Psalm 34: 4-7

“I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
and saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.”

Yesterday morning, these beautiful ladies were at my house for our PTF meeting for school. (Pictured from left: Danielle Musso, Ashley Starns, Danyale Persick, and Niki Hall.) When Clay first got diagnosed, back in May, the ballots for PTF had already gone out and I was reinstated as President of our PTF. At first, everyone thought (including me) that I would not have time to do it. So, a sweet friend, Danielle, stepped up to be Co-President.

I realized yesterday why the Lord had me stay involved in this group. They encouraged me so much in just a few short hours. We talked, laughed, took care of some business, and they prayed over me. Really prayed. With such love and compassion.

I was telling them that Clay has an MRI today. It is the second one. You probably remember a month ago when we went for the first MRI since radiation. There was a great deal of anticipation that day. I thought a lot about how I would feel while we waited for the results. I anticipated a great heaviness. And, to be honest, it is not a day that I would like to relive. The Lord was with us, but it was hard.

But, as I was telling the ladies about today, I realized that the Lord has “delivered me from all my fears.”

It can be funny how the Lord can answer a prayer and you don’t even realize it until you start telling someone about how you feel. So, we were standing in my kitchen, talking about the MRI, and I said to them that I thought I would be worried, anxious, maybe even afraid, but I’m not. Nor is Clay. We truly do have a peace that only God can give.

This morning, I turned in my Bible to Psalm 34, and the Holy Spirit just whispered to me….

“I did that. I delivered you. You asked and I delivered.”

And, He did. He did it. If it were not for the Lord, my heart would be anxious today. My thoughts would probably be negative. My blood pressure would be high. My knuckles would be white.

But, they aren’t. I’m at peace.

If you are wondering how this can happen, let me show you the 3 prior verses in Psalm 34:

“I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul makes its boast in the LORD;
let the humble hear and be glad.
Oh, magnify the LORD with me,
and let us exalt his name together!”

David knew that if he magnified the Lord, if he praised the Lord, if his soul boasted in the Lord, if he exalted the name of the Lord, that God would lift him out of his fears.

That’s what we’ve been doing. Now, just like David, we are human, and we have moments where fear or anguish overtake us, but God has given us the strength to lift ourselves out of that pit and praise Him.

So, if you are in fear today…

Bless the Lord

Praise the Lord

Let your soul boast in the Lord (there is plenty to boast about, even if you are in a struggle)

Magnify the Lord

Exalt His Name

And, then, like David, PRAY.

Pray to the Lord, and He will set you free from fear.

When you take your eyes off of your surroundings…off of your circumstance….and focus your eyes on Jesus and what He is, He can set you free from fear.

It is wonderful to walk in peace. It is so much better than walking in fear. Let Him set you free today.

The MRI is at 10 am, but we won’t have the results until later this afternoon. I will update you as soon as possible. Thank you for praying for a good report, for continued restoration of Clay’s body, and for our peace.

We are praying for you. I thank God for you continually. Even those of you I don’t know. I thank Him for the work He’s doing in your lives and how He’s used you to encourage us in this valley of the shadow. You will never know, until we get to Heaven one day, how much you have lifted our spirits. Much love~

UPDATED WITH RESULTS FROM MRI:

I’m so sorry it took me a while to do this. We’ve had a busy few days.

Clay completed the MRI at 10 am and then we went to Dr. Russell’s office at 1:00. While we were waiting to see him, a patient had an emergency and he couldn’t see us until about 2:15. We were fine because there are plenty of people to visit with in his office. We got to say hello to our friends who did Clay’s treatment all those weeks.

When Dr. Russell got there, he had about 6 other patients waiting to see him, so he didn’t have much time. He called the Radiologist while we were sitting there beside him and the Radiologist said, “It is smaller.” He just looked at us with a huge smile and said, “Smaller is good!”

He didn’t have time to show us the pictures, and we were ok with that. All that matters right now, is that it is smaller. How much? We don’t know. What does this mean? We don’t really know. There are several factors that could be contributing to the decrease – reduced swelling from radiation, Chemo (Temodar) and Avastin (the new infusion drug.) Regardless, we were very pleased.

We also sent a copy to Dr. Weinberg and I’ll write more when I hear from him.

We have been rejoicing for a few days. We are just thanking God for some good news that gave us much needed encouragement.

Also, Clay seems to be feeling a little better these past few days. He looks really good. Look at the smile on his face in this picture…

And, look at Dr. Russell. I had to think that the doctor gets just as excited as the patient. I mean, his treatment plan obviously worked. He wants to see Clay live and be healthy, too. He looked really excited and relieved when the he got to say the word “smaller.” He is a wonderful, Godly man. As soon as we finished talking, he reached out his hands to us and said, “Now let’s do some thanking!” And, we prayed together to thank God for His great love, the wisdom He is providing, and His guidance over every step. Praise the Lord!

Thank you for praying and for loving us. God is doing great and mighty things in our midst. I pray that He is working in your life, even as you read our story. There is purpose in everything that happens to us. We believe that with our whole hearts. Praise God.