It is with overwhelming unspeaking joy I write tonight as I have recently seen the outpouring of God's grace and mercy in our lives evidenced by the love and financial contributions given to us by our family and friends. Thank you to each one involved. I am still in tears nearly 4 hours after the event. God is so good. We sit here in the hospital in the depths of suffering, and on the outside, thousands of people are functioning and working on our behalf, serving our Lord so that His perfect plans can be fulfilled in our lives. Our suffering is made bearable with knowledge of God's grace, and with the sight and experience of absolute Chistlike love from our family and friends.
Lacey's doctor changed her over to pain meds by mouth today in hopes of getting her on the road to going home. She was more than upset this morning when the doctor came by and informed her that she wasn't ready for home. She has since accepted that there are more days to be spent here and that we must continue on. She had a fair day considering that some of the IV meds for pain were withheld and the meds by mouth didn't seem to control the pain quite as well. The doctor also encouraged Lacey to get up and walk the halls (which is truly unheard of after 16 days of pancreatic spasms - Lacey calls them "charlie horses in her pancreas") but none the less, with hopes of convincing the docs to let her out of here, she decided this afternoon that she would walk pushing Elyse in the stroller with me holding her up and her mother pushing the IV pole. Lacey didn't want 10 or 12 feet, she wanted to go the nursing station to prove to the nurses that she could. She successfully made it, with obvious signs of pain, and as we returned back the door of our room, she collapsed into my arms. I lifted her entire body and put her in bed and she regained consciousness. Her low blood pressure and weakness caused her to pass out, but she did walk! She is determined to go home and her attitude and emotional state has been slightly better this evening, praise God. He continues to strengthen her.
I sat at her bedside after the amazing benefit supper and I talked and she listened. I told her of all the people, named specific names, and we discuss how humbling it was to have such support from so many dear people. We cried and cried together, both thanking God for his blessings and begging God for his mercy. We are tired, our families are tired, and even our church families are tired because this has been a group effort. However, God has not lost control, God is not tired, God is not waiting for someone to tell him what to do - God is perfectly controlling this situation and anyone who has followed us over the past months must be able to see God's wonderful providences. We are grateful.
Sorry to be lengthy, but my heart is full and we feel so blessed. Please, please continue to pray that God would be pleased and that His purposes would be fulfilled, and that if it would glorify Him to take this pain from Lacey, that He could do so. We love each of you and our lives are being shaped by this sufferring. We are forever changed and God is to be glorified!

For those of you who know Jerry Doggett, my Christian brother and friend who now looks daily upon the face of Christ, you know the following passage was dear to him, He, while dying of brain cancer, held fast to this passage and continued to uplift his church family. This passage will always be near to me as I remember how God used Bro. Jerry, even in the very pit of his suffering:

Romans 8:38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord