Hello everyone,
I am having a great time with my family and trying to get as much as possible out of this few days.
I have limited internet access so, I probably won´t be able to get on full blogger mode until after I arrive in the States on the 29th of December.
I did wanted to post this last update on little Esther Elliot. The doctors told them that because of the rare cancer and how extended it was, there was really not an option for a cure. They recommended 14 sessions of chemoteraphy, but still with that, they only gave her not longer than a year. The parents needed to take a decission over the weekend. This update is the latest we received today. Please pray for them. May God be glorified in all this.
Dear Friends,
We so much appreciate your prayers, thoughts, cards, concern… This past week has been very difficult for Lydia and I. On Monday, we met with the doctors and told them that we had decided not to do chemotherapy. It was a rough meeting with the doctors strongly pressing their case for chemotherapy. However, they have accepted our decision and Esther comes home today (12.23.09). We will do a small amount of traveling to visit relatives over the next month or so and then be in Springfield, MO until Esther goes home. The doctors have given 2 – 6 months, but no one really knows for sure. Once we are done with the traveling (we want to visit family in Mississippi, Kentucky, and Indiana), we will have pediatric hospice involved. Our doctor in Bolivar and hospice will oversea Esther’s care.
We appreciate your prayers as we go through this difficult time.
For Souls,
Daniel Elliott
Your Missionaries to Mongolia
www.danielelliottfamily.us
12/23/2009
12/17/2009
I did it!
I did it, I got my hair cut, and I actually did it shorty after I ask you ladies about it.
But with all the craziness around here I haven´t been able to post photos. I took photos of the layers, the back.... everything! but now those photos are in my desktop, inside a box, in a container, in a boat, in the ocean, on its way to the States ;).... so this is the best I could do. I needed to do it though, because many were asking about it.... so......
But with all the craziness around here I haven´t been able to post photos. I took photos of the layers, the back.... everything! but now those photos are in my desktop, inside a box, in a container, in a boat, in the ocean, on its way to the States ;).... so this is the best I could do. I needed to do it though, because many were asking about it.... so......
You can´t tell really good but I pick hair cut number 1 ;) Thanks everyone for your help, I am pretty happy with the results :)
I want to apologized for not being able to make it to visit with you all but things are pretty busy in here. We shipped our stuff and donated the rest. Today I am packing suitcases and trying to finish up around the house because tomorrow morning I will be turning the house back to the owner and heading to Madrid to spend the next week and half of our remaining time in Spain with my family. We have also been doing good bye parties for the girls in their school...... tomorrow we are leaving Granada, and there is still so much to do.......
Oh please, could it be a long time until I get to move again???? Pretty pleaseeeeee
12/16/2009
URGENT PRAYER REQUEST
I have a very special and urgent prayer request.
While on deputation we met the Elliot Family, missionaries going to the field of Mongolia. They have been in the field for a few years now, and God is blessing.
Recently we received an email from them, as we often do for ministry updates, but this time the prayer request was heart breaking.
They have a little daughter, Esther, I believe she is about 6, and she has been diagnose with a very rare cancer, now stage 4. I am going to add their later update so you can pray for her. Also, they have a web page, I am adding a link. I believe you can ask to be added to their email updates, so you can know how everything with little Esther goes, and then better pray for her.
" Dear Friends,
Late last night, the doctors told us that the pathology was back on both the biopsy on the lungs and the original tumor. First, the lung biopsy was positive. That is to say that the nodes on the lungs (both lungs) are cancerous. As we suspected, they have staged the cancer as stage 4 with metastasis. The type of cancer is a cancer called medulloepithelioma. It is an EXTREMELY rare cancer and is considered a cancer of the central nervous system. This type of cancer, when it is found, is normally found in the eyes or brain. There are extremely few instances of this cancer being in the abdominal cavity. As a result of the rareness of this cancer, the doctors cannot give us a prognosis, nor is there an established treatment protocol. There have been a few cases (10 or less) of this cancer. The doctors here will be talking with the doctors that have treated this cancer before to see what they faced and how they treated it. The doctors here will be running a series of tests (MRI, Spinal tap, bone scan, echocardio exam, ekg and bone marrow) to see if we can determine if the cancer has spread beyond the lungs. We appreciate your prayers as we will need to make some hard decisions regarding treatment, chemotherapy, etc within the next few days.
We appreciate your prayers as we go through this difficult time.
For Souls,
Daniel Elliott
Your Missionaries to Mongolia
www.danielelliottfamily.us "
While on deputation we met the Elliot Family, missionaries going to the field of Mongolia. They have been in the field for a few years now, and God is blessing.
Recently we received an email from them, as we often do for ministry updates, but this time the prayer request was heart breaking.
They have a little daughter, Esther, I believe she is about 6, and she has been diagnose with a very rare cancer, now stage 4. I am going to add their later update so you can pray for her. Also, they have a web page, I am adding a link. I believe you can ask to be added to their email updates, so you can know how everything with little Esther goes, and then better pray for her.
" Dear Friends,
Late last night, the doctors told us that the pathology was back on both the biopsy on the lungs and the original tumor. First, the lung biopsy was positive. That is to say that the nodes on the lungs (both lungs) are cancerous. As we suspected, they have staged the cancer as stage 4 with metastasis. The type of cancer is a cancer called medulloepithelioma. It is an EXTREMELY rare cancer and is considered a cancer of the central nervous system. This type of cancer, when it is found, is normally found in the eyes or brain. There are extremely few instances of this cancer being in the abdominal cavity. As a result of the rareness of this cancer, the doctors cannot give us a prognosis, nor is there an established treatment protocol. There have been a few cases (10 or less) of this cancer. The doctors here will be talking with the doctors that have treated this cancer before to see what they faced and how they treated it. The doctors here will be running a series of tests (MRI, Spinal tap, bone scan, echocardio exam, ekg and bone marrow) to see if we can determine if the cancer has spread beyond the lungs. We appreciate your prayers as we will need to make some hard decisions regarding treatment, chemotherapy, etc within the next few days.
We appreciate your prayers as we go through this difficult time.
For Souls,
Daniel Elliott
Your Missionaries to Mongolia
www.danielelliottfamily.us "
12/15/2009
Ministry changes
I don´t know if it is for how long I have been aside from the bloggy world, or how busy this season of our my family´s life is, but I am having a hard time getting back into blogging full force.
I have things I have done, a birthday, a hair cut ;).
I have things God is doing. Much teaching I would love to write about to keep it record somewhere.
Lots of photos to share.
But still, never seem to get in here for long enough to do it.
But there is something important that I have to share. There is a huge ministry change that is is about to take place. And I must, and want, share it with all of you.
God is redirecting our ministry and is closing doors for us in Spain.
Do you know with your children. Sometimes, they are frustrating, sometimes they don´t listen, sometimes they even make you angry. But you love them the same right? You don´t want to leave them. You want to love them, you want to share with them, you want to spend time with them, you want to teach them. And you want to see them grow. Don´t you?
That is how I feel with the people in Spain. They are hard hearted. They don´t want to listen. They want to do it their way. But I still love them. I still have a burden for them. I want to see them save, and I want to see them grow. They are my people, and I was once just like them. I wanted to spend my life here telling them about Christ, no matter the cost.
Yeah, sure, I would complain some. But who doesn´t do that with the ones they love the most.
But a few months back, not too many, my husband and I were talking about things we could do, new ministries we could start, different approaches we could take. Excited was building up, there was so much to prepare, so much to plan, so much to do.
While he (my husband) was praying one day, he was begging God to show him of the great things He was going to do. Begging Him to show Him what to do next, what to do first, and making sure His plans were our plans. He was fasting and praying. God took him to Jeremiah, to a chapter where God talks about the people. Talking about how people had turn their ears because they didn´t want to hear, they had turn their hearts into diamond. Hard as it could be. God showed my husband we were done with the work He brought us to do in Granada and that He wasn´t going to start a church with us here (not that He wasn´t going to start a church, just that He wasn´t going to do it with us). We were done here.
Now, I would love to say that we didn´t fight, but we did. We didn´t want to leave, but God´s guiadance is so clear. If we were to stay, we were going to do it alone.
So we prayed. About helping other missionaries in Spain. About starting some other place in Spain. But no was the answer.
So we prayed. About another country, about another kind of ministry. But no was the answer.
So finally my husband felt God clearly telling us to go back. Why? I don´t know, but I know He knows why, and that is all I need to know.
So we are taking a step of faith by leaving everything without knowing what is to come. We have sold everything when we came here, thinking our days were going to end here.
Our thoughts are not His thoughts, and our ways are not our ways. But we trust Him, because He is God.
We have peace, and we have joy knowing we are doing His will.
So, my house is almost empty, we have sold everything :) We are selling our car and this friday will be our last day in Granada. Then, we will head up to Madrid to spend Christmas with my family. And the 29th we will take a flight back to Madison, Alabama, to our home church.
I am adding a link to our ministry web page in case you want to read our prayer letter.
So here it is, what it has been going on with us the last couple of months ;).
Pray for us. My husband will be looking for a secular job.
And yes, I am a little sad because I am leaving Spain, but also so excited because I know this is God´s will. I am so glad He loves me.
To God be the glory, great things He has done!
I have things I have done, a birthday, a hair cut ;).
I have things God is doing. Much teaching I would love to write about to keep it record somewhere.
Lots of photos to share.
But still, never seem to get in here for long enough to do it.
But there is something important that I have to share. There is a huge ministry change that is is about to take place. And I must, and want, share it with all of you.
God is redirecting our ministry and is closing doors for us in Spain.
Do you know with your children. Sometimes, they are frustrating, sometimes they don´t listen, sometimes they even make you angry. But you love them the same right? You don´t want to leave them. You want to love them, you want to share with them, you want to spend time with them, you want to teach them. And you want to see them grow. Don´t you?
That is how I feel with the people in Spain. They are hard hearted. They don´t want to listen. They want to do it their way. But I still love them. I still have a burden for them. I want to see them save, and I want to see them grow. They are my people, and I was once just like them. I wanted to spend my life here telling them about Christ, no matter the cost.
Yeah, sure, I would complain some. But who doesn´t do that with the ones they love the most.
But a few months back, not too many, my husband and I were talking about things we could do, new ministries we could start, different approaches we could take. Excited was building up, there was so much to prepare, so much to plan, so much to do.
While he (my husband) was praying one day, he was begging God to show him of the great things He was going to do. Begging Him to show Him what to do next, what to do first, and making sure His plans were our plans. He was fasting and praying. God took him to Jeremiah, to a chapter where God talks about the people. Talking about how people had turn their ears because they didn´t want to hear, they had turn their hearts into diamond. Hard as it could be. God showed my husband we were done with the work He brought us to do in Granada and that He wasn´t going to start a church with us here (not that He wasn´t going to start a church, just that He wasn´t going to do it with us). We were done here.
Now, I would love to say that we didn´t fight, but we did. We didn´t want to leave, but God´s guiadance is so clear. If we were to stay, we were going to do it alone.
So we prayed. About helping other missionaries in Spain. About starting some other place in Spain. But no was the answer.
So we prayed. About another country, about another kind of ministry. But no was the answer.
So finally my husband felt God clearly telling us to go back. Why? I don´t know, but I know He knows why, and that is all I need to know.
So we are taking a step of faith by leaving everything without knowing what is to come. We have sold everything when we came here, thinking our days were going to end here.
Our thoughts are not His thoughts, and our ways are not our ways. But we trust Him, because He is God.
We have peace, and we have joy knowing we are doing His will.
So, my house is almost empty, we have sold everything :) We are selling our car and this friday will be our last day in Granada. Then, we will head up to Madrid to spend Christmas with my family. And the 29th we will take a flight back to Madison, Alabama, to our home church.
I am adding a link to our ministry web page in case you want to read our prayer letter.
So here it is, what it has been going on with us the last couple of months ;).
Pray for us. My husband will be looking for a secular job.
And yes, I am a little sad because I am leaving Spain, but also so excited because I know this is God´s will. I am so glad He loves me.
To God be the glory, great things He has done!
12/11/2009
Merry Christmas everyone!
Hello everyone,
I know I haven´t been in here much the last several weeks, and having been able to visit you over at your "place".
The last few weeks have been full with much prayer and planning. God is bringing many changes to our lives, big ones too. I will be able, hopefully, to get in here next week and share it with you.
Until then, I wanted to wish you a blessed Merry CHRISTmas. May God bless you greatly this holiday season and the next coming year.
We serve a great God!
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