Potpourri - I’ve always wanted to use that word
Just a couple of big things today:
First a huge shout out for you all to remember our friend Micky Bell and his family in your prayers. Micky has been a preacher of the Word for about 30 years, he is still young and has children at home. He moved to Houston last year and over a period of time started feeling run down. He has been diagnosed with cancer and needs your prayers. Here is his note to me:
Hey brother!
Just wanted to make sure you and yours are remembering me in prayer.
The cancer is much worse than originally thought. The CT scan showed one mass but when they went in to biopsy it they found spots all over the abdominal cavity classified it at level 4...which means it is in my lymph node, blood and travelling to other organs...already in small intestines and colon. They took out my appendix Tuesday because it was covered and are using it to determine what kind of cancer it is and how to treat it. MD Anderson is talking about doing a hot chemo wash where they go in and take all the spots they can find then flush the entire cavity with chemo at 105 degrees for 90 minutes sloshing me around.
They affectionately call this radical treatment "shake and bake"!!! If that works then they will proceed with a port a cath to do full body chemotherapy!
Needless to say brother I'm in for the fight of my life and am in need of your constant prayers.
Linda and I are flying to Nashville Monday and returning the following Saturday! Then the treatment will begin probably the following Monday.
I know you will rally all our dear fellow preachers to pray vigilantly because I truly do not want to leave my family and work any time soon!!!
I really am scared but am trying to be so brave for my family and friends and the church! With brothers like you praying for me I feel the strength and confidence returning to my spirit!
I will let you know of the treatment plans as they are made known to me!
I love you brother,
Micky
Number 2:
There’s a new magazine out that I want to encourage you to look at. It is called Ignite and is being published by Focus Press. It is very professionally designed for teens. I don’t know of anything out there close to this in quality or content that our brothers are doing. Your congregation needs to subscribe to this. Our friend Joe Wells is the trustworthy editor. You’ll be impressed with what they are doing. Go ahead call Focus now and order them...or do it on line - here’s the contact stuff:
http://focuspress.org/ignite/index.html
866.313.6474
Go ahead. Stop reading folks blogs and surfing and facebooking and do it :).
Number 3:
Did you know that the guy who founded the Smithsonian Institute and gave his fortune to America for its establishment never set foot in this country. I didn’t and thought that was pretty interesting.