Praise God!

I will exalt you, my God the King;

I will praise your name for ever and ever.

Every day I will praise you

and extol your name for ever and ever.

Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;

his greatness no one can fathom.

Psalm 145:1-3

I'm back...it's been a long week of trying to get back into the swing of things at home...catching up on the mail and other things that didn't take care of themselves while we were gone! A few visits from family. And lots of rests in between everything.

Today I wanted to take a moment and just praise God for his many blessings and hope that you will join me. When we started this journey several weeks ago, I had lots of info thrown at me from the doctors. There was a lot to process. There was a chance that the radiation could cause more serious problems (like blindness, deafness, and even death). But God protected my body and got me through these weeks and Zac and I have so much to be thankful for!!

First, praise God that radiation is over! : ) It went pretty quickly for the first few weeks, but it grew harder and harder to go the last week or so. A lot of this was because of always feeling sick...which, praise God, has for the most part subsided! And we definitely praise God for no sudden or serious changes, such as brain swelling, bleeding, high blood pressure, blindness, deafness, or death!! Praise God for his mercies!

I praise God also for only two headaches and no squeezing headpains since June 10! Two headaches is probably considered normal. The big part is that the headpains that were happening several times a week, have stopped!! Praise God!!! I'm still trying to stay away from things that caused these (like heavy lifting), but I've done some things that normally would have caused one...and nothing! Praise God!! Also, we are so thankful that my medication has decreased. I'm already down to only one prescription twice a day! I praise God that my scalp has not experienced the sunburnt feeling they said it would. I experience slight sensitivity, but nothing at all like they expected. Praise the Lord!

We are also so thankful for the Hope Lodge. This provided a free place to stay while we were in Iowa City. Instead of driving back and forth everyday (which would have made me more tired) or staying in a hotel (which would have added to the many expenses), we had a beautiful place to stay with great staff. We praise God for the Hope Lodge and the American Cancer Society. We also praise God for the great staff I had at the University of Iowa. How often do you get a hug, or two, from your nurse or tech? The radiation clinic was helpful, got me answers right away, and didn't keep me waiting. Praise God!

There are still so many things that we are praising God for, too many to list. But we especially praise Him for who He is. He is the great I Am. He is the Almighty God. He is a loving God. He is a God of never-ending mercies. He is a compassionate God....we could keep going, but you get the picture!

Praise the LORD!!