Be brave, trust God

Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and through the length of my days the house of the Lord [and His presence] shall be my dwelling place.  Psalm 23:6 AMP

The other day we were looking through each child's box of "special things". In Victoria's box we found the invitation to her Dedication when she was a baby. Psalm 23:6 was the scripture God had given us to put on the invitation. What truth this scripture has been in her short life so far! God's goodness, mercy and unfailing love has been so evident in her life. That huge scar on Victoria's head that you can see in the above photo is testimony to God's unfailing love for her, an unfailing love He has for all His children.

Thank you to everyone who has been upholding Victoria and our family in prayer as we draw closer to another scan. A couple of weeks ago Victoria was asking every day, 'What day is my scan Mum?' 'How many more sleeps until my scan Mum?' It was clear that the upcoming scan was consuming much of her thinking. So I thought, if that is what she is thinking about, lets not just ignore it, let's get it out there, 'front and centre'. So after some consultation with her teacher, I decided to make a 'Scan countdown chart', similar to a Christmas Calendar. But instead of opening windows with dates, on each day I wrote a positive activity that was going to occur on that day.

The aim was for Victoria to know for herself exactly when the scan was going to happen, but also to know that there were many positive things going on in her life too. The chart has worked wonderfully. Victoria has great delight reading it each day to see what is going to be happening.

The Loop the Lake training has certainly helped to keep my mind focused. I can highly recommend setting a physical goal to help keep the anxiety at bay. We are looking forward to a memorable family day on Sunday. Please pray for our safety as we ride.

In early February we went to a Camp Quality family camp at Toukley, about 45 minutes south of here. Once again we had a fabulous weekend, with lots of activities to participate in, surfing, tennis, water gun fights and a visit from a reptile zoo. Thank you so much to all the volunteers and people who donate to Camp Quality to make these camps become a reality, and such a necessity for families experiencing childhood cancer. Alexandra and Victoria enjoyed making and flying kites.

Saturday afternoon two Redkite social workers came to facilitate a parents discussion group. I was unsure whether emotionally I could cope with the discussion group. I couldn't stop thinking about one of the scriptures God has given me as a 'theme' for this year is 1 Chronicles 28:20,

Also David told Solomon his son, Be strong and courageous, and do it. Fear not, be not dismayed, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail or forsake you until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord.

Basically in my mind I have summed this scripture up in four words, be brave, trust God. So with that scripture top of mind I attended the group. It was confronting, and emotional, and I had to be brave to stay in the room. But I was glad that I did, as later during the camp, because I had stayed and listened, I was able to have some very fruitful conversations, leading to the deepening of relationships. 

Sunday morning at the camp Marshall, Charlotte and I headed over to the Giant Swing activity.

Charlotte was the first of the three of us to have a go. She went two thirds of the way to the top.

The Giant Swing involves being harnessed, attached to a long rope, being hauled by the 'tow team' (the other campers) to a height of 18 metres (or less if that is what you want), and then self-releasing the rope, free falling before swinging!

Marshall went second.
He went two thirds of the way to the top.

Following on with the theme of 'be brave, trust God' I went third, all the way to the top! One kind parent videoed my swing ..... click here to watch the video. While it was absolutely terrifying free falling, I was so thrilled that I did it. 

In the weeks since 'the swing' there have been a few situations I have had to face where I have thought back to the moment I pulled the cord to release the rope, and thought, Yes, I can do this, I can be brave. I can trust God to get me through this.

One of those situations involved the writing of my book about our journey with Victoria and the brain tumour. I had been progressing well with it, until I reached the part about her brain surgery (the day prior, the operation day and the post op day). It has taken me four months to get the courage to write about those three days, knowing that I would have to re-live all the emotions as I recalled the conversations, the waiting, the unknowns and the fears. Reading the 'be brave, trust God' scriptures God had given me (they are in various places around our home) and remembering how good it felt once I had let go of the rope on the Giant Swing and was swinging through the air, gave me the courage to 'push through' and write about those three days. I finished writing that segment yesterday, and now I feel so elated! I did it! Yes, it was emotional and exhausting. But having completed that section, I now feel encouraged and even excited about continuing on with the book, praying that it will inspire and encourage others.

So thank you again for everyone who is praying for Victoria and our family. The lead up to this scan has been the most peaceful ever, especially for Victoria. As you know, the scan in on Monday 9th March, and we will get the results of Tuesday 10th March. 

We continue to claim Victoria's namesake over her life - Victoria - victorious, conqueror; Grace - blessing and favour. And we declare God's goodness, mercy and unfailing love over her.  Thank you for standing with us.

Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and through the length of my days the house of the Lord [and His presence] shall be my dwelling place.  Psalm 23:6 AMP