What is community?

I sat down to answer that simple question about 10 days after this journey started. It's a question I've answered many times, even taught on the topic. I thought I had a pretty good grasp on what it meant to live in community and be a part of a close-knit community.

And then our lives got upended and I learned new depths of the word.

We've gotten countless messages expressing love and committing persistent prayers. We've received thoughtful cards from people we know well and people we've never met. We've received phone calls from people in a few different countries who just wanted to talk and pray with us. People have provided meals since day 1 and shown up with groceries  and shipped paper products and offered to transport us to/from doctor visits. Multiple prayer gatherings have been conducted surrounding us. If the list stopped there, we would be blown away by the support we've received. But that's barely scratching the surface.

Friends have set up a Mealtrain, a "lotsa helping hands" site, and a fundraising site for us. They've coordinated childcare for all 4 of our kids when appointments necessitated it. They've taken our kids to the pool or just played with them in the pool for extended periods so we could sit. People have sacrificially donated humbling amounts to help prepare us for the incoming medical bills. While we got our second opinion in Atlanta, an army of people moved all of our stuff from our 2nd floor apartment to a 1st floor apartment two buildings away. When we landed in Atlanta, a friend drove hours to pick us up and spend a few hours with us. Our families in AR have split time in New Orleans (not a short drive) helping to ease burdens. Our friends (and "friends of friends") in medical fields have given up their time to research things to help us have a better idea about what is going on and what to expect. And you're sitting down (or walking around) reading this update right now.

We are absolutely blown away by the support we've received and continue to receive. Having spent time at 2 different seminaries, living in different states, and pastoring a church for a couple of years, I realize that we have a level of support that most others do not. That's a humbling fact to process. In spite of these circumstances, the Lord really has been so good and so kind to us. These selfless acts all serve as reminders that He has not abandoned us in our darkest moments. There is a new level of comfort in knowing that our Savior suffered for us and knows (really, truly knows) what we are going through in these moments.

In Luke 14 when Jesus was hanging out at a Pharisee's house, He gave them a new standard:

12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Suddenly, we have nothing to give. Now we are on the receiving end of things that we'll never be able to repay. As I sat down to answer the simple question, "What is community?" that day, I quickly filled up a full page with line after line of things I never would've thought to do for someone else. Only a snippet of those are recorded here. We can never repay what's been given to us or express enough gratitude for those who have loved us so well. We won't soon forget the new depths of "community" that we have learned over the past month.

How To Pray

• Radiation started on Thursday. We are 2/5 of the way through those treatments. So far there have been no "pain flares" (the main side effect we were told to be aware of) but pray that continues to be the case. The radiation treatments are aimed at the 3 worst pain areas in an effort to reduce my day-to-day pain. Please pray for effectiveness there.
• I go to the dentist on Tuesday to get my exam to see if I need any work done before starting another medication. Pray that it would be a clean exam or that the procedures can be scheduled quickly.
• We meet with our medical oncologist on Wednesday to go over the plan one more time. Pray that insurance approves the treatment plan before then.
• Immunotherapy treatments start on Thursday morning. We don't fully know what to expect, especially as far as my body's reaction is concerned. Pray that side effects will be minimal and that my body will respond correctly to the treatments.

Ready, break!