It's been TOOOO long!!!

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I want to apologize for my absence. It's been 2 months since I've posted anything and I can't believe how SLACK I've been. Let me say, first of all, THANK YOU to everyone who emails me, calls me, pulls me aside at the Y and stops me in the hallway at school to ask me about Diane. I love it and I love that all of you are genuinely concerned for her and our family. I must admit that I it's been hard for me to post anything because things ARE so great right now. Diane feels good and is walking in healing EVERYDAY. I had a hard time coming back here and seeing where we've been and how hard things were just a few short months ago. That is truly selfish on my part because I need to remember that GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME...not just when we need something! He is faithful and just in bad times AND good times. So, here I am...I'm BAAACCCKKK....

Diane is REALLY good. She feels good and she's working out and getting her life back. We've had so many great times over the last few weeks so please enjoy the slide show! Lake Norman and a wonderful lunch for Mother's Day at the Childress Vineyards in Lexington. She had blood work last week and I'm happy to report that the cancer markers are DOWN!!! There is one level that is still somewhat elevated but it is down from the previous visit. So, this is good news! She celebrated her 39th birthday this week and is getting ready to go to her annual Anniversary trip with Tony to St. Barts..... pictures to come!

Please continue to pray for her and Tony. Pray for safe travels to St. Barts. I know they will have a great update when they return. Love to all of you -

Jennifer

KEEPIN' THE FAITH!!!

There isn't much to report right now other than to say that God is good and is at work in my body effecting a cure! I am standing on His Word more and more and claiming my inheritance in Christ. I just love this scripture....Romans 5:17 - "For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign (rule, king) in life through the One, Jesus Christ." This tells me I can reign in THIS life because of Jesus (so this promise is not just for Heaven...it is for Here!). I can reign in every area of my life....body, soul and spirit. Sometimes, standing on the Word is hard because we don't always see the instant results we are looking for (remember, we live in a fast food world!) but we have to be persistent and patient. Jesus spoke about this on several occasions. I guess if He repeated Himself, he knew we would need to be reminded! John 11:40 says...Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see (to gaze with wide open eyes, experience) the glory of God?" (Jesus spoke these words just before He raised Lazarus from the dead!). The Complete Jewish Bible says “if you KEEP trusting”. The key is to keep on keeping on! What an old cliche but so true! For those of you saying…yeah, but that was when Jesus walked on the earth. Well, I got something for that….John 14:12-14…”I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Also, Mark 16:17-18….”And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." Don’t worry, I’m not into snake handling and that’s not what Jesus was talking about here. The key here is that signs follow those who believe…including the laying on of hands and the sick recovering! Back to persistency and patience…In Luke 18:1 we read - "Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart." So, this is just what I'm doing, by faith, and I know many of you are standing with me. I appreciate all of you who are so positive and supportive. It is so important to associate and be linked up with people like you. Speaking of positive and supportive people….here’s a big shout out to my husband, Tony, the love of my life, who encourages me every day and quite honestly, is further along than I am in this whole “believing in what we don’t see” thing. He is a gift and a blessing from God, as are all of you, and I am so grateful. Stay tuned....love to you all!
Diane

News on Diane

I got my blood work back yesterday. All but one number is in normal range, including liver enzymes! Praise the Lord! The only number that is elevated is my CA 27.29 (the cancer marker that detects spread of cancer); HOWEVER, it is down from 144 to 66! WOO HOO! I believe it will be in normal range (below 38 or 36 - can't remember which) next time around! Healing is MINE!

Love you all!
Diane

Update from Diane

Well, no one on planet earth was more elated to see 2008 go than yours
truly! Not that I want to begin on a negative note but let's just cut to
the chase....2008 was by far the worst year of my life. In spite of that,
2008 also brought about an incredible revelation of God's desire for me to
be well and a result, I am now on a path in my journey that I believe is
changing my life forever. It's all about faith.

First, I'd like to report that I am feeling GREAT! My pain has diminished
considerably and I believe I will be pain-free soon! I have been on the
tamoxifen since November 17. I've experienced a few side effects, including
insomnia, hot flashes and a little hair thining. Thankfully, God saw fit to
give me a really thick head of hair so that hasn't been an issue...other
than an occassional shower clog! The insomnia is probably the worst of the
side effects but I am now on an all-natural sleep supplement and it seems to
be helping. I have learned to appreciate the tamoxifen and to thank God
each time I take it that it is available, that it is sustaining me while my
faith increases and that the Holy Spirit will reveal to me when I can go off
of it. I also thank Him that He is affecting a cure in my body and that by
His stripes I AM HEALED! I am happy to report that I am back in the gym and
working 32 hours per week! I can't believe how far I've come! Praise the
Lord!!!

Back in December, we made the tough decision to visit another church, Agape
Faith Church in Clemmons, NC. We loved our church but I just felt God
stirring me to get somewhere where the Holy Spirit was allowed to flow
freely and where healing was taught and ministered. God put two people from
completely different walks of life in my path to confirm this and I believe
we are where He wants us for now. They have a Healing Clinic each Tuesday
at noon that we have been attending and they have a miracle healing service,
usually on the first Wednesday night of the month. Divine healing is part
of their statement of faith and miracles are happening there! It is
important to be connected to like-minded people. My faith is being built up
continually and I am supported and encouraged at every turn. My family used
to attend their years ago so I have reconnected with several old friends and
we are meeting many new ones.

I want to share a couple of scriptures that have become so important to me.
There is so much in these verses that I'm still trying to wrap my brain
around them!

Proverbs 4:20-22 - God's Word is medicine to our flesh. We should keep it
ever before our eyes and let it penetrate our hearts. When we speak it,
stuff happens! Just think, these are God's Words and when God spoke, the
universe came into existence. God's Word is incredibly powerful. Science
has proven that positive words affect your physcial body....how much more
the Word of God. The Bible says in Psalms 138:2 that God exalts His Word
even above His name...and we know how awesome His name is! It's above EVERY
named thing (Phil 2:9-10), including cancer. Everything with a name has to
bow at His name. So, if His Word is exalted above His name, I can trust it,
rely upon it and bank on it! It's all about faith in His Word. Speaking of
faith, the awesome thing about God's Word is not only that it is medicine to
our flesh but meditating on, reading and speaking the Word creates the faith
that is required to bring about the promises of God in our lives. So, while
faith is the key to unlocking God's promises in our lives, if we are not at
that place where we fully believe, God's Word promises to get us to that
place if we will keep it before our eyes and in our hearts. How cool is
that!?!

I could keep going and going but I'll save something for the next update!
Let me encourage you....there is an answer to whatever you may be going
through in your life. His name is Jesus and His Word is full of promises
for you. Trust Him as your Savior and then get in His Word and claim the
promises for yourself, whether your need is physcial, emotional, spiritual
or financial. He is all we need.

Love you all,
Diane

Christmas pictures

I hope all of you had a Merry Christmas! We had a wonderful day together. Here are a few pictures from Christmas at my house.
Check out the rest of the Christmas Day photos on my photo website
http://gallery.me.com/gmjm0906

Merry Christmas, Sister

It's Christmas Eve and we've just finished up a HUGE dinner of shrimp creole, cornbread, salad and too way too much junk food. Everyone is here but Diane and Tony. They won't be here until tomorrow. I tried to talk her into coming tonight but they wanted to just chill - go to church, open presents together and rest. They need it. It's hard to believe how much has happened since last Christmas - good news and bad, new doctors with all sorts of new treatments, and lots of prayers to our Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for the friends and loved ones that have called and emailed. I can't tell you how much it means to us. I love that we have the blog now to keep everyone up to date. I really don't have any news other than she's doing very well. She is on the tamoxifin and feeling better. We are believing AS A FAMILY that God is going to heal her! She has opened my eyes to so many scriptures about healing in the Bible. As the new year starts, I want to post a scripture weekly on the blog - that way, when Diane comes to your mind, you can pray with us! I think it will be awesome for all of us to have the same scripture on our hearts and minds. That is my goal in January....be looking for it!

Diane,
I just want to say MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR! Dear Lord, we need a new year, right?? Anyway, I want you to know that I love you so much. You are amazing! I always wanted to be you! So brilliant and beautiful - I was so jealous! As we got older, you drove me crazy - so bossy! I drove you crazy and you had no problem letting me know! I SO wish that I could go back and do it all over again.... I wouldn't have worn your clothes and ruined them, I wouldn't have hit you in the bathroom because we were both trying to get ready at the same time, I wouldn't have snuck in your room to use your make-up ( oops, did I ever tell you about that? ) Oh well, I guess those things have just molded us into who we are today - and you are incredible. You are so strong, wise, independent, disciplined, faithful, persevering, and most of all determined. You know God has a plan and you are ready and waiting for him to use you. You inspire me and so many others and I hope you know how much I love you.

Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone....new post from Diane

First, I want to thank those of you who have posted such encouraging comments on the blog. This is such a great way to keep in touch and it is so uplifting to hear your thoughts and know that you are praying and standing with us during this battle.

The Lord has shown me so much in the past few weeks. I can't begin to capture it all here so I will just highlight a few revelations of significance to me. First of all, I am now absolutely convinced that Jesus died not only for my salvation but also for my healing. Just read Isaiah 53:4-5, then read Matthew 8:16-17 and then read I Peter 2:24. It cannot be any more clear than that. Did you know that the Greek word for "save" is "sozo" and it means "to heal, preserve, save, do well or make whole"? Next time you're reading in the New Testament and you come across the word "save", translate it "save-heal" and see if that doesn't expand the meaning A LOT! It has for me! For example, read Romans 10:9-13. You will see the word "saved" in this passage several times. This will be a familiar passage to many of you but I will paraphrase...if we confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in our heart that God rasied Him from the dead we will be saved [saved, preserved, HEALED and made whole]! This is so cool!

Second, God has shown me that He wants to be believed. Hebrews 11:6 says "without faith it is impossible to please God...". Faith is the crux of the Christian walk. I have allowed the enemy to atatck me in this area of my life for years now and I finally realize how serious this is and I am taking charge of the situation. God expects faith from us. His Word is very clear on the subject. We cannot expect to get anything from the Lord if we do not believe and trust Him (James 1:6-8). So, how do we "get faith"? I'm so glad you asked! Romans 10:17 says that "faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God". I cannot tell you how powerful this simple statement is. Tony and I have started reading, speaking aloud and praying healing scriptures on a daily basis. It is so true that God's Word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12) because something comes alive on this inside of us as we do this and we are greatly encouraged and strengthened even in the midst of pain and frustration.

Third, I believe that God wants to and is willing to heal me. As a child of God and a believer in Jesus Christ, this is my right. God has a destiny for me and I cannot fulfill it if I am sick....so why in the world would He want me sick?? He doesn't! I believe I am already healed and that the manifestation will come in due time. The Word says by his wounds or stripes you WERE healed. Past tense. The price has already been paid. I am so grateful to Jesus for what He did on the cross. Not only did he redeem us from death and sin but He has provided for our abundant life here and now. I can tell you that a life of pain and suffering is not an abundant life....that is why I know it is not His will for us to be sick.

Someone recently asked me where I might have "missed God" along the way with respect to the treatment options I chose. I thought for a moment and it came to me that I didn't miss God in the sense that I heard Him wrong or thought I heard Him and didn't hear Him at all or whatever. Where I went wrong was putting my all my energy, faith and hope in the treatments, food, supplements, etc... I couldn't wrap my brain around God using those things to heal me, although I felt Him whisper to me last year not to get caught up in all of this but to look to Him. I knew better in my mind but for some reason, I couldn't see how they (God and the treatments) worked together. It was like it was either Him or the treatments and because of the deception of the enemy, I unconciously chose the treatments. To put it simply, I wasn't exercising my faith. Now that I know what the Word of God says about healing, I realize that God can use anything He wants (or nothing at all) to heal me. The key is putting our trust in Him completely, relying on Him to lead us to do what He wants us to do and believing for healing. I continue to eat healthy (most of the time...although my Mom's Thanksgiving dressing WITH turkey gravy was off the rack!!) and take my supplements and even the tamoxifen but I no longer look to those things for my healing. I cannot explain it other than to say that the Word of God is powerful and the Holy Spirit has opened my eyes and heart to many things.

I'm not sure if this blog has a character limitation but anyone who knows me well enough, knows I'll hit it one of these days. Love you all. In closing, here are few more scriptures that we are clinging to.....

Psalm 103:3
Mark 11:23-24
Mark 16:17-18
Romans 4:17-21
Hebrews 13:8
James 5:14-15
I John 3:21-22