A Gimpse of God at Work

I am always amazed when I look back and see God's hand at work. Here's a story that is sure to build your faith.

THE BIG PICTURE OF GOD AT WORK

This is a story that I have seen unfold over the course of three years, but one that comes around full circle. It starts out with me, Eric, when I was on staff at Wellspring Church. One day I took a phone call for the secretary right at closing time. On the other end of the line was this lady, Cheryl, who was looking for churches to check out in the area. As she and her husband, Steve, were having difficulties in their marriage and problems in their family, she thought it was time to get back to church. I shared with Cheryl that she would need to try Wellspring for a while to see if it would be a good fit for her and her family. I told her of all the different ministries and areas that they could get plugged in. After attending for three weeks Steve accepted Jesus Christ as his savior. His life drastically changed.

Steve was on fire for the Lord, wanting to get involved and help out wherever he could. It didn't take long before Cheryl and he started doing short term mission work in Mexico and also on the streets of Chicago. After a year and half of this kind of outreach, God spoke loudly to Steve that there was a need right in the streets of Grand Rapids.

Steve took an early retirement at GM to get involved on the streets of Grand Rapids and ministering to the homeless. So in January of 2009 they began. Cheryl and he and a few other couples made some soup and coffee and collected blankets, coats and gloves and went downtown and passed out the supplies to the homeless who live on the streets and under the bridges.

One of the homeless men that they first met wouldn't even talk to them. His name was Scott. They kept going back week after week giving him supplies and praying over him. Soon Scott came out from the bridge having enough energy to walk downtown to the church on Division Ave. Soon after coming to the church week after week, Scott was led by Steve and accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior. Not long after this I came downtown with my family to help serve.

After meeting Scott and praying with him several times I too struck up a friendship and bond. As it turned out Scott was slowly dying of cancer living under the bridges. Not long after he was diagnosed with Cancer, the Guiding Light Mission was able to get him some medical assistance and treatment. It was touch and go for a while there as all of us who served at the inner city church prayed for Scott's health. Finally, Scott was given a clean bill of health by the doctors. And now he is on his own and has his own apartment. Today, when you see Steve and Scott talking on the street you see a miracle of love and dignified respect for one another.

In my conversation with Scott today he would tell you that he was content to lay under the bridge and die. But, because of the consistency of a few good men bringing him food and supplies, and praying over him, he got a sense that somebody cared for him.

Now this isn't the full circle, there is more to the story. Steve and the rest of the servants working in the inner city church had been praying for more supplies. There has been a large need been for clothes and shoes that fit bigger men, more XL and XXL type clothes. After praying for three weeks the prayers were soon answered. I had met a man two years earlier while getting a treatment for Lou Gehrig's disease. His name is CB. I had asked him to drive me downtown to an appointment that I had on Saturday. CB picked me up at my house, loaded me into the van and off we went. Little did he know that my appointment was to serve the homeless.When we got there CB met Steve they realized that they knew each other from the GM plant where they both had worked. CB ended up that day walking the streets with Steve talking with the homeless and praying with many hurting people.

Now here's the answer to the prayers for the clothes.

Because the plant at GM had closed CB was still there helping to dismantle shelving units and clean up all the locker rooms. Normally GM has a strict policy to throw out any items in the lost and found that have not been claimed. They do not donate items in order to not show favoritism to one group over another. But because CB was so compelled and moved at the incredible need of the homeless right in GM's back yard, he asked his supervisors if it would be all right to bag up all the hundreds of shoes, boots and articles of clothing that had been left behind and take it all to the mission. Because of his relationship with his boss they agreed. CB called me and asked me if Steve and the inner city mission would have a need for these items.

CB had no idea that we had been praying for clothing.

Five truckloads later, the mission now has more than enough XL and XXL clothing for the upcoming winter season.And in one of the bags of clothing Steve found a large amount of money from the guys and gals at GM that had taken up an offering. Arn't God's people so amazing!

When we are faithful in the little things like answering a phone call, or serving in the mission and praying for someone in need, God is faithful and just to answer our prayers.

Feeling much better

Just a quick update to let you know that Eric had a pretty uncomfotable week last week until Saturday night as the pain seemed to subside and stop. He has been able to stop taking the vicadin on Sunday and we feel that the stones have passed. We were able to strain and collect small crystal like pieces that we can have tested so we can hopefully prevent this from happening again. Thank you for all your prayers, calls, meals and visits. Have a blessed week!
Lori and Eric

The ALS Walk is less than 3 weeks away! Please let us know if you are able to come join us on October 10th downtown to walk for ALSA.

A long night in the ER

Last night at about 2:30am, Eric woke up with extreme pain in his abnomen so I got him up. We thought it might be gas pain so we waited up a while with no relief. I decided to give him a vicadin to see if the pain would subside enough to sleep and he threw up a few minutes later. I then checked his temp which read 101.6 so I started to worry more. We called my aunt who is a nurse at about 3:30 and decided to wait another hour to see if the pain would go away which it didn't so I called my parents to come stay with the kids and we were off to the ER at around 5 this morning. When we arrived, it was very slow so I thought we would get fast service, however, there was a big problem getting a vein to run an IV in Eric. We had many nurses and Dr's attempt to poke him numerous times with no luck. They wanted to rule out appendicitis and wanted him to drink a contrast to do a catscan on his abnomen. He instantly threw up the first few sips of the drink as they were still trying to poke him. They decided to try his artery in his groin at this point which failed miserably too. They even brought in an ultrasound to try to see the vein and ended up going to the other side to try again with a very large IV needle. After a lot of pain and a lot of blood and many tears shed and prayers said by me, they finally got his IV port in. They tested his blood and urine and we tried to prep him again for the Catscan. He received pain and naseau medication and was finally brought to the catscan at about 9:30 this morning. They would not let me go with him which was our second bad experience. No one passed on his health status with ALS so they asked him to transfer to the table when he got there. He could hardly talk because he was tired, heavily medicated and laying flat on his back. When they finally understood him, a very thin woman and an elderly man transfered him to the catscan table. All the while no one explained to us the procedure except that it would only take 5 minutes. When they finally got Eric on the table, they put a bunch of pillows under Eric's head which restricted his breathing. He tried to tell them, but they couldn't understand him. They finally figured it out when he kept staring at the pillows and shook his head no. The older gentleman said not to worry that he couldn't breathe well because he was on oxygen, what they didn't understand is Eric's forced vital capacity is very low which I explained to the prior doctors in our room. They taped Eric's arms down and he felt like he was in a straight jacket and fed him through a tube. A while later, they appeared by his feet and pulled out the blanket from his groin and applied the dye and did the procedure with no explanation of what they were doing. Eric arrived back at the room by 10 and was groggy and clearly not happy but too tired to talk. Eric's parents and my parents were at the hospital by then waiting with me. They came back with the results later and said "the good news is you don't need surgery, the bad news is you have a kidney stone and will need to pass that." They gave us some prescriptions, paperwork and pulled his IV and sent us home by about noon. Eric's mom is staying here with us a few days and my parents went to get the groceries I have been meaning to get the last few days and we slept until 6 tonight. Eric is still in pain and I need to go get his RX. Please pray that he can be comfortable and that it will pass quickly and the pain can be controlled.
We have been meaning to update the blog this week after he got back from his trip which was amazing which Eric and Zach will update you on soon. It has been a very difficult week for us adjusting with school and schedules and emotionally.
As much as I enjoy the break from taking care of Eric, it is hard to go back to the routine after I have a break. When I do it every day, it feels like our "normal" and when I don't like when we were in Hawaii with no schedule or responsibilities, I realize how hard it really is when we go back to our routine and I get almost irritable instead of full of grace. We both have been having a very hard time coping with this disease this week and have shed a lot of tears. Please keep us in your prayers as you have been. My sister and her family have been struggling this week also with her cancer and chemo treatments and are facing some very big decisions so that makes it hard for our whole family. Sometimes I feel like this world is so broken with sickness, sin, broken marriages, financial strife etc, I just want Christ to return and take us all home to glory! Our life verse comes to mind especially today:
2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

May the Lord watch over us all this week and provide for all of our needs.
In Him,
Lori and Eric

Father Son Road Trip 2009

In my quest to visit all fifty states here in America I have been planning a trip with my son Zach to go see Mt. Rushmore for the last few months. My friend Doug and his son Max told me that they have always wanted to see it as well. On the map South Dakota does not look that far away. We planed our route to include going into Wyoming, Montana and up into North Dakota on the way back home so that I could knock off four more states. I have to admit it was farther than I had anticipated. Thank you Doug for being a trooper and driving the entire way! It was an amazing trip. Not only to spend time with a good friend but spending time with my son and hanging out with just us guys helped build our spirits up. Mt. Rushmore was a spectacal to see in person. I was amazed at the history and determination of one man to have the vision to build it. There were no deaths during the building process while using dynomite and rope swings and hanging off the side of the Mt.I didn't realize that there was such a controversy with one of the faces being put on the monument. Can you guess which one? It was the last one, Teddy Roosevelt. The reason is he had only died six years before the construction and many conservatives thought that it was too soon. But when you look at what he had accomplished for the countries' development there was no doubt they had picked the right person. We had no major issues and adapted quite well... unless you count getting lost in Montana. Let me explain; the GPS said to turn onto a highway that looked more like a two lane paved road. Soon it turned into a gravel rock road and we continued for several miles. Did I tell you there is nothing but huge fields in Montana. After a half hour or so we finnaly came upon a large farm house and we stopped and talked to a man with a cowboy hat who was sitting on his golf cart with his dog. We asked him if the directions to highway 20 continued on this path and if that would lead us to Highway 85 heading north into North Dakota? He responded with a wierd disbeliefed look on his face and said, "Yep." I can't imagine what was going through his mind. It was a low profile mini-van rolling down the two track farming road that you drive tractors on, trying to get onto a highway. It was so bad that at one point we came across cows on the road where there were no fences to keep them in, so they roamed back and forth on either side. Thank goodness we bought an atlas in South Dakota and were able to find our way to highway 85. Even though everything was spread out so far there was many beautiful scenes to take in. We saw many dear and what looked like antelope along the way. I had always wanted to take a ferry boat across Lake Michigan and rememebered that there where two ports on the Wisconsin side. We got on line and called the Michigan ferry boat lake express. And wouldnt you know it they only had one spot left. So we took it. We thought that Chicago traffic and construction plus being a holiday weekend it might take us eight hours to get home from Milwaukie but by ferry it only took three hours saving us a lot of gas as well. I was amazed at how quite and smooth the jet express boat was. Doug and I dozed off for some well needed rest while Max and Zach wandered around the ship taking pictures. We played a practical joke on Lori when we got home asking her to get on map quest to find an alternate route around Chicago and then after a while as we were pulling into the drive way, told her to look out the window. It was so good to be home.

Father-Son Road Trip!

Father-Son Road Trip!

Last night Eric, Zach, Doug and Max Campbell left on a road trip to see Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. They left about 8 last night and stopped in Iowa City, then will head the rest of the way today. They plan to go through four states Eric has never been to before on this trip leaving only 5 states that Eric hasn't visited in his life. They have been talking about taking this trip for a long time and planned it about a month ago. The weather looks beautiful this weekend and I have heard that it is an amazingly beautiful trip. This is a trip that didn't interest me much driving so far to see past presidents on a mountain? My former boss yesterday said "it's about the Journey!" This is so true about this trip and about life! Maddie and I are home having a girl weekend and we slept in til 11 today and are hanging out with Kelly and her girls who spent the night. We ate junk food, watched a movie, did Kareoke, had a dress-up nerf gun fight and had fun laughing at eachother. I hope to get a lot done while Eric is gone and also do some relaxing and fun things with Maddie before school starts next Tuesday. Keep Eric, Zach, Doug and Max in your prayers for a safe trip and good memories created this weekend. They will return home on Monday. Hopefully we will have some great pictures to post soon!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Lori

Please join us in the Walk to D'feat ALS on October 10th!

Dear friends and family,

It’s that time again, dust off your shoes and come out and support our great cause, “THE WALK TO D’FEAT ALS.” We’d like to thank those of you who have supported or participated in previous walks on our Team Fox Trotters to benefit The ALS Association. If you haven’t participated in the past, we’d love for you to join our team this year! SAVE THE DATE: This year’s walk is about six weeks away on Saturday, October 10, 2009. Your support and presence really gives me the hope and determination to fight this disease.

Many people might wonder what the money raised from this event will go to, how will it help the cause. Due to my involvement and relationship built with the ALS association I can assure you that the money is well spent. Some of the ways in which the money directly benefits patients includes: holding monthly support groups on how to deal with this disease, in home visits from nurses, respite care (giving care givers a break), utilization of the loan closet, being able to borrow equipment when a patient can’t afford it on their limited Medicare budget, and of course a large amount of it goes to our national research effort to find a cure for this terrible disease. All of these resources have impacted my life in one way or another. With over 38,000 people suffering with this disease there is a real need for support.

Recently, researchers funded by The ALS Association identified a gene that causes familial ALS. This is HUGE! This finding will be helpful in further research, even for those of us with non-familial ALS.

Here in West Michigan, our local chapter uses three major fundraisers to raise the money. The biggest is the annual Walk to Defeat ALSTM. It brings in more than half of the funds needed by our local chapter to operate.

In 2007, thanks to your help, we raised over $17,000. Last year we all brought in over $7,000. This year we are hoping to have over a 150 people walk on our team Fox Trotters to raise $15,000!

We hope that you can join Team Fox Trotters. We will be wearing the blue Fox Trotter T-shirts again. If you plan on walking or need to order a T-shirt, please contact Lori at lorifox@sbcglobal.net or (616) 532-4752 and give your size and who will be walking. The cost of the shirt is $10.00.

Our Captains this year are Dan & Tanya Bolkema. They will be responsible for encouraging and answering questions about the walk, on-line donations, corporate sponsorship, and any other questions you might have. You can contact them at dabbolkema@sbcglobal.net 616-813-2022 or 616-644-1811.

For more information about the walk, visit www.walktodefeatals.org or call 616-459-1900. If you are unable to walk this year but would like to make a donation to our team, you can go to the link at the top right of our blog to find our personal walk page.

All our love,

Eric and Lori Fox

When a storm hits...and your left with the pieces

Thinking about why we Americans have a hard time dealing with death, grief, despair, disappointment and sadness - we try to avoid it at all costs. We even put on a facade like everything is OK. I give it this analogy:
We're strolling along in life. Life is good. Family, the job, relationships, health -all is good and THEN, Katrina stikes!!! What do we do now? The pieces of life are scattered about and our path is forever changed. Relationships we once had are not there anymore. Why is that? I mean, don't get me wrong we are still cordial to one another but those relationships, that intimacy that we once shared has been damaged.

Many relationships are built around hobbies, work, going to the same church, interests, clubs, sporting events etc and not fully on eternal things. When those things are stripped away as in my case it reveals what the relationships were really built on. Time has proven to me that many people(myself included prior to ALS) are too busy with their hobbies, work, interests, sporting events, church activities which are all really good things and important but from somebody who is handicapped and not able to do those things anymore, you feel left out and abandoned and even forgotten about at times.

Some people have a hard time knowing what to do or say because they have a hard time dealing with despair, disapointment, sadness, grief, and death. A friend of mine once said that maybe its like they are mourning the loss of you, even though you have not died. So they are keeping you at a distance so they won't hurt even more when you actually do pass. How sad.

Maybe some people feel like I am not approachable now. I want to appologize if I have every made anyone feel that way, I hope people dont take it personally. There are a lot of adjustments that come now with living with a terminal disease. If you're reading this and we shared life together, know that I valued that time that our paths crossed. Its ok to talk about "the disease" or even "death". I know it is not a favorite subject of many people, but when I think about death and dying I think about spending eternity with God my father and Jesus in their infinite glory and holiness. There is no sadness or grief in heaven. There is no despair or anxiety, everything is perfect and as God planned.

When I leave this earth, my hope is that I have made a lasting mark on society, that people would remember me for the legacy that I have left behind. That people would say "yeah that Eric Fox guy, he sure loved Jesus. He was the real deal." That if our paths did cross, that you would have pleasant memories of our time together. But until that time God has me busy doing his good work, sharing my testimony and sharing the good news with all that will listen. I will be doing that until I take my last breath on this earth. "I want to run the race in such a way as to win the prize for which Jesus Christ has called me heavenwardly" so that when I get to the end and see Jesus face to face he will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."

Thanks for listening to me banter on. Whatever reason God had me write this hopefully it helps you understand how I'm feeling.

Eric

A proud little girl! Look Dad... two wheels!

We have not had much time to ride bikes in the last two years and Maddie was riding with her friends down the street and she realized she was the only girl with training wheels and she could not keep up with the other girls. This made her sad and it kind of broke my heart too. We have never worked with her to learn to ride her bike without training wheels. I started looking for a decent bike for her and found a good used Schwinn bike for her on Tuesday. Then I thought how do I teach her how to ride this? Eric taught Zach to ride his two wheeler when we were camping. I remember because he rode right off the road right into a tree! We started working on it last night in the grass and with me running beside her on the sidewalk way out of breath! She wanted to try it again this afternoon and then just a little while ago she wanted to try again. We padded up and went on the street. Eric said to hold the back of her seat so I tried that and let her go and off she went! She was smiling from ear to ear! I was so proud of her. It was a monumental moment for her! We went to get dad and Zach and the cameras which were all dead batteries! I was able to get a two second video before my batteries died! She was so excited to show her daddy she could ride her bike all by herself! It was a good day!
We have been doing pretty well lately. We will try to update soon!
SAVE THE DATE.... ALS Walk on Saturday October 10th. More info to follow! Hope you can join team Fox Trotters this year! Have a good week!
Lori

Letters by Zach Fox

Below are two letters written by my son, the first one is when he was in fifth grade and the second is in sixth grade, last year.

We are so proud of Zach, his writting is very deep for a twelve year old. As you can imagine he went through a lot of emotions, as you can tell from his writtings.

Fear of Death
06/04/08

Imgine a strong, faithful man with a loving family. Now picture that same man with a fatal disease called ALS who can't use his arms or legs practically at all. This isn't just a story, it's the truth. Can you guess who this man is? Yes, he's my dad.

It all started when my dad couldn't button his shirt one Sunday morning. Now he still has a family, but needs them every minute of the day to help him with everyday things like dressing him, shaving him, giving him showers, feeding him and helping him get up from sitting down. I've had some doubts that were all answered, but one still sticks tightly in my head and heart. Is my dad going to die? It keeps bouncing in my head and I can't help but cry untill I can't cry any more. I'm so confused, but yet it's so clear that it's a life or death situation.

I almost have no way to help him except pray and hope God wil cure my dad and thousands of others. Right now, there is hope that they will find a cure because I don't want to NOT have a daddy. Losing my dad would be like getting shot in the gut. I would still be alive, but I would wish I wasn't. For me, I would do anything, anything, anything to keep my dad alive, and see his joyful sunshine on his face. Let's anticipate that they will find a cure for ALS for thousands of others who have ALS as well.

Zach Fox
5th grade




Be Happy
06/03/09

Many people don't know that our family has been going through tough times since my dad has ALS. I think it's important to know that poeple can still be happy no matter how tough times are. For instance, my dad always has a good attitude while dealing with his disease. Another reason is my mom is still really helpful to our whole family and others. Also, my sister is so happy even though she is so young to have her own dad get a terrible, breath taking disease called ALS. Finnally, although I have to live with the fact that my dad could die in a couple of years it has tuaght me the responsibility to be the man of the house and to treasure life.

My dad still has a positive attitude while living with ALS. For example, I asked my dad a question, "How do you not get down at not being able to do the things you used to do?" He answered, "I focus on the things I can do, that God has given me the ability to encourage others. My faith helps sustain me. Somedays are better than others." Also my dad's favorite quotes are, "Don't worry, be happy!" and "Its all good!" These sayings help us laugh and forget what we were currently sad about.

Another reason is, even though there are 8,000 new cases of ALS patients per year in the U.S. and 30,000 present cases today, people can still choose to live their life for the better and be happy like we have done or just wait untill it's time to die. Hopefully most all of us, even the people who don't have a disease will choose to be happy.

My mom is really helpful to our family because although her husband has a terminal disease, she still works hard to run our family. For example, I asked my mom this question, "How are you so mentally strong even though you are going through this tough time?" She answered, "God gives me the strength to get through the tough times. People are praying for our family. My comitment to dad when we got married is a vow that I wont break." Also, she loves him very much. I can't believe that my mom is so happy and strong even though the unthinkable happened. The things she does for us is way more than any mom should do. Now my mom does tons of things for our family. She cooks delicious meals that make my mouth water. She takes care of my dad's daily needs because he is unable to himself. She stays strong by her amazing faith in God who gives her strength to live each day. She helps me with my homework when I give up because I think there is no way I could finish the humungus stack in front of me. She handles situations way better that I could ever think of even trying to do. She is my super mom.

It's hard to believe that my sister can be so happy even though our whole family is going through tough times. For example, my sister loves to make up new games. Like one day she walked up to me and excitedly said, "Hey Zach, I have a good idea for a game we can play." "What is it?" I asked back. Her smile was growing every second. "You pull me across the floor on a blanket and see how fast I can go," she replied. "I do what?" I asked enthusiastically. She repeated what she said again and I just did what she said. She laughed and screamed with glee when I shot her across the living room's wooden floor. I'll never forget that day when she made me forget about my dad's illness and have fun like we used to. Also, my sister is such a good encourager. My sister makes up fun games and plays them with the whole family. My sister is very sincere and loving when someone is really sad or down. My sister makes us laugh when we could be crying. My sister sometimes gets on all of our last straws, but most of all, my sister is my sister and that means the whole world to me. Yes, I love my sister and I wouldn't rather have any other sister in the whole world but her because she brings me up when I'm down about something. She helps me be happy through the tough times.

Even though its hard to live with the fact that my dad has ALS , I have gained a lot of responsibility. I was eleven my dad hollered, "Zach." He was upstairs watching TV and needed help. I was down stairs in the basment playing with legos and watching TV at the same time. "Coming!" I shouted back. I bolted upstairs to see what my dad needed. "Hey, can you get me a glass of water?" my dad asked. He of course looked desperate for a drink of water. "Sure," I said getting him a glass of water. "Thanks Zach" my dad replied the second after he took a sip from the clear glass cup. "Your welcome!" I exclaimed. I always feel realy good about myself when I do something nice for my dad.

Recently I surveyed the class if they would cry if they found out their dad had a fatal disease and was given 2-5 years to live. One hundred percent of the class said they would cry, of course. I cried when I found out, I cried alot. But God wants me to rejoice in it because I know where he's going and I'll be there to meet him someday. I realize that when I am happy, I feel like I can enjoy life more. Clearly people can still be happy no matter how tough times are because if our whole family can still be happy through our tough times, others can choose to be happy as well. It's your choice to be happy or sad or mad, make it a good one.

Zach Fox
sixth grade

Revelation Song - one of our new favorites!

We have been hearing a great new song lately sung by Kari Jobe (also Phillips Craig and Dean.) It is such a powerful song! We wanted to share it with you in this video some friends told us about. We have to warn you that there are many scenes from the Passion of the Christ movie that has some very graphic depictions of Christ's sufferings. As with any music or video, you will have to go to the top jukebox playlist and pause the music already playing before you click on the video below.
Have a blessed week! Our kids are in Traverse City camping with my brother and his family until Saturday so Eric and I are enjoying a quiet house together. We hope some of you will be able to join us tonight at Carrabba's in Grandville at 7pm for the MDA fundraiser dinner. Nationwide Carrabba's are doing this so you can go to any Carrabba's.

Skype

We are now on Skype and if anyone would like to talk to us via the video connection, shoot us an e-mail at info@ericfox.us or lorifox@sbcglobal.net and we'll make sure the computer is on.

If you don't have Skype, visit www.skype.com for more info. It's free and amazing to connect with this technology!

You can find us on Skype at:
Skype name: eric.fox.1988
Or search Eric Fox in Grandville, MI

Continuing the Fight...

No matter what in life, there are no guarantees. In God's word it does not say if you're a beliver or a follower of Christ that life will be smooth and easy. Rather, you can be assured that because we live in a broken, fallen world there will be attacks of many kinds by the enemy (Satan). Now I know that to many of you reading this, this might be a foreign concept to you... Satan. Maybe you don't even believe that there's a real place called Hell. I am reminded in God's word that they are both accurate depictions of an actual place and spirit. I think it's difficult for most of us to fathom that they are real because we don't see them and can't touch them. But I am convinced they exist.

I am in the middle of a battle that the enemy wants to control and take me out. Yesterday I heard a sermon that the pastor talked about how Satan is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He talked about how lions look for the weak, the sickly, even those who are not aware they are being stalked (they are complacent or over confident). I think that this is a good lesson for all of us to stay alert by staying in prayer, continuing to be in fellowship with other followers of Christ, to be in the Word, remembering on a daily basis to guard ourselves and put on the full armor of God.

This weekend a friend of mine picked Zach and I up and took us downtown to the inner city church mission where we help out a ministry caring for the homeless and anyone hurting on the streets of Grand Rapids. One thing I'm amazed at is how no two weeks are ever the same. God works in so many incredible ways. I realized after talking to about 4 or 5 people that there is no difference between me and them. They have hurts that are similiar to my hurts. They feel lonely at times, I feel lonely at times. They feel like they can't go on because of the struggles they face, and I feel the same way. There is a difference though. I have something that they need. And God reminded me of this - they need Jesus. With Christ living inside of me I have the hope and peace that only He gives. So, I decided that I need to encourage these people of this. They were very open and wanted me to pray with them.

I feel that a lot of the people I meet have all sorts of religion. They know the bible, they know scriptures, but for many of them they are misguided because they continue in their sin of alchohol abuse, drug abuse, etc. that the enemy has a stronghold over them with in those areas. They need to release those chains that have been binding them up for so long. They need to make a decision to have the living Saviour come dwell in their heart. There's more to having just head knowledge of Him and the scriptures. Christ wants a personal, intimate relationship with each one of us.

For example, when I think of my best friends, I think of what is it that has made them become my best friends... it is because we have spent time together developing that relationship. We talk, we've been though good times and bad times, we give each other advice, we bounce ideas around, we make memories together. That is what Christ wants from us - to develop and intimate relationship with Him. He does not want us to go through the motions just sayin we know "of" Him. He desires a real and intimate friendship.

On Saturday, I noticed one gal that was in line getting soup and supplies. She was not happy and very impatient. By the comments she was making, I could tell that she was having a hard time and was struggling with something. I went outside to invite more people in to the church. A little while later, she came outside and my friend C.B. and I stuck up a converation with her. There was something noticably different from the time I had first seen her in the line and now. We talked with her and encouraged her. She even let us pray with her. Later on, we gathered as a group of workers to discuss what we had seen and experienced that day. We prayed that the seeds that God planted that day would take root and we would see much fruit from the efforts. One of the workers shared that she had the priviledge and honor of leading a homeless woman in the prayer of salvation. It was the same woman that C.B. and I had spoken with. This is an example of God working through a handful of people that are faithful and obedient to His will. My prayer is that Laquita would continue to develop that intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Please pray for her and the many others that are hurting all over.

I wanted to also say how proud I am of my son Zach. When I asked him if he wanted to go downtown, he gave me a resounding "Oh yeah!" I amazed at my son, being 12 years old, desiring to be used by God in this way. Walking the streets, talking with homeless people, encouraging them of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. What father would not be proud of their son or daughter who had this same desire. Zach is a big help to the entire group and is learing a lot about people and circumstance in this life. He relealizes that there are no guarantees in this world we live in and that we should not take for granted all that we have by Gods' grace. We are truly blessed and Zach and I have talked about that on my occasions. Zach has seen God work in extraordinary ways the last few years, as we all have. I cannot be prouder of him than I am right now. He is such a good and wonderful kid.

This weekend we had an unexpected guest call and come over... my brother and his family. It was a wonderful visit. We had such a great time with him, Erica, Kaitlyn, and Emma. We went and saw a movie (G-Force) and the kids liked it. I fell asleep... that tells you how good it was from an adult stand point. I would recommend waiting until it comes out on video (just my personal opinion). Afterwards we grilled hamburgers and ate out and even made a bonfire cooking smores and doughboys. Unfortunately, I paid for this later on as I took in too much smoke. But I wanted to enjoy the time together with my brother and his family. So needless to say, it was a rough night of sleeping for me that night. I did a lot of coughing and was up quite a bit during the night which meant Lori didn't sleep much either. All in all, it was well worth it though.

I ran into an old friend of mine that two and a half years ago had been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. I had not seen him since then and was amazed to see that God had healed him of his symptoms. Praise God! I was encouraged by his attitude and for his encouragement towards me. He reminded me of the verse that was instrumental in him being healed. He said that this verse is his life verse:

Matthew 17:20
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

I'm reminded that our faith is a powerful tool! I trust in the Lord for my healilng during this battle of ALS. I continue to fight the good fight and press on towards the goal. Perserverence is teaching me to lean on the Lord even more each and every day. God continues to chisel away the rough edges, everything that is not of Him!

Thank you for those of you who continually pray on our behalf. May the Lord continue to bless you and keep you.

Your brother in Christ,
Eric

Family Song

A couple weeks ago, Lori's cousins and Aunt were here visiting and we put together this song, which is now uploaded to U-tube. Hope you like it.

Reminded that God is always at work even when we stray

We wanted to share with all of you something that God has helped us come to understand this week. We have been feeling very down, lonely and even depressed over the last three weeks and that is right where Satan wanted us to be. It is so easy to become consumed with our human emotions and the way this disease continues to change our lives. We have not been seeking God's help daily through our struggles. This week, God has been speaking to us in so many ways and reminded us who He is and how much He cares for us. God has been doing this through people, through his Word, sermons, a book on tape, through answered prayers, things that are not coincidences but rather God at work in our lives.
Today, a good friend with ALS, Jana Woods, has passed away from this horrible disease. A few months back, she was in our home laughing with us. We had heard she was admitted to Hospice not long ago and had every intention to go visit her there thinking we had time, but we got caught up in our own busyness and wallowing in our self pity that we didn't listen to God and our hearts and make the time. We are not saying this to make you all think you need to come visit us this week or feel bad. We know that God lays it on peoples hearts when he knows that we need an encouraging word from them and He works through his people to show His love. We used to feel guilty for not helping everyone that was sick in our church, but realized that we are only responsible to go when He pricks our hearts or puts them on our mind. We are all called to use the gifts God has given us to further His kingdom. We are reminded about the brevity of life when someone dies and we don't know when we will take our last breath. We are reminded that it is so important to spend time with the ones we love and to share the gift of salvation that we have been given with others. Every day is a gift! We get so caught up in things that really don't matter for eternity. The enemy is so crafty in keeping us distracted with things of this world and not keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus. We are so thankful that God never leaves us, when we are feeling like we are alone, it is us that have strayed away.
We heard a sermon from John 5 recently that talked about the man who was crippled for 38 years. He was trying to figure out a way to get into the healing pool when others kept going before him and he had no way to get in. Jesus approached him asking if he wanted to be well and told him to pick up his mat and be healed. He obeyed and was healed. His life began at the point of his faith. He had work to do! We were reminded of the work that God wants us to do. At the point of our salvation, we are healed and cleansed of our sin and God commands us to sin no longer and to live for Him. We are praying for physical healing and want it so badly that we lose focus on eternity in Heaven with Jesus and our purpose while we are here on this earth. He wants us to live a life free from sin and sadness. He wants to offer us hope and a future! If we are caught up in finding a cure or wanting to be healed, it's hard to trust God as my disease progresses. We cannot live the life God has for us without Him.

We have been praying for a sports camp for Zach to attend this summer in a christian environment and God led us to Fellowship of Christian Athletes camp last Friday and we drove him to camp today! If you are able to send Zach an encouraging note while he is at camp, the instructions are below. The letter should be sent out by Tuesday or Wed since he will be coming home on Friday. We think it would really lift his spirits to receive letters this week since he doesn't know anyone there except the couple who told us about the camp that help coach. We know God will watch over him and bless him this week! Keep Zach in your prayers too!
If you are planning to send a letter to your camper,
address the letter to the individual, Fellowship of
Christian Athletes Camp, Dining and Hospitality Service,
Albion College, 611 East Porter Street, Albion, MI 49224.

Maddie is doing a Soccer camp at a Grandville church too and she packed her bag to stay overnight thinking she was going away for the week too like her big brother! Pray that God will speak to her precious heart this week.

Sorry this is so incredibly long, thanks for listening, praying and loving us!
Your brother and sister in Christ,
Eric and Lori

Carrabba's Nationwide fundraiser to aid MDA in the fight for ALS on July 30th 5pm to close

We will be there!!! This is our favorite restaurant!!! Who wants to join us at the Grandville Carabba's at 7pm for dinner? We are not promoting alcohol consumption, but you can't go wrong for 15.00 to try their new great food items knowing that it will benefit a great cause!
Hope to see you there!
Eric and Lori

On Thursday, July 30, Carrabba’s Italian Grill invites consumers to "Mix It Up for MDA" at a special event combining exclusive cocktails from award-winning mixologist Charlotte Voisey with new Carrabba’s food items to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA).
Admission to "Mix It Up for MDA" is $15 per person from 5 pm to close at Carrabba’s locations nationwide. The ticket price includes a sampling of four food items from the new Mr. C’s Bar Menu and, for guests 21 years and older, one of Voisey’s signature cocktails created for the event (Blackberry Lemonade, the Italian Lemon Drop or Blackberry Fields Martini) or another drink on the Mr. C’s list.
The food tasting includes a delicious array of appetizers from the new Mr. C’s Menu, designed for snacking and sharing, including: Antipasti Misto – an assortment of Italian meats and cheeses, Mediterranean olives and roasted peppers; Meatballs with Ricotta Cheese – homemade meatballs topped with pomodoro sauce, Romano and ricotta cheeses; Patatinas with Blue Cheese – freshly cooked Italian potato chips tossed with green onions and topped with a blue cheese sauce; and Chicken Parmesan Piccolinos – mini sandwiches featuring sautéed chicken breast coated with Italian breadcrumbs, topped with pomodoro sauce and melted mozzarella cheese.
In addition to monies raised from "Mix It Up for MDA" event admission, Carrabba’s also will donate $1 to MDA for each of Voisey’s drinks sold from July 30 – August 6. During that week, consumers are encouraged to visit www.Carrabbas.com and cast their vote for their favorite cocktail. The most popular drink will be added to Carrabba’s drink menu.
For more information on "Mix It Up for MDA," to vote on Voisey’s special cocktails, or to find Carrabba’s locations nationwide, visit www.carrabbas.com.

My kind of camping

It has been a while since we have updated the blog. We have been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster since returning home from Hawaii. We have had good and bad days and are at times overwhelmed with this disease and what it is doing to our family. God has been good to us through it all and has still given us strength and peace through it all. We are looking to replace our caregiver, Lisa who has finished her schooling and is now starting her fieldwork. She has been such a huge help to all of us and we miss having her around to help out. She will do very well in her field. Please pray that we can find the right replacement for her soon. We were supposed to have our annual Kammeraad family campout this weekend in Muskegon (Eric and I were just going to go up for the day on Saturday) but my parents decided to cancel it since all of her kids were going through some tough weeks prior and we ended up having a campout in our backyard with a couple of tents and lots of us staying in the house. It was so much fun! The kids spent most of the weekend catching toads in the back yard and we all hung out together playing games, putting our speakers up out back (we love having music outside now)and preparing and eating meals together and camp fires at night. It was great having full bathrooms and a full kitchen while camping! It was great spending time with family. We will have to try this with the Fox side this summer too. My aunt and cousins came in to town Sunday from Mexico, AZ and TX and it was great to spend time with them too. We enjoyed time with them in Grand Haven on Sunday and again here at the house on Tuesday night. My dad's side of the family is very musical so Sapphire got out her guitar and we did something new, we all wrote a song together with her help. Eric said he always wanted to write a song with Zach and the night really meant a lot to him. Even in the little things, God knows the desires of our hearts and answers prayers. Eric has been praying for this for a long time and was blessed to do this with our family. We had a good week and it took our mind off of this disease and let us focus on things that are really important in life (faith, family and friends). Our elevator is finally finished today and Eric took the maiden voyage in it this morning. He went into the kids rooms and woke them up and they flipped out seeing their dad in their rooms. The elevator is so wonderful and will be such a blessing in our home. This was fully covered by the VA and we are so grateful! This weekend for the 4th of July holiday we plan on going to the parade and then having a BBQ at our house from 3-6 to promote awareness for ALSTDI and then going to the Whitecaps to support ALSA and celebrate the 70th anniversay of Lou Gehrig's farewell speech and watch the fireworks. It will be a full day! Eric's mom is coming to stay with us next week which is always such a blessing. We are looking forward to spending time with her. Have a great weekend! Thank you for lifting our family up in prayer and for those of you who have offered to bring meals and pick Eric up and take our kids. Lori and Eric

Happy Father's day to my wonderful husband

I just wanted to take a quick moment to wish my wonderful husband a Happy Father's day since it is now Sunday and we are still up. Zach and Eric are still hanging out watching a movie and Maddie is staying at Grandma and Grandpa Foxes this weekend. We are about to go to bed, but I wanted to take a moment to tell Eric what a wonderful father he is to our two children. I was trying to find a card for him for Father's day and I realized that we are not the typical Hallmark family anymore so I wanted to say how much we all love Eric and can't imagine our lives without him here. Even though Eric can't do the things he used to, he is a strong man of God who leads our family and loves us unconditionally. We really do have a lot of joy in this house despite this disease. Eric's mind is and will always stay sharp which makes it hard to endure the changes ALS has brought, but I love that he still knows and loves me the same as he always has and he always makes me laugh. We are still praying for Eric to be healed by God in a miraculous way! Keep praying with us. To all of you who are fathers or fathers to be, have a wonderful Father's day!!
Lori

Laminin

Laminin

Laminin is a protein found in the extracellular matrix, the sheets of protein that form the substrate of all internal organs also called the basement membrane. It is the major non-collagenous component of the basal lamina, such as those on which cells of an epithelium sit.[1] It has four arms that can bind to four other molecules. The three shorter arms are particularly good at binding to other laminin molecules, which is what makes it so great at forming sheets. The long arm is capable of binding to cells, which helps anchor the actual organs to the membrane.
The laminin protein is made up of three polypeptide chains - α, β and γ, giving it a total of six "ends", accounting for a lot of its flexibility in connecting various molecules. Because of this, scientists who create biomaterials are extremely interested in the whole family of laminins[citation needed]. They are a family of glycoproteins that are an integral part of the structural scaffolding in almost every animal tissue. Laminins are secreted and incorporated into cell-associated extracellular matrices.

Laminin is vital to making sure overall body structures hold together. Improper production of laminin can cause muscles to form improperly, leading to a form of muscular dystrophy.

So, what is LAMININ then?

In the human body, we are all made of Trillions and Trillions of cells that compromise our body and all it's intricate parts. What holds this vast body of ours together?

Laminin is a type of protein that acts as the glue that holds all of our trillions of cells together.

During a presentation by Louie Giglio, he displayed an actual microscopic photo of a single Laminin cell and it looked exactly like the photo taken by the Hubble Space Telescope of the black hole light years from Earth.

All who believe in a Divine Creator say that God is everywhere. In the far reaches of the Universe and in every cell of our bodies, is it possible that science can finally confirme the existence of this God who billions of humans believe in? Was Jesus God incarnate? If with this evidence some still do not believe, then they are blind of heart and head. Here is scientific evidence that is shaking the scientific community comfort. Please do not call it “coincidence” it no longer flies…

See Video Link below to watch Louie Giglio's amazing video on Laminin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4

Eric

Homeward bound!

Well, our vacation in Hawaii has come to an end and we have enjoyed every minute of it and are truly blessed to have been able to take this trip. We leave for the airport today at 5pm and fly out at 8pm (4am Michigan time) and will travel throught the night and return home at 7pm after losing 6 hours. We hear that the return jet lag is the hardest especially with losing time. Please be in prayer for safe travel for us on Friday. We are so excited to see the kids and feel like 6 days have been just enough for us to be here relaxing and enjoying God's wonderful creation in another part of the earth and are always grateful to return home. We would love to come back here someday. We just missed whale season by about a month. March to April is prime time for that. We really enjoyed the Luau and yesterday we took the shuttle to Lahaina which proved to be a bit challenging with the chair, but people have been so nice to help us. We have experienced some beautiful sunsets here and will treasure the memories of this trip forever. We read in my daily Bible today and were really touched by this verse: Luke 10:20 Rejoice because your names are written in heaven. Charles Stanley says "we tend to get excited about miracles like curing cancer and casting out demons, but the Lord insists that the greatest miracle is our salvation. Evangelism is therefore a greater work than we can imagine." While we pray for a miracle of healing for Eric always, we have received the greater miracle of salvation.
In His grip,
Lori and Eric

Scenic pics from Hawaii

Treasuring every minute here together

We are having an amazing trip here. We have not left this strip of the ocean but there is a paved sidewalk that goes quite a while along the beach so Eric and I went exploring yesterday and I pushed him in his chair (which has been great) to the end at the Sheraton property which overlooks the cliff at the cove. There are sea turtles swimming below and a bunch of kids hang out on top of the cliff and jump off. i thought about trying it, then thought who would stay with Eric? :) It was record heat here yesterday at 92 with high humidity but we didn't care because how could you complain here? We met some more people and Eric had a great conversation with a man named Tim about religion. Pray we can be a light to the natives and the tourists here. Everyone we meet is intrigued by the joy and peace we have which comes only from an active and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. He is the one who continuously gives us life. Tonight we are going to an authentic Hawaiian Luau at the hotel. Eric has been having a hard time sleeping here, but he has a hard time sleeping at home too. We'd rather be here not sleeping while we listen to the waves crash outside then in MI where I sit and think of how tired I will be in the morning and everything that needs to be done that day. We have no schedule here and it has been a wonderful break.
Eric wanted to share that last year, we went to the Grand Canyon and saw God's amazing tapestry and now we are here in another part of God's world enjoying his amazing beauty. How can anyone deny that He is our Creator and the ruler of all things. When I stare out at the ocean and think about Heaven and how big our God is, I know that it is Him who made all of this and He holds it all in the palm of his hands!
Enjoy your day and consider yourself blessed for another day of life. Look for the blessings!
Your brother and siser in Christ,
Lori and Eric
Aloha!

Pictures from the plane

We've arrived safely in Hawaii

Aloha from Hawaii!
We arrived late last night after a long day of flights. The airlines were really good to us and very helpful with the wheelchair. On our last leg of the flight, we were upgraded to first class from Seattle to Maui because Eric could not fit into our seats. It was a six hour flight and we were treated like royalty. The seats were huge and reclined back so we slept a good part of that flight. We met some really nice people on that flight too. It was just beautiful flying over the Rockys and the Cascades, then the Pacific ocean seeing it through the clouds. When we came upon the islands, it was so green and just breath taking with the ocean and the mountains. We were so excited to be here! We took a handicap shuttle to the hotel and the people here are so friendly. We felt very welcomed at the airport and when we arrived at our hotel. The bellman named Byron personally assisted us to our room and has been so helpful and kind. We had an ocean view room we got to at 9pm Hawaii time (3am our time). I could see part of the ocean out our balcony but Eric couldn't see the ocean from his chair so Byron got us a room right on the ocean today and transferred our stuff for us. The room is so amazing. I am listening to the ocean crash on the shore right now and Eric is sleeping in his chair. It was good that we moved too because this morning, I turned on the shower and a cockroach the size of Montanna scurried across the floor!! I about jumped out of my skin. I have never seen a real cockroach that close up. Byron said he calls them 747's. I have a picture if you want to see, but I didn't want to post it on the blog since we have so many beautiful pictures already. Anyhow, it has been very muggy here the last week they said because the trade winds have not come in so this brings out the cockroaches. I pray I don't see another one this trip. The resort is so serene. We laid by the pool and looked out at the ocean today and then Eric watched the Red Wings at the outdoor lounge with some people we met. I walked along the ocean and people were snorkling around sea turtles in a cove. I am so amazed at God's beauty here. It takes my breath away. We watched the sunset tonight and one man said it was the best sunset they had in the 9 days he has been here. Thank you, God! God has been our Jehovah Nissi this trip and has gone before us as our Banner. We are so blessed! We ate at a restaurant on the beach tonight and Eric saw this shirt he really liked so I went over to them to ask where they had gotten it and I kid you not, they took it off their back and gave it to us. They were from Hawaii and here for a sailing race and the shirt was from the race. People here just live life to the fullest and radiate love. We plan to go down tomorrow morning at 8am and see them off and then there is a church service on the beach. We are truly having an amazing trip so far and we've just begun. Thank you for those of you who have prayed for our safety. We will update more later. I've already taken 97 pictures so it is hard to choose what to post.
Mahalo!
Lori and Eric

Hawaii bound!

Well,
some of you may know this and some of you will be saying when did they plan this? About three weeks ago, we (Eric and I) decided that we should take our dream vacation to Hawaii. We have accumulated points through a credit card we setup from our time share so I called to see if we had enough points to go to Hawaii and we had enough points to go for 5 nights and the promo was for a 6th night free! We have always said if we sold our house we would take this trip and here we are! We got a good price on flights and we plan to mostly stay at the hotel which is right on the ocean. The kids are staying at the house with Eric's mom and we leave GR airport at 7am tomorrow. We are really excited to be taking this trip! Please pray for our safety as it is quite a long day of flights to get to Maui. We will arrive at 6pm which is midnight your time on Friday. We will try to update the blog with some pictures if we have internet while there. We will be home on June 5th.
Aloha!
Lori and Eric

A night with our Harley Friends and MDA

Last Friday was the Black and Blue Ball for MDA to raise funds for research for ALS and many forms of Muscular Dystophy and to send kids to camp. Black and Blue meant to wear leather or blue jeans or your Harley gear in which department we are lacking. MDA asked Eric if he would come and share his story of living with ALS that night so we were off to the event which was very well put together. There was a silent and live auction, dinner, speakers, free photos on a Harley (as you can see above my first time on a Harley) It was a wonderful night and I was so proud of Eric when he spoke in front of over 400 people about how the only way he gets through life is with God's help and by our faith. He talked about ALS and thanked them for their help that night and shared the hope we have in Jesus Christ because he knows where he is going. I know that God spoke to someone that night through his testimony. We also met some inspiring people like Alex who has Duschanes Muscular Distrophy who sat at our table and spoke so well and brought tears to our eyes. Life is such a gift that we take for granted. We also had a woman named Elizabeth at our table who spoke who had lost her husband 11 years ago to ALS. We meet people like this all the time who inspire us and encourage us.
We had a good weekend despite some difficulties at night sleeping. The kids are keeping us busy as usual with ball schedules. We are looking forward again to some sunshine this week.

Please keep in your prayers on Wednesday this week a friend, Gloria from our church who is having a serious surgery on her trachea. Gloria gets short winded easily and she still was at our house a few weekends ago spreading bark with her family. That inspires me to not look at things you can't do, but to keep doing what you can.
God Bless you all!
Lori

But until that day.... we will worship you always! a tough night

We had a tough night last night. I was having a hard time going to the bathroom last night (constipated) worse than I have ever been in my life. Not sure if I want to share this but just being honest. It exhausted all of my strenghth and caused a lot of pain. It even affected my walking with Lori's help. I say this not to say poor me, but to share insight what is going on with us while living with ALS. I realize that I can't eat the same food I enjoy so much like cheese and bread so I plan to change my diet again to more fruits and veggies. It was hard for Lori too because she couldn't help me. Lots of tears were shed last night by both uf us. Every time we have a night like this, we awake with God's mercy in the morning. Today and another time we had a rough night, our alarm came on with the song "There will be a day with no more tears" by Jeremy Camp. What a powerful song that gives so much hope! Lori got up and googled the song and found this powerful video made by Jeremy Camp (you may recall that he lost his wife to cancer) and we watched it with tears streaming. Even Maddie came over and put her arms around us. Zach was still sleeping so we will share it with him later. Anyways, take three minutes to watch this video and then read the words of the song below as a powerful reminder from God that the burdens of this place will be no more when we see Jesus face to face!
Thanking God for His mercies today,
Eric and Lori

Due to technical difficulites, the video is on the right side of the blog. Scroll down to the Jeremy Camp link.


There Will Be A Day lyrics

I try to hold on to this world with everything I have
But I feel the weight of what it brings, and the hurt that tries to grab
The many trials that seem to never end, His word declares this truth,
that we will enter in this rest with wonders anew

But I hold on to this hope and the promise that He brings
That there will be a place with no more suffering

(Chorus)
There will be a day with no more tears, no more pain, and no more
fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place, will be no more,
we'll see Jesus face to face
But until that day, we'll hold on to you always

I know the journey seems so long
You feel you’re walking on your own
But there has never been a step
Where you’ve walked out all alone

Troubled soul don’t lose your heart
Cause joy and peace he brings
And the beauty that’s in store
Outweighs the hurt of life’s sting

But I hold on to this hope and the promise that He brings
That there will be a place with no more suffering

(Chorus)

I can’t wait until that day where the very one I’ve lived for always will
wipe away the sorrow that I’ve faced
To touch the scars that rescued me from a life of shame and misery
this is why this is why I sing

There will be a day with no more tears, no more pain, and no more
fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place, will be no more,
we'll see Jesus face to face

There will be a day with no more tears, no more pain, and no more
fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place, will be no more,
we'll see Jesus face to face

There will be a day, he will wipe away the tears,
He will wipe away the tears,
He will wipe away the tears,
There will be a day.

We sold our house!!!! .... again :)

We have been extremely busy this past week doing updates on our Jenison home for sale to get ready for an open house on Sunday. I had a friend from my Bible Study go thru the house and give some suggestions for updates and we picked some to tackle and sent out a call for help. We had many painters, cleaners, deck scrubbers, fixture installers, a few meals, Eric's mom here for the week for Eric and the kids. I was at the Jenison house every day Mon thru Sat busy making it really look nice. We also had the Wessely family come out on Saturday to both houses to help us with landscaping through the Young Marines. We are so blessed and thankful for all of the help we had this past week. WE COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT THAT HELP! The Lord has been so good to us in providing all of our needs. We had lots of interest at the open house and an offer on Monday and Today. They were both much lower than we had hoped, but that is the nature of this market right now. We are just pleased to have come to an agreement with the first offer which come to find out is my brother's old roommate and her husband who really love the house. There's just something about knowing someone loves your house, especially with all of the TLC we put into it this week. All I can say is praise the Lord and pray that everything goes smoothly up until close on June 12th.
On another note, we have been very busy with the kids baseball schedules with both kids having a game tonight. Some pictures of the kids are above.
Eric has been on the drug IPLEX for two weeks now and we are hoping to see some positive changes from this drug now that he is up to his full dosage for a week now. He has noticed it is helping him with swallowing. His friend asked him "would you take not getting any worse?" Eric said absolutely.
Happy Cinco De Mayo and Happy Birthday to Eric's mom, Joan! It has been a really good day!
In Him,
Lori and Eric