Things are slow, but improving

We spoke to Dr Boop and were told that his MRI looked great and it was confirmed that they were able to remove all of the tumor!

Gideon is making improvements. It's just very slow. He is moving his head around more, speaking a little bit more, and we saw him smile and heard him giggle for the first time since before his surgery.

We continue to see small glimpses of the boy we know. We rejoice over the little things that he is able to do...things that he couldn't do yesterday.

Our God is so very good to us. He has prepared us for such a time as this...and for that, we are eternally grateful.

Here is a video of Gideon's favorite song:

Welcome back to 5 South, Gideon!

We have graduated from the ICU and have been brought back to our room. Gideon is settled in a nice clean bed and is watching a movie.

I am starting to see small glimpses of my boy...and it's so hard to be patient. My greatest fear has been that I will never get back the same boy that went into surgery. But my fear is short lived as I remember the promises in Scripture...and that my God is fully in control of this situation.

I'm not going to put any expectations on my boy. He will come back to me as he is able. He's been through a tramatic experience and healing won't come overnight.

So I sit next to his bed, holding his hand, singing to him...watching him through tears and prayers.

Oh God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures, here below
Praise Him above the heavenly host
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!

Amen!

Hymns and Prayers

I spent several minutes singing hymns and praying with my boy. Oh, how I love being used by God to comfort my little boy.

I sang and we prayed together. He closed his eyes so tight when it was time to pray and held my hand as we spoke to our heavenly Father.

He spoke his first words since this morning...which filled me with joy to hear his voice, yet saddened me when he told me "I want to go home."

And we will go home soon, my sweet boy. But always remember....this is not our real home. This home is but a temporary dwelling.

One day, we will meet our Father in Heaven, where we will live forever and ever...

Psalm 30

I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up
and have not let my foes rejoice over me.
O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me.
O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol;
you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.

Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=2931091755465679030

As for me, I said in my prosperity,
"I shall never be moved."
By your favor, O LORD,
you made my mountain stand strong;
you hid your face;
I was dismayed.

To you, O LORD, I cry,
and to the Lord I plead for mercy:
"What profit is there in my death,
if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you?
Will it tell of your faithfulness?
Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me!
O LORD, be my helper!"

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
you have loosed my sackcloth
and clothed me with gladness,
that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

Gideon is in the ICU

The surgery went really well and they were over before we expected them to be! We received a call after about 3-1/2 hours, that they were done and that it would be about an hour before they were done finishing up.

Dr Boop visited us in our room at about 12:45ish and said that they were able to get all of the tumor removed. There was no excess bleeding and there was no need for blood transfusions. He said that he couldn't have asked for a better surgery.

We've been by his bedside for a few hours now. He looks so helpless on the bed...but is recovering well. He is following commands to squeeze hands and moving his legs and feet. He is responsive to his name and to questions and tries to talk, but his throat is probably a little sore.

He was given a shot of morphine around 2ish or so, since he was getting a little agitated due to pain. I'm sure that's not helping with his attentiveness.

His eyes are a little uncoordinated. We spoke to one of the assisting surgeons and he said it was most probably due to a little swelling in his brain from where they removed the tumor. He said that during the surgery, Dr Boop was very careful not to damage anything, and he would be surprised if it were anything but swelling. There are obviously no guarantees, so prayers for the swelling to go down in the next couple of days is appreciated.

He has a slight fever that peaked at 103.3 and they gave him Tylenol and Motrin, and are now administering ice packs to lower his temp....which is working. They were able to give him the Motrin through his mouth and it's a great sign that he can swallow and has no problems with that. Nurse Corrie said that it was very normal for this to happen after surgery, and they would be more concerned for a high temp a few days from now.

Gideon squeezes my hand when I ask him to. He opens his eyes when I call his name. He should be much more awake in the next day or two...I can't wait to really hold my Giddy again.

In the morning, he'll be going in for an MRI and then hopefully, he'll be back in our room.

Continue praying for his healing and recovery.

Gideon's surgery

He will be leaving his room at 7am and surgery will begin at 7:30am.

Doctor Boop said that the surgery will last anywhere from 5-8 hours. Gideon will be moved to ICU and will remain there for about a day. Once he is awake and recovering, he will be brought back to his room.

If he does really well, and is able to walk and move around, we may be released within the week. If he needs more physical therapy, we might be here up to 3 weeks.

God is good, and we take great comfort in His word...that He knows the outcome of the surgery and Gideon's recovery. Pray for us.

Gideon update pt1

I am going to do my best at updating my blog about Gideon. I'll just be copying and pasting the updates from Facebook.

Here they are from the past couple of days:

Oct. 31:

EVENING- Gideon diagnosed with a brain tumor at Johnson City Medical Center; transferred to Knoxville Children's Hospital

Nov. 2:

MORNING- Consultation with a pediatric neurosurgeon at Knox. Children's hospital. Doctor gives the following speculative diagnosis after a close review of Gideon's CT scan: things look very optimistic. The tumor, while large, appears to be benign and treatable. It located in the cerebellum, on the left side, and is approximately the size of an orange. The doctor anticipates that removal of most or all of the tumor with little complication is probable. Also, it is thought that post-surgical recovery should be minimal.

MIDDAY - Transfer to St. Jude's Hospital is imminent, not due to complications but instead due to both ensure the best possible care for Gideon and also due to the nature of the condition.
Gideon was pretty upset at the thought of moving to another hospital (and not going home), but was cheered up by a visit from the UT Track Team!!

Nov. 3:

MORNING - Gideon was released from Knoxville's Children's Hospital to be transferred to Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, TN, which is the partner children's hospital to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. After a meeting with the residing pediatric neurosurgeon at Knoxville, Gideon was medically released to ride in the car with his parents rather than by himself in an ambulance.

AFTERNOON - After a successful and comfortable car ride, Gideon and his family arrived at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis at approximately 4:30pm [central time]. Check-in went smoothly and Gideon was placed in his new room within 30 minutes of his arrival. Gideon seems very happy with the nursing and medical staff at Le Bonheur, who are very proactive about his needs and have made him feel extremely comfortable and at ease.

An MRI has been scheduled for tomorrow morning (Nov. 4), and surgery is expected to take place on Friday (Nov. 6).


EVENING - The nursing team attempted to give Gideon an IV. The first attempt was unsuccessful, so a second one was made. It appears, at this point, that the second attempt has been successful. A specialist will be stopping in shortly to evaluate the current IV (that was left in) to make sure that it was successful.

Nov 4:

We spoke to Dr Boop and heard similar things to what Dr Harris told us back in Knoxville. Dr Boop is optimistic, yet kept us grounded in possible complications that can arise. This was hard to hear. It was also hard to see the pictures of the MRI.

Please pray as we get help figuring out how to tell Gideon and his brothers about what is about to happen Friday morning.


We are leaning on God so incredibly much right now. Please continue to pray for us.

A little update

We are currently in Memphis, TN at the Le Bonheur hospital where Gideon is scheduled for surgery on Friday.

Things look cautiously optimistic, but they won't know it all until they see the results of the MRI (that he is getting even as I type this), and examine the tumor upon removal.

We have created a Facebook group to keep everyone up to date on what is happening. As much as I would love to be able to keep up my blog, a carepage, facebook, and whatever else...I am just so mentally exhausted, it just isn't possible.

Gideon Jordan - Prayer Needs and Updates

Please Pray

Over the past few days, I began to notice Gideon was not as mobile as he should be. He was stiff, wobbly, and unsteady. Last night, it was extremely noticeable.

I couldn't just wait until Monday to go to the Doctor's. God just really laid a huge burden on my heart of concern for my boy. John spoke to a friend who said we should get him seen.

After the CAT scan, they found a tumor on his brain.

Within an hour or so, I was riding in an ambulance 2 hours west of Johnson City, to the Children's Hospital in Knoxville.

We await hearing from the Dr, and he will be getting an MRI this morning.

Please pray. Pray that the other children do well without John or I there right now. Pray for the Doctors that are taking care of my Gideon. Pray for healing. Pray for comfort. Pray that God looks great to everyone we are in contact with. Pray for the baby that I carry....though barely 6 weeks along...in this time of emotion and stress. Pray that whatever the outcome is....that God is glorified in this.

It reminds me of a blog I read last year when a family was going through hard times. God is the same. He was the same last week, before we knew anything was wrong. He was the same last night when we brought him to the hospital. And He is the same today.

Great is Thy Faithfulness....

Happy Reformation Day!

Ungratefulness

The other day, I was at Walmart doing a bit of grocery shopping with the kids. As we were finishing up, we passed by the wall of Little Debbie snacks.

Nolan asked me if we could get some pecan wheels. I said sure....then I added...each one of you can pick out whichever box of treats you would like.

Joy was very present on each of my boys faces as they tried to decide which treat to choose. The possibilities are endless. Do I choose swiss cake rolls or Honey Buns? Oatmeal cookies or Fudge Cakes? Confetti Brownies or Boston Creme Cakes?

The pecan wheels ended up staying on the shelf. Nolan chose Fancy Cakes. Gideon ended up with Boston Creme Cakes. Haddon came home with mini chocolate covered donuts. At first, Jamison was excited over the Swiss Cake Rolls, but once he saw the Twinkies....he was so over the Swiss Cake Rolls.

I told the kids they would be able to have one of their treats if they ate all of their lunch.

We had our typical picnic lunch on the floor. You wouldn't believe how easy the clean up is when your children eat on a blanket on the floor! It's one less meal I don't have to sweep up after...I highly recommend you try it!

Anyway....the food was eaten lightning fast and the boxes were brought out for all to enjoy.

You would think that you would want the treat that you picked out. I found that to not be the case.

Yes, Gideon chose his Boston Creme Cakes. Yes, Haddon chose his donuts. Yes, Jamison chose his Twinkies. But Nolan wanted a Twinkie.....or a Tinker...is it a Tinkie? (For the life of him, he could not get a grip on the word Twinkie!)

Jamison had been very excited to get his Twinkie...until he saw Haddon and his mini fudge covered donuts.

The Twinkie was not good enough anymore. He proceeded to shove the entire Twinkie in his mouth while pointing to the donuts. He wanted donuts so badly.

Little did he know that he was not going to get a donut.

Jamison had a mouth full of Twinkie, yet that wasn't good enough. He wasn't enjoying what he had and wanted what he couldn't have. When I told him no, he cried and got upset....even while his mouth remained full of something that he should be savoring.

I saw myself in him.

How often are we like that?

God has so richly blessed us with such wonderful things. We have a house over our heads, food in our bellies, clothes to wear....and even more importantly, we have had our greatest need met through Christ's bloodshed on the cross.

But instead of being content in what we have, we stand at the foot of God, crying and whimpering with a mouth filled with blessing....and want more of something that we don't even need.

Filthy Roman Sponge

A Voddie Baucham Interview

September 19, 2009 Broadcast: To Marry My Daughter
Segment 1; Segment 2; Segment 3; Segment 4

If you have an unmarried daughter, you won’t want to miss the next show. Dr. Voddie Baucham joins us to talk about “What He Must Be...If he’s going to marry my daughter.” It’s encouragement for fathers to become involved in your daughter’s life, and some help and hope for the next generation.

I thank God for John Piper

Justin Taylor has a great tribute on his blog today about John Piper being called into the ministry 30 years ago today.

I am so thankful for John Piper and Desiring God Ministries.

Justin Taylor said it best:

I thank God that he has kept John Piper faithful, and I pray that he would continue to do so until Christ returns or Christ calls him home.

Thank you, Lord, for the decisive calling you did in his heart, 30 years ago this evening.

The kids

A Quote

"Churches that tolerate the Gospel & yet have 'a sweet tooth for error' do more damage than outright heretics." --Charles Haddon Spurgeon

True then, true now.

For anyone who is trying to conceive....FREE OPK's and Pregnancy Tests!

Click on the link and they will send you any combination of 10 OPK's and/or pregnancy tests....FREE!!


HERE

10 Extremely Weird Religions

10. Scientology
9. Creativity Movement
8. Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth
7. Nation of Yahweh
6. Church of All Worlds
5. Universe People
4. Church of the SubGenius
3. Prince Philip Movement
2. The Church of Euthanasia
1. Nuwaubianism

These are absurd and very weird. To read more about what they are, check it out here.

Is confessing sin ever supposed to be funny?

I was dumbfounded when I listened to this and heard the laughter erupt from the crowd as John Piper repented of his daily struggle with sin.

Why are they laughing and why would this ever be considered funny?

Here is what Desiring God has said about it:

Click here and listen to the first five minutes of a talk John Piper
gave at an American Counselor’s Conference last month. John Piper opens by
publicly confessing sins and failures that he has wrestled with over the years
and the only response that he receives from the audience is continued laughter.
How odd. Perhaps this is only another example of the spiritual state of
Christianity in America…

But really, is it any wonder that this happened in this very venue? When I looked to see who the other speakers were, it is easy to see how the seriousness of John Piper could easily be lost in the unBiblical integration of Scripture within the confines of so-called 'christian pop psychology'.

I was angered when I heard this and was appalled that those who consider themselves 'christian' would be so flippant and light-hearted about repentence and sin. This shows me a small glimpse into the state of those who integrate psychology and the Bible....and makes me wonder how 'christian' any of it really is.

Rob Bell and his unBiblical Teachings

Here is an article, PART ONE and PART TWO pointing out many of the unorthodox doctrinal views held by postmodern "preacher" Rob Bell.

THIS ARTICLE will also give you a heavy dose of the screwy teachings of Rob Bell.

Here are some quotes from Bell:

On scripture:

"The Bible is a collection of stories that teach us about what it looks like when God is at work through actual people. The Bible has the authority it does only because it contains stories about people interacting with the God who has all authority"-Velvet Elvis, p.65

"...it wasn't until the 300s that what we know as the sixty-six books of the Bible were actually agreed upon as the ‘Bible'. This is part of the problem with continually insisting that one of the absolutes of the Christian faith must be a belief that "Scripture alone" is our guide. It sounds nice, but it is not true. In reaction to abuses by the church, a group of believers during a time called the Reformation claimed that we only need the authority of the Bible. But the problem is that we got the Bible from the church voting on what the Bible even is. So when I affirm the Bible as God's word, in the same breath I have to affirm that when those people voted, God was somehow present, guiding them to do what they did. When people say that all we need is the Bible, it is simply not true. In affirming the Bible as inspired, I also have to affirm the Spirit who I believe was inspiring those people to choose those books."-Velvet Elvis, p.68

[The Bible is a] “human product...rather than the product of divine fiat"

- Emergent Mystique, Christianity Today

On heaven and hell:

"When people use the word hell, what do they mean? They mean a place, an event, a situation absent of how God desires things to be. Famine, debt, oppression, loneliness, despair, death, slaughter--they are all hell on earth. Jesus' desire for his followers is that they live in such a way that they bring heaven to earth. What's disturbing is when people talk more about hell after this life than they do about Hell here and now. As a Christian, I want to do what I can to resist hell coming to earth." - Velvet Elvis, p.148

"Heaven is full of forgiven people. Hell is full of forgiven people. Heaven is full of people God loves, whom Jesus died for. Hell is full of forgiven people God loves, whom Jesus died for. The difference is how we choose to live, which story we choose to live in, which version of reality we trust. Ours or God's."- Velvet Elvis, p.146

On the Fall:

"I can't find one place in the teachings of Jesus, or the Bible for that matter, where we are to identify ourselves first and foremost as sinners. Now this doesn't mean we don't sin; that's obvious. In the book of James it's written like this: 'We all stumble in many ways.' Once again, the greatest truth of the story of Adam and Eve isn't that it happened, but that it happens." - Velvet Elvis, p. 139

On "Ultimate Reality":

"I don't follow Jesus because I think Christianity is the best religion. I follow Jesus because he leads me into ultimate reality. He teaches me to live in tune with how reality is. When Jesus said, 'No one comes to the Father except through me', he was saying that his way, his words, his life is our connection to how things truly are at the deepest levels of existence. For Jesus then, the point of religion is to help us connect with ultimate reality, God." - Velvet Elvis p. 83

On the Nature of the Atonement:

“So this reality, this forgiveness, this reconciliation, is true for everybody. Paul insisted that when Jesus died on the cross he was reconciling ‘all things, in heaven and on earth, to God. This reality then isn’t something we make true about ourselves by doing something. It is already true. Our choice is to live in this new reality or cling to a reality of our own making."- Velvet Elvis p. 146

On the Virgin Birth:

"What if tomorrow someone digs up definitive proof that Jesus had a real, earthly, biological father named Larry, and archeologists find Larry’s tomb and do DNA samples and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the virgin birth was really just a bit of mythologizing the Gospel writers threw in to appeal to the followers of the Mithra and Dionysian religious cults that were hugely popular at the time of Jesus, whose gods had virgin births?But what if, as you study the origin of the word “virgin” you discover that the word “virgin” in the gospel of Matthew actually comes from the book of Isaiah, and then you find out that in the Hebrew language at that time, the word “virgin” could mean several things. And what if you discover that in the first century being “born of a virgin” also referred to a child whose mother became pregnant the first time she had intercourse?"-Velvet Elvis, p. 26

On Faith:

“Who does Peter lose faith in? Not Jesus; he is doing fine. Peter loses faith in himself. Peter loses faith that he can do what his rabbi is doing. If the rabbi calls you to be his disciple, then he believes that you can actually be like him. As we read the stories of Jesus’ life with his talmidim, his disciples, what do we find frustrates him to no end? When his disciples lose faith in themselves..... Notice how many places in the accounts of Jesus’ life he gets frustrated with his disciples. Because they are incapable? No, because of how capable they are. He sees what they could be and could do, and when they fall short it provokes him to no end. It isn’t their failure that’s the problem, it’s their greatness. They don’t realize what they are capable of....God has an amazingly high view of people. God believes that people are capable of amazing things. I’ve been told I need to believe in Jesus. Which is a good thing. But what I’m learning is that Jesus believes in me....God has faith in me.”-Velvet Elvis, pp. 133-134

For further reading on Rob Bell and his unbiblical positions CLICK HERE…