Bryce - struggling against cancer - Pray 4 him

Do you know someone who is struggling with cancer?  Perhaps you are in a fight against it yourself?

Cancer takes more and more lives each year and knows no age boundaries.
Today in one of the classes for which I subbed, the students called out, "Absent." when I called young Bryce's name.  He's only a freshman in high school.  There was no strength in the call of their voices, however.  They had said "Absent" with such a quiet demeanor and so many of them at the same time.  With each student's name I call, I always look up to acknowledge the person behind the voice.  At this moment when I looked up, the faces of each student was solemn as I've ever seen.  Their eyes told me something was very very wrong.

Upon asking, I was told that Bryce had been in the hospital for the last couple of weeks and that just yesterday he had been sent home to be cared for in his last days of life.  Bryce has had a type of brain cancer for several years already and been through all the chemo and various treatments possible.  When he has been well enough, he has joined his classmates at school.  He has had good seasons and bad.  The students said they adored him, especially the few who had actually gone to school with him in Middle School and Elementary School.

Bryce, they explained, was a fighter and always maintained a positive outlook.  Though he was terminally ill, he had been and continues to be for them a role model on how to live and look at life.  One student shared, "You know, Bryce is a Christian.  Even when he's not well, he's always praying and always reading from his Bible."  Another student shared, "Yes, and he is the only person I know who has never lost his cool or given anybody any trouble."  Then someone told me that they had just sent him a class card and that he was always present in their minds, and that for him personally, Bryce's life, words, and attitude had given him the inspiration to seek more of God since he had found so much love and peace in his friend.  Now isn't that a testimony!

The way I understand it, Bryce won't live many more days on this earth.  However, what a witness of faith this young man has been in the lives of his peers, and no doubt, everyone who knows him.  It was such a blessing for me to be in the public classroom and hear the testimonies of these students about their friend and openly use the names "God" and "Jesus" as if it were a private school.

Let's keep Bryce in our prayers for healing and continued peace in his struggle against cancer, and let's each say a short prayer of thanksgiving to God for Bryce's life and for how God has used him during his short life on earth!

And may Bryce serve as an example to anyone struggling with cancer and/or who is caring for someone who has it.  God is faithful now and forever.

Financial Peace

My Financial Peace University group leaders just shared this with me and I am posting it in the hopes that it will be of some comfort and motivation for you, too!  Enjoy!  God is so awesome! 
Thank you for this, Kyle & Shelly!

"When things go wrong as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high, You are going to smile because you are trusting on the One Most High.
When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is a roller-coaster with its twists and turns, As everyone of us sometimes learns,
Don't give up though the pace seems slow-- You may succeed with another blow,
Success is failure turned inside out-- The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are, It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit-- It's when things seem worst that you must not quit."

New Beginnings

Today is the first day for me to blog.  It's an overcast day and the weather is cool.  It's only to get up into the low 80's today.  I spent the weekend studying for the Generalist 4-8 Texas state exam.  It's coming up on the 27th.   I also attended my church's service on Sunday.

The pastor's message was about "Wrestling with God" based on Genesis 32:22-30 in which Jacob wrestled with God.  The message was quite meaningful though I think the title of his message could very easily have been "Trusting God in the Midst of Adversity" or "Be Confident in the Lord" or "When in Times of Doubt, Don't!"

That's easier said than done but the bottom line is that the closer one's walk is with the Lord, the greater his/her faith will be, too.  And what seems insurmountable will seem like a mole hill and problems can be seen as challenges and opportunities to be cherished!  Personally, I am not fully grown up in Christ yet.  I still "wrestle with God" sometimes.  I think it is a process I will be going through until the day the Lord calls me home to Him!  And if I am persistent and wrestle with God like Jacob did, I  won't let go until I am blessed!

Since my return back from Thailand and more recently in the last couple of years that I have not had a full-time position and have been pursuing teacher certification to broaden my marketability.  It has been a time of personal reflection and evaluation.  I've asked myself and the Lord many questions such as these:  "What is the Lord's Will for me in this season of my life?" "What do You want to teach me, Lord?" "What is it that You want me to do next in service to You and Your people, Lord? Surely, there is still yet much You have prepared for me to do! But what is it and where is it, Lord?"

I have also cried out, "Lord, Your promises to me are true because You are Truth!  When I was 25 years old you gave me a second chance to live.  Remember, Lord?  And I told you then that I would serve you for the rest of my days.  I have not gone back on my promise to you either, Lord.  Therefore, though You are silent in these days, I continue to believe that You yet have great purpose for my life and that You are preparing me for whatever it is you have next for me!"

God is faithful and He has given me the answers to some of these questions and it has been a great time for spiritual growth.  I also believe He has told me to do the student teaching in January and to prepare for teaching Grades EC-8 (Bilingual/Regular) as well as EC-12 Spanish.  I have completed studying for and have passed the Bilingual EC-6 exam and the Generalist EC-6 exam. I have yet to take the Generalist 4-8, BTLPT, LOTE-Spanish, and PPR exams.  My goal is to complete all of this by Summer 2011.  Beyond what the Lord has told me about student teaching and my studies, I don't have clear direction or answers yet.  But I am trusting in God to continue leading me.  And He will! 

As you can see, there has been great uncertainty in my life as there may have been in yours, too.  However, even in the face of uncertainty, our Lord is certain, faithful, and unwavering.  He is always secure and we are secure in Him whatever may come into our lives or whatever we may find ourselves up against.  There is nothing so powerful that cannot melt in the presence of God's might.  There is nothing so terrifying that the love of God cannot cast it out.  There is nothing so overwhelmingly challenging that God's wisdom, insight, and enabling cannot overcome!  Truly, God is our Rock, our Refuge, and our Providence!