, God you are higher than any other.
Our God is Healer, Awesome in Power, Our God! Our God!"

Tomorrow is a huge day for us! Mark goes in the morning for a CT scan. Someone ask me why they are doing the scan and what they are looking for. Very simply they are looking to see if:

1. The cancer is gone!
2. The cancer is shrinking
3. The cancer remains the same
4. The cancer has grown
5. The cancer has spread

Obviously our prayer request is for either number one or two - we know that "God is our Healer" and we know that God has a plan and tomorrow will tell us where we are and what to expect. Please join with us in prayer as we implore our heavenly Father for a great test result and we prayer that in all things God will get the glory.

God's faithfulness and goodness has been constant to us in all things through this time in our life. I can't begin to list all of the ways that God has blessed us and all of the people He has sent to us in our time of need to meet the very need at that very minute!

I will send a post after we know the results of the scans. We covet your prayers for complete healing in Mark's body and for our faith to be increased every day.

We feel the prayers and we love and appreciate you all,

Mark and Lee

"Great is Thy Faithfulness"

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Chemo - Round 3

Friends and Family,

Mark is though round 3 of chemo. After round 2 he felt bad for quite a while on and off but if you saw him you wouldn't know it - he always has a positive attitude and keeps going no matter what! He had an allergic reaction which caused some breaking out on his face but Benadryl took care of that and by this past week-end looked and felt great!

Please continue to pray for complete healing, for faith and for a great result when he gets his next pet scan which will be in about 3-4 weeks we think. Also, pray that he will feel good and that the nausea will dissipate.

We are thankful this week for the help of my mom and sister from WV who have been a tremendous help around the house!! I look at where God has put us and marvel that every time we have a need that God sends someone to meet that for us. It is amazing how the support of family and friends has helped us in this journey from the smallest of things to the largest and we praise Him for the blessings He has sent us!

With much love,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 8:3-4

When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the st ars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

Psalm 36: 7,10
How excellent is Thy lovingkindness, O God! O continue Thy lovingkindness unto them that know Thee.

John 10:10
I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Matthew 11:28
come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Isaiah 26:3
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.

I Chronicles 5:20
They cried to God...and He was entreated of them; because they put their trust in Him.

Chemo - Round 2

Friends and Family,

We are happy to say that Mark is through round 2 of chemo. He did feel nauseated some but overall did pretty well for which we are thankful!

Wearing the pump for 48 hours hasn't slowed him down much - I took him to a couple meetings on Wednesday and listened as he sat there and talked about FCA and such as I heard the pump every now and then making its noise as it disperses the chemo. I am very proud of the fact that he is going forward and not letting this hinder his ministry.

Our continued prayer requests is for complete healing and for minimal to no side effects from the chemo.

He has two more rounds of chemo before they will scan him again and then they plan to do another liver resection, give him time to recover and then start back on the chemo. We pray that the doctors will be befuddled when they scan him and that our Lord has chosen to heal him and has taken the cancer away! Wouldn't it be wonderful to not have to go through another liver surgery??

Thanks to the Lord for His mercies are new every day and His faithfulness is greater than anything Mark and I have ever experienced before!

We are constantly thankful for your prayers and support and love!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 103:1-2

Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits>

II Chronicles 30:9

For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away His face from you, if ye return unto Him.

Colossians 2:7

Rooted and built up in Him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Psalm 121:1

I will left up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.

Psalm 35:28

My tongue shall speak of Thy righteousness and of Thy praise all the day long.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Dear Friends and Family,

I am thankful to report that Mark is doing well and feeling good! He went in Thursday to get his pump off and as predicted came home feeling nauseated. He did not feel well most of Thursday or Friday but by Saturday was feeling much better and by Sunday was feeling back to normal!

I really encouraged him to eat whatever he felt like and not worry about the nutrition at this point. I feel like he needs to keep up his weight and his strength and so whatever type food is appealing to him he should eat. I came home from the Beth Moore conference on Saturday and when he told me where he wanted to go eat dinner I about fell off the couch...Steve B's pizza buffet! He never wants to go eat greasy pizza but he sure did Saturday night and he got his fill of it - we had a good time laughing and just enjoying the fact that he had such a good appetite!

We won't have anything else to report until next Tuesday, May 4th when he goes in for round 2 of chemo.

Please continue to pray for healing and strength for Mark. We are praying that after the 4th round of chemo he will go in for a scan prior to surgery and they will be dumbfounded because the cancer is gone! We know our God can heal him and we pray that He will! We have faith that God is not finished with Mark and we are just waiting on His timing to see when He chooses for the healing to take place. In the meantime we will continue to wait and see what He has for us.

We love you all and thank you for lifting us up!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 34

I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.

My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.

I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,and he delivers them.

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

Fear the LORD, you his saints,for those who fear him lack nothing.

The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;

the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;

he protects all his bones,not one of them will be broken.

Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

Chemo - Day 1

Friends and Family,

Day 1 of chemo went well. Mark spent most of the day getting drugs pumped into him through his port and then they sent him home with a pump that drips the chemo drugs steadily into his bloodstream for 48 hours. It looks like a fanny sack and has a tube running from that into the port in his chest. They said that he may not feel the full effects of the chemo until Thursday when they take the pump off.

He was tired and a bit nauseated last night but he did eat ok and then we just chilled out and tried to take it easy by watching the Braves and the Hawks play (both teams won!) We didn't know how he would sleep with the pump but he did fine and had a good night sleep.

He is going to try to work through all of this but he has promised that if he feels sick he will head home and get some rest!

Our prayer requests would be that number one God would completely take the cancer away from Mark's body and that the chemo side effects would be minimal or nonexistent. We are praying for faith and strength as we walk this new path.

We are so touched and blessed by the love of so many family and friends and yesterday as I was driving home it struck me - there are so many people that love us and hate that we are going through this and would take it away from us if possible but our heavenly Father who loves us more than any person on earth has allowed this in our lives and while we may never understand completely we accept this from Him and pray that we will give Him honor by our actions and attitude.

Thank you again for the prayers - they keep us going and we know that we come to a place where we don't know how to pray that somewhere someone is stepping beside us to pray what we cannot.

We love you,

Mark and Lee

Matthew 17:20

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Psalm 46:1-2

"God is our refuge and strength,an ever-present help in trouble.Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea"

John 14:27

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid"

Full Steam Ahead!

Dear Friends and Family,

We are so thankful for all the prayers and guidance that we have received. We are excited about the plans ahead of us and pray that we will have the faith we need and that God will be glorified in all that we do. We are excited for the day when God chooses to completely heal Mark of this disease and we pray that it will be a testimony of His power to those who do not know Him.

Our course of action looks something like this:

Wednesday, April 14 - outpatient surgery to get port inserted

Tuesday, April 20 - First round of chemo with another possible drug

He will leave on Tuesday with a pump that will drip the chemo into him for 48 hours and then he will go back to get it taken off.

The chemo treatments will be every two weeks for 8 weeks.

After 8 weeks they will schedule him for a liver resection. ( will probably be 1st to mid July)

After a 4-6 week recovery from surgery they will start the chemo back and will continue this every other week treatment for 16 more weeks.

Please pray with us for a full recovery and minimal side effects. Mark's goal in to continue the ministry without missing any beats. Right now he is very strong and his body should tolerate the chemo very well.

They are considering another medication to go along with the chemo. We are waiting to hear if our insurance will cover this or not. He would have to go in every week and have it administered through an IV. It does have side effects so we are praying for God's guidance with this also.

One last prayer request would be for our insurance to cover our visit to the Mayo clinic. We were working with them before we left since it was an out of network visit. After getting to the Mayo we were called back to the business office where we were told our insurance denied this visit. Our oncologist is working on an appeal so please pray that the appeal will go through and that will be the end of that!

A verse that has been very comforting to me in seeking wisdom to find the right path is Isaiah 30:21 "And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left."

I just pray we will LISTEN!

Much love,

Mark and Lee

Prayer

We are back from the Mayo clinic - what an amazing place -

Thank you for all the prayers! We felt them!

We have been so blessed by God's people praying for us! We had friends come to our house last week for a sweet time of prayer which so blessed us and on Easter Sunday were able to have prayer with Mark's family before leaving on Monday.

How powerful prayer is and how privileged we are to have access to His throne through prayer!

We had a good visit with the doctors at the Mayo and had a lot of questions answered.

We are going to spend the next couple of days praying about the next steps which we are both feeling pretty sure about.

Please bind your hearts with ours as we make the final decisions!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Much love,

Mark and Lee

Mark 11:22-25
"'Have faith in God,' Jesus answered. 'I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, "Go, throw yourself into the sea," and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins'"

John 14:13-14
I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it

Psalm 5:3
My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning I will direct my prayer to You, and I will look up.

Colossians 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

Matthew 7:7-8
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.


Hebrews 4:16
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

James 1:7
But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;

Going to Mayo in Minnesota

Dear Friends and Family,

Wow! 8 days since I have posted! What a busy week we've had.

First of all a big thanks to Ed Tanton who is working on getting our sauna fixed - we are excited for Mark to get started with that part of his detox.

Since I last wrote Mark has been able to have a phone consultation with a top doctor from MD Anderson who is now in Columbus, GA (thank you Mark Lee for making that happen!). He has also been to see Dr. Gray (recommended by a lot of our Mt. Paran friends!) and had a good appointment with him.

Today he will see Dr. Pannah at 1:00 and then we leave at 4:00 for The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota! We will see one of the top doctors in the country for metastatic colorectal cancer.

I'd like to take this opportunity to personally thank John Charles who has made it possible for me to be with Mark on this trip by donating his sky miles! Thank you so much!!!

Every time we turn around God is sending us blessings, big and small and believe me they are so sweet and appreciated!

After we found out we were heading to Minnesota a dear friend from WV, Chris Turley called and donated his Holiday Inn Express points and there just "happens" to be a HI Express 2 blocks from the Mayo!

These are just a couple of examples - another would be a CD in the mail with praise songs, cards, texts, e-mails and phone calls! Thank you!!!

Mark will have testing and see doctors all day tomorrow, Tuesday, April 6th. We will be back in Atlanta Wednesday afternoon.

At the time we will take the rest of the week to pray and look over all the information that we have gathered and seek the Lord to help us to see which path He wants us to take.

Thank you for all your love, prayers and support!

Mark and Lee

Matthew 28:20 I am with you always, even unto the end of the world (Minnesota?)!

James 1:2-3 Count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations. Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

Isaiah 40:31 They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles.

Psalm 118:24 This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Need Help in 1 Area

When we went to Arizona we learned a lot about natural treatments. When we came back our goal was to replicate as many of those things as possible.

One of the treatments they used for detoxing was infrared sauna therapy. They had a dome that they put specifically over his liver but it was the same thing as a regular infrared sauna would accomplish.

So...being a big craigslist user when we got back I started searching out the ads for an infrared sauna. We found one before Christmas and so the kids and I went to check it out - it worked perfectly and the price was good so we purchased it. We had to disassemble it to get it moved and then we stored it at Nathan's house to surprise Mark for Christmas. However, after we finally found the time to get it over to our house after putting it together we cannot get it to work!

We had a good friend who is an electrician look at it and he felt that what we might need is some one who is good at electronics.

I don't know much about all this but I have made many, many phone calls and googled this stuff and I cannot find anyone that will take a look at this.

So...my plea is this - if anyone around here knows someone that may be able to take a look at this for us we would be very grateful for the lead.

If you have any information and can help us out you can call my cell number at 678-778-7254.

Thanks so much!

Lee

Prayer, Laughter, Options and Research

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you so much for all the words of encouragement and the prayers!!! We feel lifted up in prayer and that means so much to us.

We had a good visit with Dr. Elwood this morning. He talked to us about a couple of different options for Mark. One would be to do a round of chemo and then the surgery and then more chemo. Mark's CEA levels are up so they feel there are probably cancer seeds hiding in the liver that are undetectable right now. This process would allow the chemo to attack those cancer seeds and also possibly shrink the existing tumors.

The other option we spoke about is a process that first of all burns the tumors out of the liver and then chemo is injected directly into the liver only treating the liver and not the whole body. This is being done by a doctor at Emory (Dr. Hannah I believe) and so we are getting a consultation with him. This is a fairly new treatment.

We are also trying to get an appointment with a doctor in Columbus, GA that formerly worked at MD Anderson and are looking into either going out to MD Anderson, The Mayo Clinic, Sloane Kettering or Vanderbilt.

The bottom line that I feel we learned today is that we probably have about 2-3 weeks of research, consultations, trips to get 2nd opinions from the top experts and much, much prayer! After all of that our hope is to have a solid plan of action and to attack it with prayer, positive attitudes and lots of laughter!

Laughter you ask? Mark loves to laugh and has been reading lately how much that helps your overall health and attitude is everything!! There is one man that laughed when the doctor told him his bleak diagnosis and everyone thought he was crazy - 20 years later (about 15 longer than they gave him) he's still laughing (whose crazy now?). So, remember not only to love us, pray with us but please laugh with us -

We know God has a plan and we are positive about that! He has been so good to us and we are so grateful to where He has brought us thus far and are excited to see where He will take us.

Thanks again for all the love and prayers - you can't believe how much it helps!

Love,

Mark and Lee

Philippians 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always, Again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men, the Lord is at hand.
Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made know to god:
and the peace of God,which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God is in Control (where would we be without HIM?)

Dear Friends and Family,

We want to thank you so much for all the prayers that you prayed on behalf of us today - I can tell you that we definitely felt them!

We just got back from the doctor's office and we didn't get the news we were hoping for.

Both spots on his liver are cancer.

We will go to see the surgeon this week that resected his liver the last time to see if that is a possibility again. Our oncologist felt like it was a strong possibility and that we need to get it done ASAP.

After that she strongly recommended that he start chemotherapy. She is willing to send us to where ever we would like to go to get a second opinion but she said that he must take the chemo.

So....now we have a lot of decisions to make and some large bumps in the road ahead of us.

Please pray for wisdom and discernment in trying to find what path God wants us to take.

Please pray for our children - this is very hard on them.

Please pray for healing for Mark - we believe that nothing is impossible when it comes to Him and we have faith that if He can do all the miracles we have read about then He can heal Mark's cancer!

Also, please pray for the FCA ministry - Mark has a lot of important events coming up that Mark is in charge of and he has a lot of his plate right now. Please pray that he will be able to do what he needs to do and will have the strength when he needs it and the help when he doesn't.

We are very positive and optimistic - you know - someone has to beat the odds - why not Mark? Right?

We love you all - thank you ahead of time for your prayers for us through this time!

Mark and Lee

Psalm 61:3

For you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the foe.

God IS our strong tower!!!!!!!

Petscan Scheduled

Mark's petscan is scheduled for Monday, March 22 at 2:00 and will follow-up with Dr. Klass to find out results Tuesday, March 23 at 3:45.

Thank you ahead of time for your prayers!

Mark and Lee

Please pray with us for Mark's body to continue to be cancer free!

Matthew 18:19-20
"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20) For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

First of all I want to update you on the last posting. Last week when I posted that Mark had a petscan I was wrong - it was a CT scan. Looking back I realize that whenever we talked or prayed about it we both just said "scan" and I was shocked when the doctor came in the room with the results of the CT scan!

So...I found out they do a CT scan because it is more detailed and shows any changes no matter how small and can measure very precisely anything that shows up.

They did a scan on the whole chest region and everything looked good with the exception of a couple of spots on the liver. One is a spot that was there last time that was 1cm that did show up negative on the last petscan and MRI but it has grown to be 1.9cm and there is also a small area of concern towards to top of the liver.

They are ordering a petscan on the liver to see if either spot shows up as cancerous or not so we are just praying that when the test is done all will be great and there won't be any cancer!

We have to wait on the insurance to approve the petscan before they can make the appointment.

I will post whenever I find out when that will be.

We are very thankful that we didn't get bad news - we just have to wait until after the next scan to send out the news that he is still cancer free!

Thank you for your continued prayers!!!

With much thankfulness,

Lee

March 9, 2010- Petscan Today

It is a beautiful day here in Atlanta and we are enjoying the sunshine and the day that God has given us!

Mark has a petscan today to see if there are any traces of cancer cells in his body. We are not worried because God has already taken care of that and so we look forward to getting the results next week.

Our appointment with our oncologist is next Tuesday, March 16 to go in and find out the results of today's tests. Ironically that date is exactly one year from when Mark had his colonoscopy and we first heard the word cancer in relation to us personally.

I will blog next week to let everyone know what Dr. Klass tells us and what our next step is.

Thank you for your continued prayers - Mark is still very busy every day doing everything he can to boost his immune system and make sure that he does everything humanly possible to block any cancer cells from appearing anywhere in his body.

His daily protocol is time consuming but he sticks with it and is faithful to take all the supplements and do what the doctors have told him.

Because He Lives,

Mark and Lee

Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in Him and I am helped; Therefore my heart rejoices and with my song I will praise Him.

Psalm 33:20-21 Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield, for our heart rejoices in Him because we trust in His holy name.

Back to Normal

Mark is back to work full force and everything seems to be back to normal (whatever normal is).

He is still cannot lift heavy things and won't be able to for a while. He realizes that it is very important to follow the doctors orders with a hernia so he doesn't wind up back where he started!

We will visit our oncologist this month and will have scans to make sure there aren't any new cancer cells. I will update the blog after we get the results of that which won't be until March 20th I believe.

We continue to be so thankful for all the love, prayers and support. We are very blessed to be a part of the family of God and have had so many reach out to us to show us God's love.

We pray that we will continue to grow in our faith and that we won't miss a single opportunity to share with people the miracle that God performed in Mark's body and to give Him all the praise and the glory for everything!

Have a great March - hopefully we will all get some nice spring weather soon!

Much Love,

Lee

Home and Resting

We are thankful to say that Mark is home and resting well. He is very sore which is to be expected and will be for a couple of weeks.

The very good news is that this is behind us and now he can move toward complete recovery. Also, when they were doing the surgery they saw no signs of any cancer!

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers,

Lee

Deuteronomy 4:29

But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Februrary 10 - Surgery Over

Mark came through the surgery just fine and if all goes well he will be able to go home tomorrow. If not, we will be here until Friday but still much better than our two previous visits.

The doctor said everything looked good and at the point he was in he did not see any signs of new cancer for which we are very thankful!

Thanks for your prayers - we appreciate it so much!

Love,

Lee

February 8, 2010 Update

Wow! I can't believe that I haven't updated this blog in so long!

The past two months have been great! We have continued the therapies that we started in Arizona by doing some at home and some at our doctor in Roswell. Mark continues to get the high dose vitamin C IVs and the weekly vaccine shot that I told you about when we were in Arizona. Since his port was taken out in Arizona due to infection we can no longer do the IVs at home and so he goes into the doctor to have that administered. We thought this would be difficult due to the time and the cost but God has been so good and many have given to our medical fund for which we are eternally grateful! He also continues on the diet plan they laid out for him and daily taking many supplements to boost his immune system and fight off any more cancer cells that could be lingering.

We have been privileged to be able to share our testimony to several different groups and/or churches. God has been so good to us; how can we help but tell people of the miraculous healing that Mark was the recipient of? It still gives me chills every time I tell someone how God healed Mark and I am humbled by what God has done for us! When I hear Mark tell the story my heart feels like it will explode with gratefulness to God for the healing and for the love I have for Mark.

We have another small bump in the road. After given 100% clearance from the doctors to go back to normal activity (I tease Mark that the doctor is talking about the average person and not someone like Mark who is a tad more active than average!!!) he was feeling back to normal from all the surgeries when he jumped up to catch a ball over New Years break and felt something tear.

He has developed an abdominal hernia in the same place the first colon surgery took place. He will check into Kennestone this coming Wednesday, February 10, for surgery to repair the hernia. Unfortunately they will have to due this by incision due to the fact that there is so much scar tissue from the surgery. We don't know how long we will be there - it depends on how the surgery goes - we are hoping to get him home as soon as possible so he can recover there rather than the hospital.

Please pray for this surgery and for Mark's recovery. This is such a difficult area of the body to have cut open and recover from. Pray that he will be able to do much ministry work from the house over the next few weeks and that his body will recover faster than we thought possible!

I will update the blog after the surgery to let everyone know how it went.

Thanks for your prayers and your continued support!!

Much Love,

Lee

Lamentations 3:22,23

Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.
The are new every morning: GREAT IS YOUR FAITHFULNESS.