Hi. Just wanted to let you know that David came home from the hospital yesterday. He is doing much better. Thanks for your prayers.
Please continue to pray for Glenn. His breathing seems more laboured lately. We're thinking it could have a lot to do with the humidity. As much as I like summer, I am looking forward to having less humidity so we can turn the air conditioner off and have Glenn be comfortable.
God bless you all for standing with us.
Love,
Denita
My brother Jim has warned me in the past to be very careful about what domain names we use for our websites as a mission. Sometimes, my sticking words together, you end up with something rather different than what you intended. Take this notorious examples:
Well, I had a transfusion today and am feeling much better. My haemoglobin levels had dropped to 69 and so a couple of units are just what the doctor ordered (literally and figuratively).
Dave is still in the hospital. Please continue to pray for him. That’s about all I really need to say at this time. Just keep praying for him.
Pray, too, as Denita is torn between being with our son and caring for me. I am trying to let her spend as much time as possible with him, but It has added to strain that I am feeling. Thankfully, my ribs are healing and I am not in as much pain as I was earlier this week.
We could sure use your prayers today. Not only am I continuing to struggle every morning in particular for my breath due to injuring myself last week, combined with the increased humidity and pollution that we are experiencing here in Ontario this week, but last night we had to rush our 20-year-old son, David to the emergency department unexpectedly. I won’t go into the details, but sufficient to say, we are very worried about him. He stayed the night in the hospital and we are praying that he will get the help he needs right now. It made for a very long night last night and even more pressure on us (and on Denita especially). So please pray for us. Thanks
Since I moved my library from my office at the mission to my study at home, I have been feeling what I can only imagine retired pastors and teachers often feel; a sense of quiet sadness. For years I have been picking up books and reference material, first as a pastor and then as a missionary and mission leader.
Now, as my ministry slowly takes a new direction because of my health, I am struck with the fact that some of these books will probably never be used by me again. Whole sections are longer longer relevant to me.
At one time, I was responsible for the Christian education ministry at a growing church in southern Manitoba. I loved my time there. But these great books on Christian education, developmental psychology, learning styles and curriculum development that I once saw as the tools of my trade, so to speak, no longer play a useful role in my life. If we had someone on staff who was involved in full-time teaching, undoubtedly they would find them useful. But I have no idea if we will ever have someone fill that kind of role.
One of my specialities over the years has been leadership. My collection of leadership books is excellent. But my role as a leader at VOMC will soon diminish, as it needs to, when we get a new CEO. I recognize that leadership is influence more than position. But is it good stewardship to have these books sit in my library? Surely someone else could benefit from them. Is not the role of leadership the privilege of serving others rather than grasping after and hoarding authority and knowledge? Knowledge is not real power; giving it away to others is.
Over the years, I worked hard at developing my cross-cultural awareness and skills and passing them on to my colleagues here at the mission. Floyd, our COO, has picked up this ball with enthusiasm. Should I pass on these books as well? Will they really be used?
I have seen pastors and teachers hang on to their books long after they retired, only to have their families donate them to charity or give them away to whoever will take them upon their death. That’s actually how I got a number of my books over the years!
I would hate to see that happen to my library, especially given the quality of books that I have worked hard to obtain. At present, the largest part of it; my commentaries, dictionaries, language aids, and other reference books are still necessary for me to have, as I intend to focus on this kind of biblical research in my upcoming new role as Scholar-in-residence/Executive Advisor.
But it’s sad for me, I must confess. My books reflect my life of service. With them come warm memories, a few regrets, and the occasional “Why did I ever buy that book??” But mostly, they evoke a sense of closure that I guess I’m still not entirely ready for deep down.
Time for my weekly update.
First the good news. For the first time in months, I am able to go two weeks without a transfusion! My haemoglobin levels were at 80, which is right on the tipping point. So we decided not to go for one. Also, my platelets were the same as last week! This is great, as it means my bone marrow is still pumping out what it needs to.
Now the bad news. Without going into all of the embarrassing details, I managed to either crack a rib or pull a muscle on the left side of my rib cage as I was laying on the floor of my office on Tuesday night. This leaves me in quite a bit of pain in the mornings especially. So, I am now using a little more morphine to cut the pain but not enough to make me foggy (though I was a little drowsy this afternoon). Only time will heal this. But it does make breathing and coughing a bit more of a challenge than they already were.
What fun times I have! Always seems to be something.
Today I had the best blood test results that I have had in months! My haemoglobin levels were at 90 (10 points above what is the tipping point for having to have a transfusion) and my platelets were at 52 (again, quite a bit up from past weeks). The reason perhaps for my blasé feelings lately may be an increased blood sugar level which might be a side-effect of the prednisone. Having been prescribed meds for that, we’ll see if the new drug helps. I am also increasing my oxygen and morphine levels a bit.
Thanks for your prayers on my behalf. God is at work.
This week, the mission officially began its search for a new CEO. I will stay with the mission once this person is found, but in a role more in line with my physical issues. I will blog more about this in the days to come. For now, please know that this was my idea and that the mission is no way pushed me into this. Quite honestly, I think they would have been willing for me to stay as CEO for as long as I wanted to, but I really feel that this is the best for our work with the persecuted church. And that is what really matters to me!
