CT Scan & blood test results

'Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.' (Philippians 4:6-7)

'Health is not valued till sickness comes.'(Thomas Fuller)

My CT scan result shows that my left gastric node is stable while my cancer marker readings (CA125,CA19-9,CEA)are more or less the same as 6 months ago. Since the node remains about the same size as it was first discovered in May 2011 scan, I have to go for scan only in a year's time instead of half-yearly, bearing unforeseen circumstances.

God has not finished with me yet. He still has tasks for me to do. Thanks for His amazing grace and mercy.

C T Scan

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.” (Romans 12:12)

Yesterday afternoon I went for the scheduled CT scan and cancer marker blood tests (the last ones about six months ago). Even though I had went through such scan several times (to be exact, 6 rounds), I still felt uneasy when they injected dye into my body. I could experience the warmness in my body as the dye travelled into my bloodstream, and the sensation akin to poison. I was also fearful that I might be allergic to the dye. Before the scan begun, one has to drink 3 big cups of special drink, which was another unpleasant thing.

I will get my report next Wednesday when I see my oncologist.

Passionate Love vs Compassionate Love

'Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.' (Henry Van Dyke)

Today is Valentine"s Day. What a thing to talk about passionate and companionate love.!  Rightfully love does not need a specific date to express. We ought to express love on every occasion. It should be an everyday affair. Unfortunately love is such a time-consuming activity, with busyness and worries of life take us far away from it. More and more we need to be reminded about love. This is especially true for couples who have married to each other for some years.

Studies show that couples enjoy a big happiness boasts that lasts on the average for only 2 years. It is passionate kind of love. After that, the special joy starts to wear off when familiarity breeds contempt, or in some cases, indifference to one another. Of course, other forces come to play too such as change in expectations, careers and bringing up children. When couples become so familiar to each other as a sibling, we can cease to be attractive to one another. The danger is when one starts to crave for variety and novelty. So every marriage needs to rebuild in order to strive. In reality, there is no such thing as ‘marriage made in heaven’.

All is not lost. Studies show that couples can have another chance of marriage bliss- i.e. when their children moved out of the family home. The empty nest offers abundant opportunities for them to rediscover and surprise each other. That love becomes more companionate in nature. If they failed to make use of this opportunity, that’s the end of the road for their marriage. Regrettably, many couples at this stage choose to become indifference to one another instead. To me, this is the greatest threat to any marriage. I would rather have quarrels or disagreements than to endure indifference, which is really a mental torture.

Trials

"It's wonderful what God can do with a broken heart, if He gets all the pieces." (Samuel Chadwick)

Early this week I suddenly received a message from my daughter’s tutor that she has to stop giving tuition with immediate effect as she is not feeling well and is in low spirit. We do not know exactly what happened, be it her health issues or family matters. Nevertheless, it must be quite serious to cause her to make such an abrupt decision.

Indeed, trial can come any moment in our lives and no one can run away from it. What matters most is not so much what happens to us, but how we deal with it. In fact, people make surprised and big discoveries in time of darkness in their lives.We gain the right perspective on many things when we are brought down to our knees. It is said that sometimes a dark tunnel is the shortest way round a hill.

I am particularly inspired by Mary Stevenson’s poem, “Footprints in the Sand”. Mary was born in a big family. She lost her mother at the age of six. Most of her childhood was spent during The Great Depression. When she was sixteen she entered into an abusive marriage that resulted in her having to run away and finding refuge with her infant son.Inspired by the many things that had affected her life, she wrote this beautiful poem. May those who are in distress gain strength and comfort from it in their time of need.

                          One night I dreamed I was walking
                          along the beach with the Lord.
                          Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
                          In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
                          Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, 
                          other times there were one set of footprints.
                         This bothered me because I noticed that
                         during the low periods of my life,
                         when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat,
                         I could see only one set of footprints.
                         So I said to the Lord,
                         "You promised me Lord, that if I followed you,
                         you would walk with me always.
                         But I have noticed that
                        during the most trying periods of my life,
                        there have only been one set of footprints in the sand.
                        Why, when I needed you most,
                        you have not been there for me?"
                        The Lord replied,
                        "The times when you have seen only one set of footprints,
                        is when I carried you."

 (Mary Stevenson)