Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201932S
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00:01 >> And so on January 13th, our
00:03 lovely nurse Debbie, fully 00:04 gowned to administer three 00:06 different chemo drugs to our 00:07 precious baby boy, walked into 00:08 the hospital room. 00:11 I sat on the bed with Nico 00:13 as she did her job and my 00:14 my heart was broken. 00:16 Nico was fine. 00:18 He was cooperative and upbeat 00:20 that day. 00:24 The next day was a 00:25 different story for him. 00:27 He didn't want to eat anything, 00:29 smells bothered him, he had 00:31 some leg pain and he only got 00:32 out of bed to use the 00:34 bathroom. That was a really 00:36 hard day for us all. But hard 00:39 days don't last forever and 00:41 there are always pockets of 00:42 good within the hard. 00:51 >> Well, welcome and thank you 00:51 for joining us on It Is 00:53 Written Canada. Today we're 00:55 going to be looking at the 00:56 second part of Nico Coursey's 00:58 story. Nico was a six-year-old 01:00 boy when he discovered a 01:02 little bump on his face. 01:03 And he showed it to his parents, 01:05 his parents noticed it on his 01:06 face, of course and they 01:08 weren't too concerned, but 01:09 they took him to the doctor 01:10 and the doctor said, "Oh, it's 01:12 just a sebaceous cyst, it's 01:13 not really all that important, 01:15 not that serious." And it was 01:18 serious. It turned into what 01:20 could be considered someone's 01:22 worst nightmare as it 01:24 continued to grow over the 01:25 weeks and it just go worse and 01:27 worse. So, Mary and Nick, 01:28 welcome back to It Is Written 01:30 Canada. And the last time we 01:31 were talking, we were talking 01:33 about how you were considering 01:35 taking him for radiation. The 01:37 doctors had suggested this and 01:39 there were some serious side 01:41 effects. He could possibly 01:42 lose his vision, he could 01:44 possibly have to have some 01:45 plastic surgery afterwards, he 01:48 could have problems with his 01:49 teeth. And so you were -- 01:52 obviously that wasn't 01:54 something that you wanted to 01:55 have happen and so you took a 01:56 different route. 01:58 >> Right. So when she gave us 01:59 that information, we were 02:02 distraught, you know. We had 02:06 felt at this point we had 02:07 committed to, you know, that 02:10 chemo is poison. We had done 02:13 what we felt was a lot and 02:15 then it was like we had to 02:16 even do more in terms of 02:17 harming him to help him get 02:19 better, right? And so we had 02:24 kind of waited and she said 02:25 she'd get back to us on what 02:27 the plan would be and she 02:28 said -- she gave us preliminary, 02:31 this is what the results will 02:31 be, kind of what I said 02:33 before, and then she said, but 02:35 she's checking on radiation at 02:36 Mayo Clinic in Arizona. And we 02:38 were like, "Oh, OK." We didn't 02:40 know she had made that 02:41 decision already. Like, we had 02:42 suggested it in one meeting 02:44 and then now she's saying 02:45 she's already talking to the 02:46 head radiologist there. And 02:48 the way it works is she does 02:50 her best case scenario, all 02:52 percentages and damage in the 02:53 area and, you know, radiation 02:54 percentages... 02:55 >> For photon. 02:56 >> For photon, was what she 02:58 was proponent of at that point 03:01 and then they were going to do 03:02 proton in Arizona. And she got 03:06 back to us that when they 03:07 compared, the proton at Mayo 03:09 Clinic in Arizona was 03:11 significantly better outcomes. 03:13 And so she made all the 03:15 arrangements for us to go 03:17 there and set up the dates to 03:20 leave, and that BC Medical 03:23 would cover all the costs. If 03:25 the treatment is necessary, 03:26 but it's not in Canada, 03:28 they'll pay for it outside of 03:29 the country. 03:30 >> That must have been quite a 03:31 relief because you had just 03:33 come from the United States 03:35 and you had medical insurance, 03:37 but it wasn't enough to cover 03:38 all of this and then you came 03:39 up to Canada and you were 03:40 working here for a short time 03:42 and now that was completely 03:43 covered by the Canadian 03:44 government and you didn't have 03:44 coto worry about that.n 03:45 >> No. 03:46 >> And so that was a part of 03:48 God's leading in this to quite 03:50 a miracle. 03:51 >> It, yeah, absolutely was 03:53 God's timing and we've been 03:55 encouraged just to see His 03:57 hand in so many of those 03:59 details just like that. 04:00 Because we moved in September 04:02 and it takes 90 days for you 04:05 to be here before your medical 04:09 kicks in and so that started 04:11 December 1st for us and his 04:14 initial surgery was 04:16 December 21st. 04:18 >> Right. Wow. So I just want 04:20 to bring Nico in because he's 04:22 behind you there and he's 04:24 playing so nicely and 04:24 colouring. We're talking about 04:27 you, Nico, so we wanted to 04:29 talk to you. 04:30 >> Nico, can you tell us how 04:32 old you are? 04:34 >> Seven, wow! 04:35 So what was the 04:36 hardest thing for you last 04:38 year when you were going 04:40 through your treatment? 04:44 >> The NG tube? Aw. 04:46 And when they put that in 04:48 were you asleep all the time 04:50 when they put that in? 04:51 >> No? Aw. 04:53 >> So that must have hurt. 04:54 Did it hurt or was it just 04:55 in the way? 04:59 >> Yeah. 05:00 >> He has to swallow as it's 05:02 going by and so it's just a 05:04 very uncomfortable process 05:05 feeling that. Right? 05:08 >> So what was it like when 05:09 you went for this proton 05:11 treatment? Did they give you 05:13 something special? Or what 05:15 happened during that time? 05:17 >> Oh, wow! 05:18 >> So that would go over your 05:19 face and then they would shoot 05:21 through that right into a 05:23 certain spot so that they 05:24 wouldn't hurt you. 05:25 >> So this is actually bolted 05:27 in the back to the table and 05:30 then you can see the -- his NG 05:32 tube was actually part of the -- 05:34 >> OK. So out of this whole 05:35 experience that you had, were 05:37 there some really, like, 05:39 terrible times that you went 05:41 through? 05:46 >> The first few weeks of 05:48 chemo were the hardest? 05:50 >> Did you feel nauseated? 05:51 Were you vomiting at that time? 05:56 >> OK. The days must have been 05:58 really hard when the radiation 06:00 came about because at the time 06:02 that Nico was having radiation 06:04 it wasn't just the radiation 06:05 treatment. Did they continue 06:07 with chemo at that time? 06:09 >> Mhmm. That's what made it 06:10 the most difficult because now 06:12 not only are we adding 06:14 radiation, but they don't stop 06:16 chemo during that time. They 06:17 continue with the chemo 06:19 therapy and so we're spending -- 06:23 radiation is 28 days, 06:25 so five days a week for 28 days. 06:29 And so he would go in in the 06:31 mornings -- we'd go in in the 06:32 mornings, he'd have to fast 06:35 because he would be sedated 06:36 every morning because they 06:38 have to make sure he's super 06:40 still so that they get the 06:41 correct placement and then 06:45 he'd have to wake up from 06:48 sedation and then we would go 06:50 to the Children's Hospital 06:52 which, they didn't at Mayo 06:53 Clinic do chemo therapere, 06:55 hen we'd have to go to the 06:57 Children'spital which was 07:00 about 20 minutes away and then 07:03 go there for the treatment for 07:06 that week. And so some weeks 07:07 were hard because some weeks 07:09 he had a five-day -- that week 07:11 would be five days of 07:12 radiation in the morning and 07:14 then five days of chemo 07:15 therapy. 07:16 >> In the afternoon after the 07:17 radiation. 07:18 >> So it would be an all day -- 07:19 and it was physically and 07:21 emotionally exhausting. 07:23 >> And then if he had a cold a 07:24 couple -- he got sick a couple 07:25 times and so then he's taking 07:26 the ambulance from one 07:28 hospital to the other and then 07:28 back because they won't 07:30 discharge him. 07:31 >> Was that fun in the ambulance? 07:34 >> If you had a little friend 07:36 that you heard had cancer, 07:40 what's one thing that you 07:42 would tell that little friend 07:43 or encourage that little 07:44 friend with? 07:53 >> The numbing cream. 07:54 >> What does that do? 07:59 >> So you can't feel anything? 08:00 Wow! 08:03 >> So they don't 08:04 need to be scared. 08:08 >> So going through all of 08:10 this, did you start looking 08:11 back on it thinking to 08:12 yourself, "This is terrible! 08:14 Why did God allow this to 08:16 happen to us?" Did you ever 08:17 blame Him for any of this? 08:22 >> We were in shock and we 08:25 went through a grieving 08:26 process, but I, and I don't 08:31 think Nick, ever blamed God. 08:34 Thankfully we had an 08:37 understanding of His character 08:40 in the sense that He is love 08:42 and He is not the author of 08:45 pain and suffering. And so we, 08:50 with that understanding, could 08:51 process the fact that we live 08:54 in a sinful world that -- 08:58 where things like this happen 08:59 to innocent children and that 09:02 God grieves with us because 09:04 that was not by design. 09:07 I think we could appropriately 09:10 direct our frustrations and 09:12 anger to where it should go 09:13 which is Satan and knowing 09:17 that he is the one that brings 09:19 on these things. And we could 09:22 feel and see God loving us and 09:26 supporting us and providing 09:28 for us through it all and that 09:29 was such a big comfort because 09:31 even before in these early 09:33 days of being so difficult 09:37 and actually radiation portion was 09:39 the most difficult part of 09:41 treatment, but we could look 09:43 back and even before all of 09:45 this started, we could see God 09:48 lining things up by moving us 09:50 here, by -- 09:54 >> The insurance. 09:55 >> The insurance, the way that 09:59 in a system, in a medical 10:00 system that, although is free, 10:02 doesn't always move quickly, 10:04 that it did move quickly in 10:05 this situation. And so we felt 10:09 a lot of comfort even though 10:11 we were grieving and sad. 10:14 But, no, we didn't blame God. 10:18 >> Nico, what was the best thing 10:22 last year with your treatment? 10:27 >> You got a dirt bike for 10:27 Christmas? 10:29 >> So what kind of dirt bike 10:30 was it? 10:34 >> So that's a red 10:35 and white bike. 10:36 Very nice. 10:39 Did you meet anybody famous? 10:43 >> Doug Batchelor, OK. 10:44 [chuckles] Who else did you 10:45 meet famous? Didn't you meet 10:47 some sporting stars that were 10:48 famous? 10:51 >> OK. And who is he? 11:00 >> Did you see any sporting 11:02 events? 11:07 >> And these are all 11:07 professional games that you 11:08 went to, yeah? 11:10 Down in Arizona 11:11 and also in Vancouver? Yeah. 11:14 >> For the soccer game he got 11:15 to go and walk out 11:18 on the field 11:19 with the captain of the team 11:21 and they announced him -- 11:26 >> Phoenix Risings, OK. Yeah. 11:31 >> And then for the Canucks 11:33 game they put him up on the 11:35 jumbo tron. 11:36 [Announcer speaking] 11:40 [crowd cheering] 11:42 >> Then he got to meet the 11:44 Toronto Raptors 11:45 at a meet-and-greet. 11:53 >> And he really liked their 11:54 mascot, right? 12:05 >> Thank you very much for 12:06 sharing with us, Nico. 12:09 >> When somebody is ill, 12:11 especially if it's a child, 12:14 I mean, it's just so devastating 12:16 to hear about it, but then the 12:17 first thing you say is, "Oh, 12:19 we've got to do something!" 12:21 What can you do? And you're 12:22 not a doctor so you know you 12:23 can't, you know, give him 12:25 treatment or anything like 12:27 that, but you just buckle down 12:30 and think of what you can do 12:31 and we could pass the can and 12:35 we're a small group, but we're 12:37 a generous group. 12:38 >> Amen. 12:39 >> Yes, we were praying at 12:40 that time that it would be 12:42 nothing and that everything 12:43 would be OK. And then the news 12:46 was devastating 12:48 because it wasn't going to be OK. 12:50 They knew it would be at least a 12:52 year of treatment and that 12:54 this was a very 12:56 aggressive cancer. 12:57 >> That would be one of the 12:58 hardest things you could ever 12:59 go through and trying to 13:01 imagine how you would be able 13:03 to reconcile that and just, 13:05 you know, go through it and 13:08 have the positive outlook that 13:10 they were able to keep up. 13:11 >> You know, you try to think 13:12 of why would this happen 13:15 and then some things that would 13:18 come to my mind would be: 13:21 what a force Mary and Nick would 13:24 be around other parents at 13:27 Children's Hospital or the 13:29 hospital in Arizona as those 13:31 parents would be frantic over 13:34 their children and they would 13:36 see the peace and the calmness 13:40 and the trust that Mary and 13:42 Nick had they would even see 13:44 it in -- I'm sure they would 13:45 even see it in Nico. 13:47 >> Well, I think it would have 13:48 been a really hard span of 13:50 time for them because they 13:51 moved three or four times or 13:53 something, like, in that 13:54 little time and then they had 13:56 the baby and they had Nico and 13:58 then they had V and there was 14:00 so much change in their life 14:01 in addition to the sickness 14:03 and the challenge there. 14:05 >> I know it was hard for Mary 14:07 to be able to do her blogging, 14:10 but I think it maybe a little 14:11 bit therapeutic for her. Yeah. 14:15 >> Well, at first it was a lot 14:17 of texting and phone calls, 14:19 but that gets exhausting 14:21 pretty quickly, right? And so 14:22 we decided to do a blog. A few 14:27 people had suggested that to 14:29 just be able to put down 14:31 thoughts and what's going on, 14:33 help to process it all. 14:35 >> Do you want to read some of 14:36 that? Some of what you shared -- 14:39 >> Yeah. This is one from 14:40 early on: "Nico had the tumor 14:42 removed on December 21st and 14:44 by January 13th it had visibly 14:46 started to grow back. 14:48 This cancer was fast and 14:49 aggressive. We knew 14:51 conventional treatment would 14:52 be necessary. We decided that 14:54 we would continue to do all we 14:56 could naturally at home to 14:57 support his body and hopefully 14:59 minimize the negative side 15:00 effects from the chemo as much 15:01 as possible. And so on January 15:03 13th, our lovely nurse Debbie, 15:06 fully gowned to administer 15:07 three different chemo drugs to 15:09 our precious baby boy, walked 15:10 into the hospital room. 15:14 I sat on the bed with Nico as she 15:15 did her job and my heart was 15:16 broken. 15:19 Nico was fine. 15:20 He was cooperative and upbeat 15:22 that day. 15:26 The next day was a 15:27 different story for him. 15:29 He didn't want to eat anything, 15:31 smells bothered him, he had 15:34 some leg pain and he only got 15:35 out of bed to use the 15:36 bathroom. That was a really 15:38 hard day for us all. 15:41 But hard days don't last forever 15:43 and there are always pockets of 15:44 good within the hard, 15:47 like friends coming to bring us 15:51 sushi at the hospital on their 15:54 way to the airport." 15:56 That was the Dixons. 15:58 "The next day Nico was eating 16:00 a bit more and had more energy 16:02 and he was discharged that 16:04 evening. 16:05 Being separated those 16:07 three nights were the hardest 16:08 on me and it was a great 16:10 feeling to all be together 16:12 again that night. By Thursday 16:14 of the next week -- of that 16:16 week he seemed back to normal 16:17 with renewed energy and normal 16:18 appetite levels. The following 16:20 two chemo treatments were just 16:22 one drug, vincristine, and he 16:24 has handled those very well. 16:27 And so now we have completed 16:28 one cycle of treatment. 16:30 This Monday will begin cycle two 16:32 and he will start a new chemo 16:34 drug that is administered 16:35 outpatient everyday for five 16:36 days. 16:38 My wonderful 16:39 mother-in-law, Linda, flies in 16:40 today to help us for a week. 16:42 We are thankful. There have 16:44 been many emotions that Nick 16:45 and I have grappled with the 16:47 past six weeks. The emotion 16:48 that we, through the 16:49 outpouring of love and support 16:51 from our friends and family, 16:52 have experienced most often is 16:55 gratitude. God is good to us 16:57 and we are reminded of His 16:58 care and love for us daily. 17:01 Thank you for reading this, 17:03 for being on this journey with 17:04 us through your thoughts and 17:06 prayers. Our lives will never 17:08 be the same and there is a 17:09 blessing in that fact." 17:13 >> That's very beautiful. 17:15 Thank you for reading that to 17:16 us. I remember we were reading 17:18 that as well at home and I'd 17:22 come into the room and Rene 17:24 would be crying. 17:25 >> And I'd just say, "I can't 17:27 read this anymore." And Mike 17:30 would say, "What's going on?" 17:31 And I'd say -- oh, it was 17:33 just, it was so hard. So yeah, 17:35 but -- 17:36 >> You had support of your 17:37 friends, your family, but you 17:39 also had your church family 17:40 who was praying for you. 17:41 >> Yes. 17:43 We've had a wonderful -- 17:46 we felt support from various 17:48 places. Nick's work 17:51 environment, our community at 17:52 Fountainview was very 17:54 supportive and they held a day 17:58 of fasting and prayer for 17:59 Nico. Our church in town in 18:02 Lillooet were very supportive 18:05 financially. They blessed us 18:07 several times throughout the 18:09 year. They included us in a 18:10 baby shower even though we 18:12 weren't here and sent us gifts 18:15 while we were down there and 18:19 prayed constantly for us and 18:22 Nico's Sabbath School -- the 18:24 kids would send him a couple 18:26 of times get-well notes and videos 18:32 and our friends, 18:34 the Dixons, did so much. 18:36 >> In James chapter 5 it tells 18:37 us if anyone is sick among us 18:39 that we should call together 18:41 the elders of the church and 18:42 that we should have prayer 18:43 over that individual. And so 18:45 Nick and Mary, they wanted 18:46 this for their son and they 18:47 believed in the power of 18:49 Christ and the anointing of 18:50 their son. They reached out to 18:51 me to see if I would help 18:53 organize an anointing and so 18:54 I said, "Yes." So there was -- 18:57 I think there was about eight 18:57 of us gathered together one 18:59 Saturday afternoon. We had 19:00 gone down there to the 19:01 hospital and it was a pretty 19:04 neat experience. We could come 19:05 together. Nathan James was the 19:07 one that was asked to anoint 19:08 him. But there was singing, 19:10 there was exchanging of notes, 19:12 and there was tears and you 19:14 could definitely feel the Holy 19:14 Spirit's presence there. 19:16 >> And I was just trying to 19:18 think of ways that I could 19:19 help and since they were so 19:21 far away, prayer was what came 19:22 to mind and so I organized 19:25 different people praying on 19:27 specific days during the exact 19:29 time that he would be in 19:31 radiation for the entire six 19:32 weeks, hoping that that would 19:34 give them some sort of peace. 19:37 And I was praying specifically 19:38 just for wisdom in regards to 19:39 what I could get her for a 19:41 gift. And I knew that I wanted 19:43 to get her something, but I 19:44 just couldn't figure out what 19:45 to get her and so I was 19:47 praying and praying. And one 19:48 day Nick sent an email to the 19:49 staff at Fountainview and it 19:51 had a couple pictures of Nali 19:52 in it. All of a sudden this 19:53 idea just came to me of family 19:55 pictures -- having family 19:56 pictures done. So I connected 19:58 with this lady, her name was 19:59 Cayla, and right away she 20:02 emailed me back and she said 20:03 that she would love to do it 20:05 and she said that she was 20:06 willing to do it for nothing 20:08 and I was so thankful and so 20:09 it took a little while, but 20:11 eventually everything worked 20:12 out and they were able to have 20:13 it done and I was just so 20:15 thankful and I just saw so 20:16 clearly how God connected so 20:18 many different dots in order 20:19 to make that happen. 20:22 >> Did you ever have any 20:23 encouragement from the Bible, 20:25 from the written word 20:27 of God? 20:28 >> We would go back to those 20:31 promises, right? I journaled a 20:33 lot throughout this process 20:35 and just reminding myself of 20:36 the promises that God doesn't 20:37 leave us nor forsake us, that 20:40 all things work together for 20:42 good. And we weren't -- we 20:45 couldn't comprehend or 20:47 understand, but we knew that 20:51 God's ways are not our ways, 20:53 but He has a thousand ways to 20:55 provide for us that we don't -- 20:57 can't comprehend, right? 20:59 And little by little as we 21:01 processed this last year we 21:02 can see that He was indeed in 21:07 the details in laying things 21:09 out for us and we -- any time 21:14 something would happen and we 21:16 weren't sure how 21:18 we were going to 21:19 do it or what was going to 21:21 happen, we would just remember 21:24 just to focus our energies on 21:27 that day and not to worry 21:29 about tomorrow, right? 21:32 And so that was a lesson for us 21:35 in surrender and in patience and 21:37 in faith. 21:38 >> Mhmm. 21:40 >> Yeah, so she had kind of 21:41 mentioned Isaiah 55: 8 and 9, 21:43 "For My thoughts are not your 21:44 thoughts, nor are your ways My 21:47 ways, says the Lord, for as 21:48 the heavens are higher than 21:49 the earth so are My ways 21:50 higher than your ways and My 21:52 thoughts than your thoughts." 21:53 And then also James 1:2 to 4: 21:56 "My brethren, count it all 21:57 joy when you fall into various 21:58 trials knowing that the 22:00 testing of your faith produces 22:01 patience." And so we realized 22:05 that, you know, as painful as 22:08 it was, it was an opportunity 22:10 that -- in looking back that, 22:13 you know, we're all going to 22:14 go through pain and it's what 22:15 we do with that pain. Is it 22:17 going to give us a benefit? 22:19 Are we going to let it be a 22:20 way for us to grow? Learn more 22:22 about ourselves, learn maybe 22:23 more to rely on God and more 22:25 faith and more trust. Or will 22:27 we blame God or get angry? 22:29 And then it's kind of wasting 22:31 that experience because then, 22:32 you know, God uses that as a 22:33 way to get our attention, to 22:35 help us, help us grow, draw us 22:37 closer to Him, help us see our 22:38 need for Him. And so in 22:39 looking back, it's like 22:41 constant reliance on God. 22:43 Every day we had to -- we 22:46 couldn't -- like she said, we 22:47 couldn't think more than that 22:48 day because it's overwhelming. 22:49 And so training our mind to 22:52 think that, you know, each day 22:54 we have to look to God for 22:55 help to get through it. And 22:56 some of the days were super 22:58 hard, but having an overall 23:00 understanding of why that 23:03 could be happening, we didn't 23:04 know. But we did know that God 23:07 lets these things happen, you 23:09 know, it wasn't our doing, it 23:10 wasn't our fault that this 23:11 happened so then we have to 23:13 accept that God let this 23:14 happen. And so what are we 23:16 going to do then if He's 23:17 letting this happen, how can 23:19 we benefit from it? And so we 23:21 just really felt encouraged 23:23 that there's such a benefit 23:26 that can be gained and now 23:28 looking back because we had 23:29 that mindset, you know, we're 23:30 able to move on with our life, 23:31 we're able to make sense of 23:33 everything and enjoy life and 23:35 have, you know, just live for 23:37 that day, enjoy the day. I mean, 23:39 you don't know what tomorrow's 23:40 going to bring. 23:41 >> Nick and Mary, how is Nico 23:43 doing today? 23:45 >> So good. He was declared 23:49 cancer-free in December and 23:53 his scans came all back clear 23:55 and so he was able to have his 23:59 feeding tube removed before 24:00 Christmas and he got his port 24:03 removed in January and he's 24:06 doing so well. We've been home 24:09 now for the past few months 24:11 and Nick's been back at work 24:13 and life has been our new 24:15 normal, right? And so we've 24:16 been enjoying it so much being 24:19 home and he's been playing 24:23 outside and loving being back 24:27 and loving that his hair is 24:28 growing back and -- 24:30 >> I think we're just so happy 24:32 to have them back and I find 24:33 myself just like -- my eyes 24:37 well up with tears every time I 24:38 think about just them sitting 24:39 up in their house up here and 24:41 knowing that Mary is just like 24:43 getting to live every day 24:45 normally, like -- just things 24:47 that she missed so much. And 24:49 being able -- like watching 24:50 our boys run around and things 24:52 like that that Jace missed, 24:54 our little five-year-old, 24:55 missed so much, like spending 24:56 time with Nico. And just 24:58 knowing that they're doing 24:59 normal things like home school 25:01 and going for walks and all of 25:02 those things just like -- it 25:04 just makes my heart just so, 25:05 so happy and it just feels so 25:07 normal now and it's so nice, 25:08 but it something that at least 25:10 I know I don't take for 25:12 granted, like every time I see 25:13 it -- every time I see all of 25:14 us together, our kids playing 25:16 together, it's just such a 25:17 feeling of gratitude and 25:21 thankfulness to God that He 25:22 has brought it around and we 25:24 are just -- I am just so, so 25:26 thankful. 25:28 >> They came home and the 25:31 ordeal was over and I just 25:33 wanted to get down and praise 25:36 God. It was just so amazing 25:39 and wonderful that they were 25:41 back and they were with us and 25:46 it's just gotten better every 25:47 week now. 25:49 >> I know that, obviously, 25:50 something could relapse, there 25:52 could be another battle down 25:54 the road, but in my mind the 25:55 battle was done, the Lord had 25:56 answered the prayers. 25:57 >> We prayed endlessly for him. 26:01 >> He's still on our prayer 26:02 list because I know that it 26:04 hasn't ended yet for them. 26:05 They still have a journey to 26:07 take. If we didn't have a God 26:09 I don't know how we'd ever get 26:10 through this stuff. 26:11 >> Oh, how would you go get 26:11 through this? How would they 26:12 go through this? 26:14 >> I'm thinking of the words 26:15 in Deuteronomy where it says, 26:16 "Be strong and of good 26:17 courage." We don't have to be 26:19 afraid. God is with us. 26:20 He will never leave us nor 26:22 forsake us. And you had some 26:24 words that, as we close, I 26:26 just wanted you to share those 26:28 that you read in a devotional 26:29 one morning and you want to 26:31 share that with us. 26:33 >> "All that has perplexed us 26:35 in the Providences of God will 26:36 in the world to come be made 26:37 plain. The things hard to be 26:39 understood will then find 26:40 explanation. The mysteries of 26:42 grace will unfold before us. 26:44 Where our finite minds 26:46 discovered only confusion and 26:48 broken promises, we shall see 26:49 the most perfect and beautiful 26:51 harmony. We shall know that 26:52 infinite love ordered the 26:54 experiences that seemed most 26:55 trying as we realize the 26:57 tender care of Him who makes 26:58 all things work together for 27:00 our good. We shall rejoice 27:01 with joy unspeakable and full 27:02 of glory." 27:03 And this kind of 27:04 pulled it all together for us. 27:06 Like just, you know, there's a 27:07 reason that it happened and 27:09 we may not understand it now, 27:10 but we will. 27:12 >> He was in church and the 27:13 pastor said, "Is anyone 27:15 suffering?" And he responded 27:17 to that. 27:19 >> He did. 27:20 The pastor asked, "Is anyone 27:22 suffering among you?" 27:24 And Nico looked 27:25 at me and he said, 27:26 "Not anymore." 27:30 Not anymore, praise the Lord. 27:34 >> Father in heaven, we thank 27:35 You, Lord, because as we look 27:38 back we can see the way in 27:40 which You have led us and we 27:42 can have incredible faith. And 27:45 as we move forward into the 27:47 future we have nothing to fear 27:48 except that we forget the way 27:50 that You have led us in the 27:52 past and we know that You will 27:53 continue to lead us in the 27:55 future. We thank You for 27:57 hearing and answering our 27:58 prayers. In Jesus' name, amen. 28:01 Well, friends, thank you for 28:03 joining us on It Is Written 28:04 Canada. I just want to leave 28:06 you with the words of Jesus, 28:08 "It is written, man shall not 28:10 live by bread alone, but by 28:12 every word that proceeds out 28:15 of the mouth of God." 28:17 ♪♪ |
Revised 2020-05-06