Remembering when....now 17 months cancer free!

Remembering is very important. Yahweh told the children of Israel numerous times in the scriptures...remember where you have come from..remember what I have done for you...

I don't want to forget what Yahweh has brought me through!

I saw my Oncologist on Friday of last week, and he once more gave me a clean bill of health, and wants me to not come in and see him for 6 months now! I am so excited about this! I also got some labwork done, which I will find out results from this coming week. I am so blessed by my Father's intervention in my life, and for giving me wisdom to choose the type of treatment that would best support my body that He has given me.

I am now 17 months past my operation that removed my 6.5 lb ovarian cancer tumor, and have not had any sign of setback - HalleluYah! I am healthy and strong, and want to always remember - Look what Yahweh has done! He has healed me!

A peek into my home

In my last entry I mentioned that we have a bigger bed. I cannot say how much of a blessing it is to both Michail and I. Many thanks to a sweet elderly couple who gave it to us for free!

Also, I mentioned that I have two new helping hands in the kitchen - my juicer and blender:

I am enjoying having children around the house. I have agreed to help out my sister in law with her two boys every day of the school week as they are in the process of looking for a home since their's sold. They are temporarily staying at a family member's house which is not nearby. So, to keep the kids in the same school for the rest of the year, I walk one nephew to the school bus in the mornings, and then he and his brother hang out at our house after school for a bit until their dad can pick them up after work. Here are some signs of kids being in our house:

Also, about 2 days a week, I will be watching a little neighbor boy while both parents are working - a favor that my sister in law is not able to manage anymore with moving out of the neighborhood.

I am so excited to have little voices in our home now! I love kids, and according to Yahweh's will and plan, I am expectant about having my own one day.

Oh, and here is Jackson, my nephew's frog that we are "frog-sitting" while they make their transition. He goes to his new home today :(

Michail has been helping me a lot lately with finishing up my paperwork for immigration to Canada. We have realized that time does not stand still like we would like. Yesterday I was digging through some old journals to find some dates from when I started working, and for periods of time. I always find so many interesting things in my journals. I came across some details about when I worked at a Holiday Inn, and the many people that I came in contact that with were hurting. I don't remember many of the stories of sharing Yeshua with them, of asking them their stories, of listening to them....so I am again very glad that I took the time to record those instances.

My stomach is telling me that food should be going in. See you all later. :)

Just my honest heart, part second

Things I am thankful for lately are many:

1. A king size bed - compliments of two twin size hospital beds side by side. Granted, we are still working on how to keep them together so I don't fall in the crack... :) We are so happy to be able to easily sit Michail up with no injury to me, and with two beds, we can both sit up together now and have movie nights!

2. Good health - yes, remember I had cancer last year? At times I can almost forget. I don't ever want to forget. The Lord has done so much for me to bring me to this point. I know God has healed me. Does that mean that I never fear that cancer may one day come back? Of course not! Sometimes I really struggle. I have a hard time taking so many vitamins and eating differently from everyone else, even if I am fully convinced that it is the best way to take care of my body. I want to just be "normal"...but what is that anyway? And yes, I sometimes really feel sad when I look at my husband who cheerfully lives life in a wheelchair, daily having to work hard to do simple tasks that would be of no consequece to a fully able-bodied man. How can I complain about life not being "normal" for me? We pray and we trust God that one day Michail will walk again, confident that God will do as He has promised. But, can we just sit down and wait until that happens and do nothing? I am so proud of my husband's ability to reach out to others in the midst of his disability. He doesn't blame God for a fault of his own that caused his accident 13 years ago. I am blessed to see how much goodness has come through his pain. Yes, I would love to see my husband up and walking and doing everything that he wants to do, but just can't. Some days it's overwhelming. Most people can't and won't understand what it's like to have a body that doesn't function properly, while at the same time having so much life and passion wanting to get out. I am still learning and growing in my understanding of Michial's needs and desires. I am happy to be able to share in his life, his joys and sorrows, his laughter and pain. Now "we" carry the load.

3. A couple wedding gifts that just arrived! Thanks to Dad and Mom we now have a new juicer and blender - two very important items in my kitchen. For months I have been labouring with a 15+ year old juicer that took me 2 hours to make two cups of juice. I can't believe how fast this one works now! Thanks to our neighbor, we had some access to a borrowed blender for some months!

4. My new friends and family at our Messianic Synagogue. I am so enjoying getting to know my new family here, and also learning and growing in my faith, as I dig into the study of the ancient Hebraic roots of my faith. I feel I have so much to learn! Michail and I are also taking a beginner's Hebrew language class which is hosted by us at our home. It's so exciting to discover, and never before have I wanted to learn so much! Please pray for me as I finish up with my immigration paperwork for becoming a permanent resident in Canada. I just found out I have a bit more left to do than I thought. Well, today is a new day, and I still sit here in my pj's and good old Mt Zion hoodie. I am off in an hour to help my in-laws with their move to a temporary house while they look for a new one. Michail will be missing me all day, and I have to admit that I will too. Yes, we are newly-weds, but I hope that it just stays this way forever. I love you Michail with all my heart!

Just my honest heart, part first

It's 10:00pm.

My husband Michail is still meeting with the members of the board of our Messianic-Jewish Synagogue. He is Chairman, so has lots of responsibility. I have been catching up with emails and uploading pictures on Facebook while I sit here and miss him, waiting for him to finish up.

Tonight we cancelled Michail's regular careworker for his evening routine. On nights we know it's going to be late, I take over. Sometimes that makes for a rather late night though, because we seem to feel that we can just stay up later since we don't have a schedule to keep...not that it's done on purpose or anything, but that's often how it works out.

Today I prepared to have a little 5 year old boy around the house by 8:30am - one of our neighbors - only to find out that he was staying home because his brother got sick, so one of their parents had to stay home from work. I was looking forward to having a little one around - oh well! He comes on Friday too.

Michail and I started our day off on a good foot by spending some time in the scriptures - we read some in the Psalms and also the book of Zephaniah, and prayed together. I love praying with my husband. It's something we started before we got married, and have continued it almost every morning when we wake up, sometimes before we get out of bed. There is so much life in communicating with our Father.

As we were finishing up, an alarm rang on our cell. This prompted Michail to awaken our house guest/friend in transit. B__ is a hurting man who came into our lives about 2 weeks ago. Years ago, B__ lived here with Michail. He has since then come into some trouble in his life, and needed a place to stay until he could get back on his feet. We agreed to share our home with him, and to pray for him that he would soon find a job, a place to stay, and more stability in his life. Personally, I have really struggled with having someone else invade our privacy. I'm sorry to be so blunt, but that is how I have felt. Sometimes people just rub you the wrong way...this is also what I have been experiencing. I have cried out to the Lord with tears regarding this - "God! How do I love this person like You would?" Michail and I have prayed that Father would bring hurting people into our lives, and He has answered that request.

One after another, people have come to our home - sometimes they are careworkers, often very hurting themselves. Other times they are fellow believers who have been wounded, sometimes by those closest to them in the body of Messiah. Among these have also been those new to the faith, who are learning what it means to be loved by a God who doesn't require them to clean themselves up before they are received.

Some are prideful in their hurt. They feel they are deserving of something. They close up their hurt with walls, and make those walls so inpenetrable, that it takes lots of longsuffering and gentleness to cause and inroad to be possible. Others are so broken, so oppressed, that their faces are distorted and shamed. They think nothing of themselves, ecxept how could they possibly be in a lower place than they are now? W__ is one of the latter. He is another friend whom Yahweh has allowed to stumble into our lives. He is oppressed. Yet a few nights ago, I think I saw a little bit of a spark for a moment. As we talked to him, he realized himself what must be at the root of his problems. He doubts that God loves him. It was so simple, yet for us, a small breakthrough.

I didn't understand when I felt God call me, even before marraige, to begin to reach out to hurting people that it would have this much of an effect on my own life - on our lives. God has stretched us. Father is teaching us to be very, very flexible. At any moment, someone may need help. Will we be ready, or must He call on someone else?

So we carry on, day after day, and we are so blessed. There is joy to be found in touching hearts and pointing them to the One who can heal them. I won't lie. It is not easy. Sometimes it can be very taxing. Just the other day, I was so proud of my husband. He was up all day in his wheelchair, and didn't have a break like he usually does midday. Instead of coming home and going to bed, he wanted to visit our brother W__. Everything seemed to be against us. Our cell phone kept dying as we tried to talk to him on the phone to ask if we could come over. He was reluctant to have us come. He feels he is a burden to us. Michail insisted, over and over. The phone died...zip..done. We were not far from home, so we stopped outside, and I ran in to get the cordless phone. Haha...no, it didn't want to work for us either. Eventually, we made a connection. On the way, we stopped at Timmy's drive-through, and picked up something for W__ to eat. We ended up visiting for over an hour, just encouraging him in the love of God, and to not give up. We were exhausted when we got home, but so glad we listened to the leading of the Spirit of God.

It's not always this way.

Sometimes I try to convince Michail that my way is better, and that "right now" is not the "best" time to run out and help someone because there is supper to make, and this and that to do right here.

I need to listen more.

I am so grateful for a sensitive husband. He listens to me so well. When I fall apart at my own shortcomings, and apologize up and down the wall...he just loves me. This is one characteristic that I knew I had to have in a husband: a listening ear. Sometimes it's super hard for me to say what I want to say at the right time. It just doesn't come out. I have to say though, that since I have decided to try more, and really talk more things out, rather than holding them in, I have not had as much trouble with explaining what is on my heart. Michail listens to the Lord's voice too. He is really sensitive to His leading, for which I am so grateful. I am learning more and more to trust his judgement, and know that he has heard from God before he makes a move.

held secure in His hand

I am sorry about taking so long to respond with good news about Ruth. Thank you for praying for her during the surgery and since then.

The procedure, known as electrophysiology surgery, was successful, and the doctor said the correct signal in her heart that pumps blood from the upper chamber to the lower chamber began to work better after he carterized the faulty one.

The dangerous part of the operation came when the doctor was about to do the procedure, but could not see the good signal. He said what he had to do was as dangerous as getting on the highway and driving with your eyes closed. He had to remove one signal without touching another one that he could not see!

Praise God the operation was successful!

Also during the operation, the surgen had to make incisions in three places, entering through veins to get to her heart. In her neck, he had to make an additional incision because one vein collapsed.

Again, thank you for praying for Ruth. She can't lift anything heavy for a bit, and is still sore from the surgery, but is doing better. It is a bit early to know if the operation has completely taken care of the problems she was having.


Have a blessed day!


Melanie

Counting down the days to the wedding, which is now about only 15 days...! While all that planning is going on, here is a little bit of what else is happening in our family.

Today my sister Ruth (18) goes into surgery to determine if the complications she has been having with her heart are what they have diagnosed it to be. It is possible that she may have two signals in her heart, where there should only be one in an average heart. If this is found to be so, the doctor plans to do a procedure to carterize one of them, so her heart will work properly. She has been told that this also may not be the solution to her problem, as the rapid heart rate she has been experiencing can be caused by many things. Please pray today at 3:30pm, as Ruth goes into surgery.

Also, my brother Jon (10) has come down with Strep throat, and looks like he may have asthma, as he is having trouble with his breathing, and lungs. Please pray for his healing, as well as protection for the rest of the family, as we have a wedding in two weeks, in which most of the family is a part of :)
We think Jon contracted this while away at camp last week. Poor guy almost enjoyed a whole week of fun, but ended up in the nurses station by the end of the week. :(

I am doing well, trying to get all the loose ends tied together for the wedding...cause it's my wedding! There are so many things left to do in such a short time, but it's awsome to see the Lord bringing it all together for us.

I am in the process of making connections with an oncologist in London, Ontario, where Michail and I will be living after our wedding, so that I can continue to have periodic checkups. My health continues to be great, though I know now a days, I have to be extra careful, as life tends to be a bit more stressful.

My sister Amanda is getting ready for her first time on a short term missions trip to Swaziland, S.Africa- the weekend immediately following my wedding. I am trying to help her as much as possible, and part of me wishes I was going too. I miss being out there on the field. Please keep Amanda in your prayers as she finishes up this week at her job, and then prepares to leave very soon after the wedding. She leaves on August 6, and will be gone for two weeks.

Thanks for praying - I will keep you posted about Ruth, and look forward to that being a good report!

God bless your day,

Melanie

Counting the days...

There is so much to share, and I hardly know where to start. My last update goes back to April 8. I have had a lot of friends ask lately how I am feeling, since I have not updated in quite a while. I'm sorry! Thank you to those who have been faithful to keep up with these updates, and waited patiently when I take so long to post a new report.

At the end of April, I visited Mt.Zion school of Ministry in PA for my sister Amanda's graduation. It was great to see some familiar faces, and many new ones. We were also able to spend time with our dear friends, the Fox family before returning home to Wisconsin. We had a wonderful time of praise and worship with this family - they are very musical and love to worship.

Since my last post, I have become betrothed to Michail - my Beloved fiance'! On May 14, our special Betrothal ceremony was held at my parents house, with our family, and a few close friends in attendance. On this day, we covenanted before God and witnesses to follow God together, and to be faithful to each other for the rest of our lives. It was almost like a small wedding ceremony, and according to ancient Biblical tradition, we would be considered married after this ceremony was finished, though not living together until our wedding ceremony.

I received my engagement ring, after we both read vows to each other, which we had written out. Then we had witnesses sign it - the same that will be our witnesses on the wedding day. Also included in the ceremony was a time when Michail officially proposed to me, and as a sign of accepting his hand in marriage, I had to follow his lead, and drink from a cup of wine(we used grape juice). I did not only have to drink from it, but drink all that was left after he drank, to show that I was willing to become his wife. Yes - I drank it all very willingly!

It was such a day of joyful celebration for us! Those in attendance on our special day were my immediate family, Michail's mom, our friend Paul, as well as Rabbi Eugene and his wife Dorota from London, ON Canada. From my hometown, two dear friends of mine came who were my former sunday school teachers when I was young. Pastor Dave and his wife Pat also shared this day with us, along with Bill and Linda - dear friends of my family. We had a couple times of praise and worship, among other memories like our parents praying prayers of blessing over us, and Michail and I anointing each other to consecrate our lives to one another.

Pictures from this day are posted in an album on Facebook!

After our Betrothal, I spent some more time in Canada, where Michail and I worked very hard on wedding preparations. Michail's mom finished altering my wedding dress, and I was able to take it home with me!

We also accomplished putting together our wedding invitations - even handpainting on the front! Michail enjoyed painting for the first time, and his enthusiasm was contagious! We found a paintbrush that fit into his pen splint perfectly! Also in London, Ontario, I also was given a bridal shower by Michail's sister Natasha. It was a special day, spending time with new friends in Canada, and my new in laws. The best part was at the very end, when each woman shared from her own experience - giving me advice for my marraige. I felt so blessed to have such friends already in Canada! My also mom came up by train to surprise me for the shower! That was so special for me to have her there.

When I returned, my sister Amanda gave me a second bridal shower. This one was in Burlington, WI at Meadowlark Acres Campground, where my dear friend Gramma Beth Wallace could be in attendance. Again I was blessed by many friends and family on this special day. Amanda and my family made it so memorable for me.

Finally, my health is excellent, and it is still improving as I continue to follow my diet, and healthy lifestyle. This month I have started jogging again, and have realized how much I have missed it. I feel great, and it's so good to be healthy, and know that everything is alright. I saw my surgeon for the last time before I move to Canada, where I will receive follow ups by a specialist there. My surgeon has once more given me a good report on my health, and I am so blessed by how the Lord has touched and healed my body. I am believing him for continued health for the future as well. Someone asked me recently if I have sick days, or times where I don't feel as great as others. I feel good every day! I try to go to sleep every night by 9:00pm, and if I do, I have plenty of energy all day long. Also, at the end of April, my family all got sick with pretty bad colds. One brother even had pneumonia. For the couple weeks while they all were sick, I remained perfectly healthy, which shows a great improvement to my immune system! In addition to my sleep pattern, I juice fresh vegetables almost every day, and eat according to a very strict diet, while also keeping up with drinking plenty of water. I am also taking some vitamins and supplements along with the good food to build up the weakened areas in my body.

Wedding plans are coming along pretty well, and when I look at the calendar, I can hardly believe that I am getting married in only 48 days! I am beginning to get responses back from guests, which is so exciting! I am so happy to see how everything is coming together! I am so looking forward to being married, and not being separated anymore from the one that I love. He really is a treasure like I never imagined I would possess! I have truly been blessed!