Keep On Praying!

Time is ticking away all too fast!

Haley had still not been feeling well since her episode last Thursday morning. She's just had no appetite, no energy, nausea, and an overall feeling of something not being right. That's not exactly a good place to be right now! Yesterday I slipped away to the office after being out a few days, and not too long after I was there, she texted me with a plea of "Mom, what is wrong with me? I just don't feel right." I'll be honest. My panic button was hit, and the severity of the situation really sunk in. I had already called the doctor's office before that, but the nurse hadn't called me back yet, so I called them again and explained the situation to that receptionist while holding back the tears. They were still trying to find her chart! After being on hold for a while, I was finally able to set an appointment with a new doctor since ours is out all this week. I also sent out a couple pleas for prayer and am so thankful to all those who responded on our behalf so quickly!

Basically we had a consultation and found out that Haley was anemic and starting to get dehydrated. She advised us to take her off the medication for five days that she's been on to prevent future ovarian cysts and see if the nauseous feeling goes away. If so, she can resume that medication again, but Haley's not so sure it's worth it. The doctor said she wished she could hold Haley's hand while she's in Africa and help walk her through every question and decision that comes up but told her that this would be part of the growing-up experience, and she'll have to make these decisions on her own. My motherly instinct right there told me we'd better go get a couple more calling cards -- just in case. We can't be there to hold her hand, but the least I can do is give her the peace of mind of being able to call her mama when she needs to!

With all the immunizations she's been getting and her hormones being jerked around, the doctor said it's no wonder her body is reacting a little weird to everything. My motherly intuition thinks there might be a slight case of nerves thrown into the mix too, and it doesn't help that we're looking at a huge shopping/packing list that must get conquered!

When we came home, she immediately went to the couch, and I promptly gathered up a plate of ibuprofen, a multipurpose vitamin, an iron supplement, some whole-wheat crackers spread with peanut butter, and some grapes and gave her a big glass of ice water and told her I wasn't leaving until all of that was consumed. I hadn't been able to get her to eat or drink hardly anything the last few days because she's just been so nauseous. We joked around a little as she was eating, and she even asked for a few more crackers! Her aunt Steph and two girls showed up at the house at just the right time, and by the time they left, Haley was up and around and laughing, and her overall spirit was much better. I was so delighted to see such quick progress! Harris had been gone since Thursday night to help his dad again, so when he called and said he'd be home for supper at 7, she was so excited that she even helped me whip up a meal which included some fresh greens out of the garden -- and she ate them!!! She loves her daddy so much, and his presence was probably some of the best medicine she could have had last night.

Oftentimes she's been feeling a little better in the evenings as opposed to during the day, but we're really hoping and praying for the best today all day. The two of us are planning on spending the day together by doing some shopping. I think both of us will feel better if all her supplies are purchased and she can start the packing process. If you're reading this and would be willing to say a prayer for us today and for her continued progress, that would be so awesome! Thank you so very much for all your support!!

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Just A Little Update

Life has been very full and busy around here, but before I head into another day of crazyness, I just thought a quick update would be in order. My sister and her three girls came last weekend for a visit, so we thoroughly enjoyed some fun girl times together while my guys worked in the yard to get a little landscaping project completed from last year. Harris had passed his test on Friday, Haley was done with finals, Kelsey was finishing middle school, Keaton was happy to have 4th grade nearing the end, Heath's girlfriend graduated, and Monday was Memorial Day, so it was a great celebratory weekend full of family memories. After our guests left on Tuesday morning, there were about 45 minutes that I had to myself before the kids arrived home from school for summer break, so I used that time to just bathe them and our summer in prayer. It was the perfect little niche of time, and oh, how good it was to quiet my spirit before the Lord.

Wednesday brought on the first of several final appointments that we're making sure happen before Haley leaves. First stop was another round of shots for both girls, and then Haley got her hair cut after lunch. We squeezed in a little bit of shopping in between and finally found a sleeping bag that we hope and pray will be adequate for her trip. Our youth group welcomed the new freshmen in by hosting a picnic that night, so off went my new freshman and my new senior with their plate of brownies and smiles on their faces. Haley was spontaneously invited to a friend's house afterwards for a sleepover with some friends, and she was thankful for the opportunity to connect with a few of the ones who are all wanting a little piece of her time before she leaves.

While she was there, they were up late playing cards, and about five minutes after they decided to quit for the night, she felt the same intense pain that she felt that memorable day in April when she experienced a large ruptured ovarian cyst. Her friends gathered around and prayed for her, and she texted me at 3:42 a.m. what had happened and that she was going to try and sleep it off. By the time I got the text the next morning, I knew that she must have been sleeping, so I waited patiently for her call, which finally came around 10:30. She came home feeling very nauseous, so we made work of calling our OB/GYN's office to figure out what to do next. She was supposed to go in on Friday anyway for a follow-up ultrasound to the episode in April, but they worked us in for a couple ultrasounds and a pretty thorough exam on Thursday afternoon. The last two days she's experienced some pain, slept a lot, had no energy or appetite, and had a mild fever. We've had several conversations with the doctor and nurses, and a white blood cell count was done yesterday just to rule out appendicitis. We've basically come to the conclusion that she probably had another ruptured cyst, although this time it must have been small enough that all the testing could show was a little bit of fluid on the ovary. Evidently the fluid just gets absorbed into her system on its own, but it's a painful process nonetheless.

Of course, we've been very concerned about the possibility of this happening in Africa. She's been on medication to help prevent these, but it was explained to me that sometimes the medication takes a couple months to reset the hormones, so hopefully she'll get along better from now on. At least now she knows and recognizes the distinct pain that occurs. We finally resorted to the use of a painkiller last night, and then she finally started to perk up again. The doctor has signed a medical release and didn't feel it was necessary for her to cancel her trip because of it, so we'll just be intensely praying for her health while she's gone and sending a few painkillers along just in case she needs them.

Kelsey and I have been talking for months about sprucing up our family room in the basement, and it's something we really want to have done before our French guest arrives. It's one of the few rooms that we never painted since we moved here seven years ago, and because it's the teenage hangout spot, it's taken some abuse over the years. While Haley was sleeping yesterday, Kelsey and I snuck away to pick up some paint, and then the entire night was devoted to the project. The kids immediately pitched in and started moving things out and prepping the walls for me, and I poured myself a little bowl of paint, grabbed my favorite brush, and started trimming. My "control freak" nature usually doesn't allow me to share the painting responsibility, but a pretty strong desire within me to just get this project tackled won over. After a little instruction Kelsey became a pro at rolling on the paint, and she even started out with the ceiling! I was really dreading that part myself, but she did a fabulous job! Keaton was available all night as our gopher, cleaner-upper guy, and then he even offered to make supper for us. He laid a blanket out on the floor for us and served up a delicious and highly nutritious meal of corn dogs, potato chips, and Kool-Aid . . . and we were thankful!

Haley's up and thinking she's ready to tackle the first of her two work shifts today. My helpers are still sleeping, but as soon as I get back from the paint store, day two of the project begins. Our goal is to get the room all put back together tonight so that next week we can really focus on getting the rest of what Haley needs and get her packed. We have only one week left to finalize a whole lot of details!

So thankful that tomorrow is a day of rest!!

A Glimpse Into Our Life

Monday morning came a little too early for all of us. Harris and Keaton had traveled to Pella over the weekend to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday. He's been dealing with the effects of chemo for his prostate cancer and hasn't been feeling very well for quite a while now. The guys had left Saturday afternoon already so they could do some work on the farm and didn't get back home till around 11:30 p.m. Sunday night. We were all up way too late catching up, and we made a decision that Harris needed to make a doctor's appointment the next day for a rash on his neck that seemed to get worse over the weekend. By the end of the day yesterday, Harris found out he has shingles, felt completely out of control with all that can and should be done at the office, and realized that he really needs to pass a third mortgage test by Friday. He could use a whole lot of prayer this week! Instead of crashing, he still led our team in a conference call at 10, grabbed a highlighter to start studying, and still took the time to visit with the kids about their day. I'm so thankful for the dedicated father and husband that he is!

A lot of my day was spent at the office, but in addition to that, I found myself opening the first of the medical bills from Haley's ordeal, which will end up allowing us to meet our very large deductible this year. We've been JOKING that if anyone feels the need to break an arm or anything, this is the year to do it, but thankfully no one is feeling the need to inflict any pain on themselves other than me who might take the opportunity to get a little procedure done that I've been avoiding.

I found myself explaining details of Haley's missions trip to a couple of people who I'm pretty sure aren't in a relationship with Jesus and couldn't help but wonder what must be going through their minds as I'm telling them about our daughter's passion to spread the news. It was a vivid reminder of our mission field right here at home.

I picked up a bottle of "dry shampoo" for Haley's trip from my hairdresser that Haley can use on all those days that she won't have the luxury of showering. I had two long conversations yesterday with different reps from GE about Haley's packing needs, so I'm finally feeling a little bit better about that situation, but then I found myself handing over my debit and credit cards to two daughters who were very anxious to do some more shopping. My day ended with Kelsey helping me finalize details for Keaton's class picnic that I'm helping with today.

When we crawled into bed after midnight again, all I could do was verbalize that verse mentioned in my last post: "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

Thank you, Father, for sustaining us and letting us rely on you for our strength! Thank you for all the awesome opportunities you have blessed us with! Thank you that today is a new day and that your mercies are new every morning! Amen!

It's Crunch Time!

When this blog started, I shared that part of my reason for doing this was just to share what it's like to be a mom who is sending her daughter off on a missions trip. Well, this post is all about honesty. Up until now, there has been an overwhelming sense of peace about everything, and there still is, but today for some reason I'm realizing just how close send-off time really is, and it's making me nervous. I'll be honest . . . we could use some prayer. Every single day this past week, I could have probably posted something new, but time has not been on my side, so now it's catch-up time.

For the last four months, Haley has spent 2 1/2 hours every Sunday afternoon at our church attending a class called Perspectives with other missions-minded adults and even some teenagers. The homework load was quite intense, but she has absolutely loved it and learned so much. I'll never forget the day we were both sitting in my office here at home, and she nearly broke out in tears as she exclaimed to me, "Mom, I'm doing the wrong thing! I shouldn't be going to Africa! I should be going somewhere else!" She had just learned that Jesus won't come back until every nation, every tribe, and every people group has heard the news of Jesus, and her thought was that people in Africa have already heard about Jesus, so she should be going somewhere else and sharing with those who haven't heard. Bless her heart! We continued to talk about how God is calling her to Africa right now and that maybe this is preparation for her to someday be a part of God's plan somewhere else. Many thoughts were flooding through my mind at the time, and honestly, they still do because I can't help but wonder what God is doing with her. On one hand she's my child who still fights with her siblings, and then on the other hand, I see her with this heart full of compassion for those across the world. Last week Sunday her Perspectives class had their final time together, and we sat with a gal who is soon heading off to the northern part of Africa to teach for a year, and she will be in the midst of 99.9% Muslims. Could Haley feel such a tug someday? Only God knows.

Here is a picture of her at the Perspectives potluck with a couple of her friends, her small group leader who is moving to Texas today, and her new small group leader for next year:

A considerable part of my Monday morning was spent researching what insurance plan to get for Haley while she's gone. She is covered with our medical insurance, but there are so many other things to consider for a trip such as this. We had been referred to two different companies where it would seemingly be as easy as plugging in a little bit of info, getting a quote, and having coverage just that easy, but because of her recent medical fiasco and her hips that tend to need realignment periodically, I had lots of questions. One would think that for a short-term missions trip, we could find an all-inclusive plan that would cover any and all unforeseen events, but what I learned was that these trip insurance plans tend to vary on their coverages and deductibles. One plan was as cheap as $46, and another was as high as $279, and then there are different variations in between. Basically we need to look at things like "what happens if she needs medical attention while she's there," "what happens if she loses her luggage or her flights are delayed," "what happens if she were to die over there," etc. Harris and I ended up having a conversation with her late one night, and one of the hardest things we had to discuss was the "what if something tragic happens here" discussion. Would she want to know? What if she's just days into her trip compared to what if she's nearing the end of her trip? Would she interrupt her trip to come back home for a funeral? Whose funerals would be most important? It would be easy to just kind of avoid that thought process and hope for the best, but honestly, depending on which plan we go with, it all makes a difference. We could go with the thought of, "Hey, she's in Africa, and nothing could be that important for her to interrupt her trip and come back home," or we can face the reality of "what if multiple family members died in a car crash" scenario. Hard, hard stuff. My next move is to contact our health insurance provider and find out exactly how it would work while she's there, and then go back to my pages of notes and make a decision.

We've also been working on her "travel release forms" for GE. They required Harris, Haley, and I's signatures all to be done in front of a notary public at the same time. Our schedules don't coincide very well when it comes to being together during bank hours, so we finally had to pull her out of school for a little bit Tuesday morning to get that done. In filling out all her medical info, I realized that her name had been misspelled on the prescription slips, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. When I called to get that fixed, I found myself explaining the ovarian cyst scenario to the nurse, and we realized that because of the medication she's on for that, now her malaria and traveler's diarrhea medications will need to be changed also. Thankfully we hadn't filled the prescriptions yet, but now we've moved into a higher-priced malaria medicine. We're still in the midst of figuring some of that stuff out.

Wednesday was the day I finally put some more thought into a farewell party for Haley and sent out an email to our immediate family members inviting them to come. On Sunday, June 13, we will be having an open house here at our home from 3 to 5 p.m. for anyone who would like to come and say good-bye and give her a final hug and maybe even pray over her before she goes. Anyone is welcome and please spread the word! I really want that day to be a special day of people filling her love tank because for the next two months, she won't be surrounded by all her friends and family anymore. That Sunday night we'll be spending together as a family, and then she would like us to all take her to the airport together the next morning. Her flight will leave at 6:30 a.m., Monday, June 14. We found out today that part of her trip to Africa will include a 10-hour stop in Paris, France! She was pretty excited about that.

God gave me some much-needed time alone spent planting flowers on Thursday. It was a time for me just to do a lot of thinking and praying. When my flower supply ran out, I made a trip to the gardening center to pick up a few more, and right at the end I decided to ask for some help in what to put in my pot near the front door that would go with my usual display along my sidewalk, and the lady immediately said, "How about an African daisy?" I'd never heard of one, but as soon as she showed it to me, I was sold. I shared with her that my daughter was going to Africa this summer, and we agreed that this would serve as a bright cheery reminder of her (as if I'll need one!) all summer long. I just have to share a picture!

While I was gardening, I found myself thinking about Haley's fundraising situation. Several people have asked lately how that's going, so I'll just share a few thoughts on that. Her basic trip cost has increased some due to flight surcharges and her shuttle fee, so she still needs $864 more in her GE account. That doesn't include any of the recommended spending money she needs to take with her nor does it include all the incidentals we are incurring for medications, insurance, and packing needs. We have some money set aside to help with all of this, but let's just say we are totally trusting God to sort it all out and provide exactly where needed!

To say I've been a little stressed about the lack of a packing list is an understatement. For whatever reason (lesson on patience maybe?), GE doesn't see the need to get that out to people real soon. My personality type wants a nice neat list of EXACTLY what she will need to take with her, and I really wanted it before Christmas already. God graciously provided me a friend through my Bible study this year who has done some extensive traveling, so she willingly gathered some things together to show us on Wednesday night at her home. She also supplied us with a helpful list, and finally today we were able to print at least a partial list from our GE website. Haley's trip is split up into two countries, and this list is only for what she'll need for the first country, South Africa. That's helpful, but the sleeping conditions in Zambia are what I'm mostly concerned about. I really don't want to be known around the GE office as the grumpy mom who keeps asking for a list, so I'm trying to limit my requests, but tomorrow I'm going to be addressing it again. Haley is not a shopper, but when she got the list today, she was really excited and just had to go out and look for a few things.

Needless to say, not a prayer will be wasted on us as we move forward in this process! Departure time is in three weeks, and much more work needs to be done. This verse came to me a couple times this week, and I'm choosing to live it out: "This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it!"

Haley Will Go - We Will Send; Kelsey Will Stay - We Will Welcome!

About two weeks ago already, there was a night that I just kept tossing and turning, and every time I reached some sort of consciousness, it was as though God was laying it on my heart that He wanted me to post something very specific on Facebook: the fact that Haley still needed 20 more $100 donations. It’s not like me to want to post a plea for help, so I kept fighting the feeling by trying to ignore the thought or come up with some other more gentle way to say it like “40 more $50 donations” or whatever. But God would not let it go in my heart, and after some prayerful deliberation, I finally knew that I needed to humble myself and just obey.

The very next morning we received an email from someone saying that she had put another donation in Haley’s account, and it was four times the amount that she had already given! In chatting with her, she shared that she had originally wanted to give that total amount, but her husband was hesitant, so she had been watching and waiting. When she saw my posting, she knew God was laying it on her heart to give the original amount! Is God amazing or what?!? I love hearing how God works in others’ hearts, and I know that God will bless not only this donor but all of those who responded to the post. We’re down to needing only $900 more!

Just as awesome as that large donation was, there was a small donation that was just as breathtaking. It was from someone who probably doesn’t have an abundant supply of resources, who has gone through some really hard circumstances in life, and who may not necessarily have any reason to trust or believe in God’s plan, but yet God moved in this person’s heart to give anyway, and she gave. My heart longs for her to know and understand how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is for her.

Throughout this whole fund-raising process, it would be very easy to get caught up in who’s giving, who’s not, and how much, and to let judgmental thoughts take root in our hearts, but it’s not about that, and we pray it never will be. We understand that not every person can give even if they really want to or give as much as they would like. We’ve been there too! When people do give, we trust that they are giving out of a heart of obedience to what God is asking them to do and not with Haley in mind as the recipient. I’m not sure that many people really understand this, and I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never really thought about it much before either, but in recent months God has been showing us that some people are called to go and some people are called to send. Haley just happens to be one of the people He is calling to go at this moment in time.

Sunday morning we were out of town, but we attended a worship service that was focused on celebrating how God was using people from their congregation to go out and be lights in this world. Just when I least expected it, a song was sung that brought me to tears. If I could post a link to the song or even the lyrics, I would, but it was all about “I will go . . . I will go to be your hands and feet . . . I will go to share your light for all to see . . . I will go for the glory of my king.” Of course, all I could think about was Haley going, but then as the tears were coming down my face, I started replacing the word “go” with the word “send” and realized that my calling right now is to send. Powerful. Very powerful.

The story could end right there, but there is a little bit more. Haley leaves on June 14, but on June 15 we are receiving a French foreign exchange student, Charlene, into our home for just one month. Kelsey has been taking French at school this year, and she approached us early on in the school year that this would be something she would love for us to do, so we eventually came to the conclusion that it would be a fun experience for our family. Only God could have orchestrated the timing of all of this! At first glance, it might seem pretty crazy, but really I think the timing is perfect. We’ll have time alone with Haley before she leaves, but once she’s gone, we’ll be forced to focus on entertaining our guest, helping her feel comfortable, and ministering to her while she is away from her family. As we help her adapt to her new surroundings, we’ll be more cognizant of some things Haley might be going through and experiencing, and I think our prayers for Haley will be more astute.

We received our first communication in the mail from Charlene last Thursday, and now the two girls spent a couple hours chatting via Facebook today already. Kelsey has always had a strong passion to share Christ with her friends, so it did not surprise me a bit when she shared with me that she already learned that going to church will be a new experience for Charlene. I can’t help but wonder what God has in store for all of us through this visit!

As I think about all these things, I’m really struck by the different roles God calls all of us to as believers at different times in our lives. We’ve been so focused on letting Haley go, and now we also need to focus on what God is calling Kelsey and our family to do right here at home! How will He choose to use all of us? If you’re a follower of Christ, how is He using you? Are you a person who says, “I will go”? Are you a sender? Or is He asking you to minister to someone local today? Whatever role He’s calling you to, I trust you’re obeying and blessed beyond measure because of it!

Shots, Shots, and More Shots!

Awhile back Haley and I met with a nurse from Passport Health to discuss the shots and medications she'd need before heading to Africa, so Monday I called to get her set up for the last two that were recommended: the flu and H1N1 shots. While talking to the receptionist, she asked me if Haley had had the meningitis shot yet that she would need before heading off to college and then offered to get that one out of the way too. I kind of remembered having to make special arrangements for Heath to get that before he left for college, so I figured we might as well get it over with now. Haley is a girl who LOVES to give blood whenever she can and even gave "doubles" last time, so I figured it wouldn't bother her a bit to get three shots in one day. Wow, was I wrong! You should have heard her carrying on all the way to the clinic! I think most of it was just done in fun so she could tease me about making such a painful decision for her, but there was definitely a part of her that was not looking forward to this little appointment! She's had a few too many needles lately.

Once we got there, we worked through all the paperwork, and the receptionists asked if we wanted to go ahead and get her started on the 3-dose series of the HPV vaccine too. I knew at one point as a mom I had read about that, but I had never come to grips on whether or not I felt it was necessary, so I declined. The gals were rather chatty, and once they found out that Haley was going to Africa, we heard another story about a friend who had gone to Africa as a zoologist to study bats (that was a first!), and then Haley received another stern warning of, "Don't ever go anywhere alone!" Hopefully those words will be ringing in her ears loud and clear anytime she is ever even remotely tempted to walk across a street by herself!

We got back to the actual little office, and two nurses were all prepared to stick her at the same time, once in each arm. Then the third immunization came. I'm happy to report that even though my tough girl felt compelled to grab for my hand, no tears came! The nurses and I started another conversation about the HPV vaccine and the importance of getting that done by the time girls are 18, and after much discussion they had me convinced that it was very safe and highly recommended, so we made the decision to just go ahead and get it started. Haley figured one more neon-colored Band-Aid on her arm would just add to her story at this point!


We walked back out to the reception area and proceeded to not only set up Haley's follow-up visits, but then we realized that if we were doing all this for Haley now, we could just as well get all these done for Kelsey too! Poor Kelsey. She just had a tetanus shot done at school, and she thought that was bad enough. Now she can thank her mom and sister for inflicting more pain into her immediate future. At least we'll be making the most out of our trips to the clinic! We had one final conversation with the two gals up front and found out that one of them has had eight ovarian cysts rupture in the last 10 or 12 years. That was not exactly what we wanted to hear, but we did find out that she has gotten so used to them that she no longer makes trips to the emergency room when that happens. I guess that was a bit of good news.

Now I'll just keep on praying for these two precious girls (and boys!) God gave to us . . . their purity, their safety, their health, their hearts, minds, and souls, their future mates, and even their children. Thank you, Lord, for entrusting them to us; we'll keep on trusting your perfect plan for their lives.

52 Days Left . . . Then 53 Days Gone

The reality is really starting to sink in. Haley's friend Beth made a comment on Facebook today that has kind of hit home with us, and the truth of the matter is that these girls will be gone for 53 days total, and right now we only have 52 days left to prepare. The pressures are mounting for all the end-of-the-school-year stuff, the $2,000 left to raise, and the Perspectives class she needs to finish. She's back into her weightlifting routine for swim team in the fall, but her hips and knees aren't liking it very much. We've been working on immunizations and medications and adapting to a few things with that. We are still waiting for a packing list of all the things she needs to take along, so we know that will require some attention in the days to come. All of those bigger things have a way of making just the normal little things of life seem more monumental, and tonight I had to wipe away a few tears and fight back my own. The stark realization of what it's going to be like to be gone for two months has hit Haley hard tonight. If you're reading this, would you be willing to pray for strength, healing, and peace for her? Thank you so much!