I wanted to give you and update on my Dad. He had a surgical procedure yesterday to biopsy two lymph nodes in his lungs. They are trying to find out what kind of cancer he has and the extent to which it has spread. His brain scan came back negative for cancer which was big. They should hear back on the biopsy tomorrow and are in the process of choosing an oncologist and a neurologist. Buddy (my brother) arrived in Springfield last night and he will be there for the entire week. Michelle will probably head out next week with the kids for a visit and then my sister Kristin is coming home from East Asia for a couple of weeks.
Emotions are very unpredictable. I did great while I was with my parents but the tears seem to have come freely since I returned home…the realization that my Pops is sick and my time with him limited has hit me hard. I really love and admire my Dad…on top of that I like him a lot as well…he is one of my closest friends. I hate that we live so far away. One thing Buddy shared with me in 2007 is that depression is the "inability to express loss". When we keep the emotions bottled up we end up depressed. Michelle has been good to let me express what I need to express. Church went great Sunday. I prayed and prayed that God would help me keep it together. Lack of sleep, emotions, and the fact that I knew lots of people would be asking me about my dad made me consider “hiding out” until it was time to speak. Trust me, it’s much easier for the tears to come when the adrenaline is pumping and you are in front of people (see T.O.’s press conference). But God was good and got me through my talk.
I want to tell you what I told my Staff and Elders…it is very important to me and my Dad that Sunday’s at Fellowship be about Jesus and not what we are going through personally. If a guest was here Sunday, I would not want them to know anything is up. This isn’t about being fake…it’s about priorities and the priority in worship is to exalt Jesus. He promised that when we lift him up that he would draw people to him and that is why Fellowship exists. God has given me this incredible blogging format to share with those of you who want to get to know me what I am going through. Believe me, I will keep you posted. Your comments, emails, and support have meant the world to me. My parents read many of them as well. We are in this together…
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6 comments:
Hey John- Glad you made it back safely. I have been praying for you, Buddy, your dad, your mom, and the rest of your family. I admire the strength that you all have shown and the faith in God to get you thru this. Please let me know if there is anything that I can do for you or for your family. I'm here for you guys!
--Heather Tamburello
Amazing post. Thank you for this, John. You know we are praying earnestly for your Dad and your family, and appreciate your updates so much. (your Dad and family are on our church's prayer list as well....many are praying!) However, your post made me cry (glad reading your previous one about Bo made me laugh!). When I would come home from church when Todd was sick, I would tell him the many who were asking, praying, etc, and he would say, "What was the message about? Did you go to update people on me, or to worship God?" I guess I talked too much (ok, I'll say it..talked about people too much) at church, and he would gently remind me that it was good to "fellowship" but that our primary reason was to worship God and learn more about Him. I wish you and Todd had met here, but in heaven you'll understand what I mean. It will be great one day to all be together, worshipping God in His very presence!
Anyway, thanks for the reminder of the "main thing," and keep blogging! I love coming here. Keep going, John, you're doing well. Love you guys and am praying for you!
The few times I saw your dad (mostly as a visiting singer/evangelist at 1st Baptist of Aston) years ago I recognized him as being absolutely genuine!
You are a chip off the old block!
We appreciate you so much and I for one want you to feel free to visit with your dad as often as you need to! You need it and we need it so you will be as close to yourself as possible.
We love you, John, and pray the very best for you and your family!
Heather when are you going to start your blog? If you haven't you should consider it. Our family is doing great. This has brought us together in fresh and close way. Buddy got my parents a new tv today...what a blessing. Thank you so much for your prayers.
I get what Todd is saying bigtime. It is so easy to make it about us when we are around those who care for us the most.
Maybe God is calling your family to
rescue being run over by Michelle. Think about it...
Ray thanks for your support...i pland to get as much time with Dad as possible in the time we have left.
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