Annointed

The mother of two discovers she has cancer; the college athlete shatters his leg; two brand new parents discover their two-month-old baby has a tumor...the parents of a beautiful baby girl hear the words, "Your baby needs extensive surgery."

Remembering the painful journey of cancer that our friend Diana recently walked through, so many questions of faith were asked over and over again. Every question asked could either go unanswered or could point to a journey of deepened faith...faith in a God of mercy.

We recently visited our church in Dayton, OH (Parkview Church of the Nazarene) and were blessed to be there when Rev. Bob Taylor, a seasoned evangelist brought the morning message. At the conclusion of the service, Rev. Taylor invited those seeking to be annointed with oil and to be prayed for to come forward. As an act of worship and obedience, we brought Annikah forward to be annointed.

In the midst of the powerful prayer that was being prayed for MY baby, my mind went to that emotional Sunday morning in May, when our friend Diana approached the altar of our church, along with her husband Jeff and their two kids - Jordan and Danielle - to be annointed for healing. The crying out to God on her behalf was faithbuilding in itself!

Less than two months later, Diana is experiencing TRUE worship of God as she dances before Him in Heaven. For the athlete, what will his faith produce? For the mother of the child diagnosed with cancer...how will faith be displayed? For the parents of Annikah...our journey of faith is taking on new dimensions. How does this faith journey change those who are sharing this experience with us?

Here we are...on OUR journey of faith. How will God work? We know how we WANT Him to work...how will He work?

Joel (Daddy)

The Saga Continues...

This past week...we received a call from the surgery scheduler telling us that our surgeon needed to reschedule Annikah's surgery - he is going to India to attend his niece's wedding (no comment!)

Here's the dilemna...with the Youth In Mission Fall Tour booked out months in advance, Joel's (Dad) schedule is filled up for most of September, October, and November - with little or no flexibility.

Thankfully, Joel had blocked out two weeks for Annikah's surgery (one week for the surgery and hospital stay and one for recovery at home).

Her new surgery date is October 2nd (Grandpa Tooley's birthday).

Surgery...pending

Annikah Madisen was born on Nov. 3, 2005.

Just a few weeks after her entry into our world, we discovered that she had a condition known as craniosynostosis - basically, her growth plates (sutures) have prematurely grown together in her skull. Untreated, she would experience abnormal growth of her skull; developmental delays; and emotional stress from the abnormality.

We met with one of the best pediatric plastic surgeons in the world - right here in KC...and surgery has been scheduled for Sept. 25th (as Allison would say, "The day before MY birthday!"

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