Good news

This weekend we went to the NC State Fair (more in a later post), Bali Hai, to Raleigh, to Chapel Hill and then back to Chapel Hill on Monday for a doctor appointment.

The doctor thought Mike looked better than last time he saw him and told us he doesn't think Mike's MELD score is indicative of Mike's level of illness. He thinks Mike is much better than his MELD score would lead us to believe. He asked to do blood work and guess what - the MELD score has dropped to 18. Still not great, but much better than 22.

They did prescribe some medication for one of the things driving his MELD and he will do more blood work in a few weeks.

All the glory goes to our God and the Father of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.



Thinking on this today!
Share
Today at 9:16am
1 Peter 1:3-9Give praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us a new birth and a hope that is alive. It is alive because Jesus Christ rose from the dead. 4 He has given us new birth so that we might share in what belongs to him. It is a gift that can never be destroyed. It can never spoil or even fade away. It is kept in heaven for you. 5 Through faith you are kept safe by God's power. Your salvation is going to be completed. It is ready to be shown to you in the last days. 6 Because you know this, you have great joy. You have joy even though you may have had to suffer for a little while. You may have had to suffer sadness in all kinds of trouble. 7 Your troubles have come in order to prove that your faith is real. It is worth more than gold. Gold can pass away even though fire has made it pure. Your faith is meant to bring praise, honor and glory to God. That will happen when Jesus Christ returns. 8 Even though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him. You are filled with a glorious joy that can't be put into words. 9 You are receiving the salvation of your souls. It is the result of your faith. New International Reader's Version (NIRV) Copyright © 1996, 1998 by International Bible Society

Insecure Leadership

Perry Noble posted a link on his blog to a writer that wrote about Insecure Leadership. Anna (the writer) talked about the affects an insecure leader has on the organization.

I've worked with several people whom I would define as insecure. The characteristics I find when people are insecure are:

They like to find fault with others (to hide their own weakness)
They talk loudly and seem to laugh at inopportune times
They try to spend time showing what they have done versus letting it be discovered
They never give the others credit
Many times they lie - to make themselves look good or to lay fault on someone else besides themself.

What I have found is their inability to find security in their position causes those under them to eventually give up and move on or causes great turmoil within the company. Sometimes it is only in that department; however, many times there is a trickle down effect realized in other areas of the company.

Does insecurity come from undue promotion, from being in the wrong position or from a need to shine?

I think it depends on the person. Someone promoted before they are ready could shine if mentored to lead and succeed in the position. A person in the wrong position must at some point realize they are in the wrong place and find a place (calling or vocation) that fits their gifts and talents. The person that just always has to shine must surround himself with capable people that can make them shine and keep them by not keeping the credit themselves, but by giving it away.

I think Daniel in Daniel 2 faced this. He had to not only interpret the Kings dream but also tell the King what the dream was. He asked other's to pray, gave the credit to God and was spared. He could have been insecure as the other prophets and lost his life. Because of his security in God his life was spared, he was promoted, given gifts and was able to promote his friends.

December 9 & 10

Looks like we will be in Chapel Hill on December 9 & 10 for class and workup. Pray as we continue to learn how to cook low sodium and as we prepare to get on the list!

What in the Heck is a MELD

Your meld score is a combination of certain blood tests. It determines the likelihood of your needing a liver transplant in the next 3 months. The higher the score the more likely you need one. The score starts at 6 (a normal liver) and goes to 40 (you are in intensive care on a ventilator fighting for your life).

Right now, Mike's score is 22. He should be scheduled to have another set of bloodwork around the 19th to get a new score.

According to the doctor he shouldn't be able to work every day and he shouldn't be able to drive to Chapel Hill; however, Mike has so many people praying for him that even though he feels bad and even though his blood work is increasingly getting worse, he is still able to remain active.

GOD ROCKS! and we know that He is in control, no matter what the outcome.

December 9h

Mike received a letter in the mail yesterday. His appointment for class to get on the transplant list will be December 9th. Nine weeks away.

What is it?

Last week I ran into someone that served with me at Covenant. They were very faithful and I asked where they are now worshipping. They told me and frankly I was shocked. It is a very traditional church.

But their mindset impressed upon me a few questions. First they said sometimes you are there to serve and sometimes you are there to get. Do I believe that and why not both? Can we not serve and still receive? Do we not receive while serving?

Also, they picked a small church that needs help. People flock to the large church that can give them a children's ministry or a youth ministry. What about the small churches and do people far away from God always head to the large church when they want to start a relationship?

And then I thought about people far away from God. How many of them start out by going to church? Or do they start with a conversation with someone they think is a Christ follower or do we initiate the conversation?

Wow, I guess that is why we have options. But do those options lead others into a growing relationship with Jesus?

Carolina Wins!

We really enjoyed our trip this weekend to Carolina. Mike woke up feeling really bad, but after waking up he was like a little boy on Christmas trying to get me to hurry so we could get to the game.

We stopped in Old Fort and got a biscuit, but ate on the way to save time.

He couldn't decide whether we should check into the hotel before or after the game, but I decided before so when we got back that night we could crash. Turns out the team stays in that hotel during home games. They were in the lobby and about when we arrived at the Marriott. One of the coaches was on the elevator with us. We tried to get a ride on the team bus, but he just laughed at us.

Knowing that parking would be elusive as Chapel Hill isn't made to hold 60,000 extra people, we headed to Franklin street to find parking. We parked in a deck behind Sparky's. I saw a Sutton's Drug Store sign on the way up Franklin street so we headed their for an orangeade. We decided to have lunch there. The Reuben was wonderful and Mike enjoyed his chicken salad.

We walked into the campus toward the Old Well. We sat in a shaded area and Mike told me about some of the classes he took and where they were. Then we walked down toward the Old Well and found that Tarheel town wasn't open yet. There was talk in the air of $5 shirts somewhere so we headed toward the student store and found them in there.

When we finished our purchase the band was practicing so we sat in the shade and listened to them rehearse for the game. They are a talented group of young people.

TarHeel Town was open when they finished and we headed there to get our free cozies, etc. And then we walked toward the stadium after enjoying the Football Museum.

We sat in the shaded part of the end zone until closer to game time as the sun was setting and our seats became shaded (Sec 107, Row T, Seats 12, 13).

The atmosphere of the game lends to such camaraderie. The students had painted bodies and were so into cheering on their team.

The lights went out during the game and I think that led to a 5 minute wave around the stadium followed by a 20 minute delay of game for the lights to come back on. Carolina won the game.

It took us an 1.5 hours to get from the stadium, out of the deck and back to our hotel. But it was a nice evening. The lightly cool breeze was the perfect fall night.

I crashed. Mike said it was 2 am before he finally was able to relax to go to sleep.

The Waiting

Several people have asked, "What do you do while you await answers?"

Well, we've prayed, we've cried, we've prepared for the worst & prepared for the best. We have sent emails, called friends & family, we've been silent, we've talked and we've know that God is in control.

This weekend we are planning to go to Chapel Hill to watch a football game (his other option was to take me to see Nights in Rodanthe), we might have a surprise next weekend and then the following weekend we are planning to go to Raleigh to the state fair.

Staying busy, prayer, and trying to keep everything normal. We still break down and cry.

Continue to pray that he will get on the list and they will quickly get him a good liver.