Bump In The Road Update #2

Peru
Many of you know that in between blood drawing (October 1) and results getting (October 19), I took a group to Peru to work in a village there. Most people think I go to places like Machu Picchu, like the photo above. Nope. That was taken in the Inca Market in Lima, standing in front of a big photo. Maybe one day. Where I go is in the coastal desert region. It looks a lot different.

It is beautiful in its own right, and the people are great! I have many friends there. For those of you that like fall weather, the temps pretty well match our October-in-Augusta temps.

Health Bump
The results from the earlier blood draw were not definitive enough, but today the good folks at Emory took plenty of samples and my wife and I had a good conversation with the doctor and nurses. Any of you who have hit a major bump in the medical road know that tests often beget tests. So, our next step is a PET scan as soon as we can get it scheduled. Then, if the blood work and the scan leads in this direction, we’ll add a couple of more medications to what I am taking now. For now we wait.

I will keep you posted here. If you just do email, you can subscribe to the blog. If you do Facebook, I will put links to blog posts there.

Prayers are greatly needed and appreciated.

A Bump In The Road

One thing you cannot miss as you travel by road in Peru are the speed bumps. There are speed bumps in the city usually about twenty or thirty feet from a stop sign. That is wise. Hardly anyone would stop for a stop sign, but they will slow down for a speed bump, because new tires and suspension repairs are expensive.

Even out of the large cities, speed bumps are employed effectively on rural roads. As you drive through small villages and settlements, you should slow down. The speed bumps help you, or effectively remind you if you forget. Making a speed bump in a dirt road is skill I do not know, but Peruvians know. They are good at it. The picture is an example.

A few weeks ago I hit a speed bump regarding my fight with Multiple Myeloma. I got a call from my local oncologist who said that a few of my numbers were out of whack. This is the first time since my stem cell transplant in 2010 that I have had any concerns at all. There was concern, but it is not an emergency. I will have some tests repeated here in October and then more tests at Emory, where I had my stem cell transplant. Concerned? Yes. Freaking out? No. What good would that do anyway?

What does this mean? We don’t really know.

• The test could have been an anomaly. Pray that way please. April and I would love to get “normal” results.
• It could mean that the disease is trying to show itself again, and that they will adjust/change my medications. Nowadays, Multiple Myeloma is treated more like a chronic disease, like high blood pressure, thanks to a number of new drugs on the market.
• Of course, it could mean I am relapsing, and that would mean much more extensive treatment.

God, in His infinite wisdom is in charge. He has so blessed me with five great years since the first round. I am hoping for many more years like that.  But whatever brings Him glory and fulfills His purpose is my prayer.

For those of you who will pray, ask God to guide the doctors and all those involved to figure out exactly what is going on. My desire is to be able to continue to do what I am doing. More than that, pray that God will be honored, glorified, and known through it all.

Questions To Ask After a Mission Trip

Last week I posted some “Questions Not To Ask After A Mission Trip.” These were not “wrong,” but they were questions that would help you understand very little of what God was and is doing in that particular place. So here are a few questions that will get more to the heart of the matter. Not an exhaustive, or even the best, but a starter list.

Question to Ask Someone Who Has Returned From A Mission Trip:

What did you see God do?

What did you learn about God?




What did you learn about yourself?

How did you overcome the language barrier (if there was one)?

What did you do? Did you tell Bible stories? Have Bible studies? Participate/lead services?

What are the needs of the people that you saw?

What do you see in the future for the people in that place?

Did you sense the prayers of people back home?

How can I continue to pray for the people you met? Can you give me names? A picture?

What could I do if I went on a mission project there?

Questions NOT to Ask After a Mission Trip

Recently I read about Paul’s first mission trip. You can read about Paul's first journey in Acts 13 and 14. Paul encountered strong, violent opposition, and also saw God do amazing things! I wondered what the people back at home base would have asked when he returned. I compared it with mission trips today. I began to reflect on questions I have both asked and been asked. That gave rise to this (and next week's) post:

Questions NOT to ask after a mission trip:
1. How was your trip? Usually this elicits a one or two-word answer that tells basically nothing. The traveler did not get to share anything important, and you really learn nothing.

2. How was the travel? Most of the time people are thinking of the long hours jammed in a tourist class seat, and that can be tedious, but it is in-country travel that can be great, wonderful, scenic, or it can be uncomfortable, rough, and scary.

3. How was the food? Possible answers may include “Good,” “Different,” “Hot,” “Bad,” etc.
Truth is, there is usually something that is good (enough) to eat, and some things that are really good!

4. Did you stay healthy? Hopefully, you’ll get a simple, “Yes.” You should be prepared, however, for a negative answer accompanied by a detailed description of the gastric disturbances that are common to overseas travel, be it mission or tourist. Unless you are interested (really) in each movement (pun intended) of the colonic symphony entitled  “Traveler’s Diarrhea,” do you really want to know this?

What are some good questions to ask after a mission trip. I’ll share a few of my ideas next week.

I Can Plod

“As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.”
2 Thessalonians 3:13

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
Galatians 6:9

“I can plod,” said William Carey, the father of modern missions. “That is my only genius. I can persevere in any definite pursuit. To this I owe everything.”*

My Pastor used this quote in a message several months back. It resonated with me for two reasons. First, because these were the words of William Carey. Missionaries have to be able to plod. The easy places, where a Christian walks into a village, town, or city, and people embrace the gospel immediately are pretty much gone. Second, because I tend to be a plodder.

All of us like for life to be exciting, and to yield fast, positive, and voluminous results. But usually, it isn’t. Most of life is putting one foot in front of the other, and pressing on. If you have the attitude of a plodder, you will eventually get there.

Plodding is not piddling. Piddling is doing something with no end in mind. Plodding implies progression toward a goal, even if those steps are baby steps. It takes, as Carey noted, perseverance to be a plodder.

Don’t get discouraged! Keep plodding.



*Quoted by, Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Comforted (pp. 108–111). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.