BMT Round 2

EvanMarie's first time catching a fish this past weekend!

​Today we walk back in to the hospital for EvanMarie’s second bone marrow transplant and another month long stay. Ugh.
Please pray for strength.

Different from last time, we now know very well the road that lies ahead: the long days of chemotherapy, the quiet calm of transplant day, the difficult stretch of pain management through the third week, and the slow rebuilding and recovery that follows.

We also know that there is “the good life” on the other side of it all. Throughout the past four weeks at home, we’ve seen her come all the way back. Her belly laugh, her energy, her personality in full force. That one truth is carrying us as we walk back through these doors.

Friends, there’s no way around it, this is going to be hard. Watching a child endure this kind of thing never gets easier. But we step forward with a deeper trust than ever, one that has been forged in the fire these last seven months.

We trust because God has remained faithful to us. And present. There have been miracles! and we know he will do it again! 
As always we are incredibly grateful for the care at Texas Children’s Hospital. The people here really love our girl well, and that gives us peace as we begin again.

And as we enter this difficult next stretch, we also need you again. 

Please continue to pray intentionally for EvanMarie, for protection over her body, for relief from the pain, and for endurance through the hardest days. If you are able, consider setting aside time this week for a holy hour, a quiet moment, to bring her before the Lord and beg for complete healing. We entrust her in a special way to the intercession of Blessed Stanley Rother and the Holy Family.

Jesus, we trust in You.
Jesus, we surrender. Take care of everything. 

And we also want to make a very real, very practical ask.

As Cana and I spend long stretches at the hospital, the weight at home shifts heavily onto our children. They have been incredible, selfless, generous, and brave. But this is a lot for them.

If you are able, we humbly ask for support that helps care for them: meals, check-ins, rides, time, presence, anything that eases the burden and reminds them they are not alone. 

And because EvanMarie is still EvanMarie, if you want to make her smile, paint your nails pink and consider sending a video of encouragement (the funnier the better)!

Today, we check in on floor 8 with full hearts. Grateful. Surrendered and hopeful.

We are confident that whatever comes, we are not walking this alone. We are so very grateful for you, our community. 

Glory to God in all things.

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