Well round 3 of chemo is HISTORY!!! It has gotten a little tougher to take, but it's understandable with all that has gone through my body already. This round made me pretty sick, it really upset me and messed with my body in a lot of different ways. I know that by the grace of God, I will get through this. Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for all the friends I've got. Anytime I start to feel down, I receive a letter or someone comes by and cheers me up! Last week was tough on the Hardin family and PocoLoco Ministries lost a great friend in Jay Hardin. It is now our turn to uplift the Hardin family. They are good friends of ours from Junction. Jay was truly one of my best friends and we must continue to pray for Becky, his wife, James, his son, LaVerne, his mother, and Hardy and his family. God bless you Hardin family and comfort you during this time.
The other day some friends of ours came over and brought us some homemade lasagna. They froze it for us and left us instructions on how to heat it up and get the best taste out of it. Believe me, it was very tasty! As long as my wife was home to heat it up for me, it was perfect. One day she was gone and I got hungry. I remembered the lasagna that was in the refrigerator just waiting for me. All I had to do was microvave it and I would be in cheese nirvana...Nobody was around so I snuck in the kitchen and warmed up some of this tasty treat, but just enough for me. I was in a bit of a hurry since something was on TV that needed an audience. Apparently, I didn't heat it up long enough, because as soon as I dove into the first bite, it was very hard and cold! I'm not gonna say it ruined my appetite, but it did make me gag a little and think twice about putting a mouthful of food without testing it first! What should have been one of the best tastes I've ever experienced turned out to be one of the most unforgettable experiences I've ever had.
I was quickly reminded of the verse in Revelation 3:16, that says, "because you are neither hot or cold, I will spit you out of my mouth..." (my paraphrase). Did you know that God hates a "fencewalker", someone who doesn't commit to serving him completely. Some of us want to serve Him, but only on sundays and wednesdays, or only when we're around certain people. God wants us to be faithful to Him all the time. 24/7/365! I want to challenge all of us this week to serve God faithfully all the time. It basically comes down to this..."If you ain't radical...you ain't spit..."

Thanks Cindy Hardin for the lasgna and the inspiration for this devotion!

Tony

Weekly devo...

Well it's finally here. I'm talking about football season of course! This last week was great to have that cooler weather and enjoy some football. I feel like I need to share a story here to let you know where I'm coming from:
Day1 - Per his daily ritual, Satan walks through his domain to see that everyone is sufficiently miserable. As usual, he pauses to take special pleasure in the pain and agony displayed by the new arrivals. However, on this particular day he spots a lanky Texan smiling and looking as though he's at a picnic. "Hey you!", satan yells, "the temperature in here is a constant 95 degrees and the humidity is 90%! You're supposed to be miserable!" "Maybe so, but it feels just like Houston in June to me. I had a ball on those hot summer nights at Gilley's", says the Texan. Miffed, satan decides to adjust the temperature up 100 degrees and the humidity to 95%.

Day2 - On his daily stroll, satan notices everyone appears exceptionally miserable today. He remembers the smiling Texan and decides to see how he's faring today. To his surprise, the Texan has unbuttoned a couple of buttons on his shirt, but he still looks happy and carefree. Satan cries out, "Hey Tex, what are you smiling about now?" The Texan replies, "well today reminds me of those Willie Nelson 4th of July picnics. Boy those were some great parties. This really irritated satan, who promptly turns the temperature up to 110 degrees and the humidity up to 100%.

Day3 - Satan dispenses with his daily stroll and goes straight to the region of hell where he would locate the Texan. Sure enough, he finds the Texan, shirt off, with huge grin on his face. "Okay, so what is it this time?" Satan asks. "Well, it's just like Dallas in August. Man we had some fine times watching the Cowboys on Sunday afternoons." Irate, satan determines to put an end to this charade. He sets the terperature down to zero degrees with a 25 mile per hour wind.

Later that day, he decides to check back on that fool hardy Texan. He finds him huddled and shivering...lips blue, arms folded, snow in his hair and icicles hanging from his mustache. But bigger than Dallas, there he was laughing out loud and cheering. "I GIVE UP!" declared satan. "What in blue blazes could you find to be happy about now?"

The Texan replied, "Well, this can only mean one thing...The Aggies have finally won a National Championship!" Gig'em Ags!

Sorry, it's been a rough day and I needed to smile about something. This Texan found a way to enjoy any situation and give satan fits. I know it's only a joke, but when was the last time you made satan throw a fit? When was the last time you made satan look your way? Let's take whatever life throws at us this week and make the best of it. Psalm 118:24, says, "This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." God bless...

Tony

From the other side...

Hey guys this week I thought it would be neat to let my wife, Mindy, post some of her thoughts about what's going on around here. As far as my health goes this week we have a Dr.'s appointment in Abilene. This will be a regular check up. This weekend has been really good! I have been outside tinkering and making myself really tired. I also did a few jobs! I still have no voice, but I am feeling pretty good all things considered...Let's pray that I have a good report this week, I will post as soon as I know something...Now I'll turn it over to my wife.

Tony

Have you ever heard anyone say, "don't pray for patience unless you're prepared for God to allow you to go through circumstances that require much patience?"
Well, lately during our evening family devo we had been asking God to show us how to love others the way He loves us. We want to glorify God in all that we do. Since we have been in many hospitals and doctor's offices lately, I remind our girls of this before we go inside the building. The last couple of weeks I feel that God has really been working overtime on this transformation in my life. We have been confronted with some of the grupiest and most incompassionate people I have ever had the privilege of meeting. They have been nurses and volunteers which is sad because of how many hurting people they encounter. So after I bite my tongue and I respond nicely, I pray for them. The truth is they don't know all the details of our family's condition, nor do I know the details of their lives. Tony and I have decided that if this is the mission that God has planned for our family then we will faithfully try to reach as many people for Him as possible! We have in no way desired this broken road set before us, but we want to be better "ambassadors for Christ" as we travel to the "moutain top". Our young girls are not always the most welcomed guests in the medical facilities where we are sent, but they can make the hardest faces melt to smiles. Selah will remind us at night to pray for people we have seen or met at the doctor's office. This isn't really my first choice for a classroom, but our visits have definately increased our prayer life!
The next time you get grumpy service, remember you don't know what may have broken that person's spirit or heart. Don't react, take it personally and growl back, but rather lift them to God in prayer. I know it's not always the easy choice, but it will help your spirit too. Tony has a plaque in his office that reads, "Be patient God isn't finished with me yet". Humorous? Yes! Honest about all of God's children? Most definately!
May God bless you all this week with people that increase your prayer life!

"This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'they are my people', and they will say, 'The Lord is our God'."

Thanks,
Mindy
Zechariah 13:9

Another update!

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! I will be brief about my health this week mainly because I don't feel too great, but I felt bad I had not updated you on the situation so that you will know how you can pray this week. Today is Thursday and round 2 of chemo is complete. This round was very tough and I know it's gonna get tougher! My voice is still gone and this is really hard on me. I went to Abilene for a check up last thursday or so I thought, they admitted me and went ahead and did round 2, out of nowhere! I was not really mentally prepared as strange as that sounds. I have been home a couple of days but I haven't got back to 100% yet. I'm sure it will take some time. I am praying that God will show me something good that chemo did this time around in three days. Last time I was able to start eating after three days so I'm really looking forward to what He has in store for me this time.
Speaking of praying, I tend to do quite a bit of that these days. I was looking at Jesus praying and saw something interesting. Some of you may already know this, but this is what God has revealed to me this week. I always try to recite the Lord's Prayer when I'm not feeling well. This week while in the hospital, God led me to the "real" Lord's Prayer. It is found in John 17. Here we find Jesus praying in the Garden right before He's crucified. In Matthew, we find the Lord's model Prayer, but here we see Jesus hard at work, praying. I discovered that this chapter is broken in four parts. Please understand this is my version of it and it is not written in stone.
In John 17:1-5 Jesus prays for Himself
John 17:6-19 He prays for the 11 disciples that were still with Him
John 17:20-26 He prays for all believers that were still to come. Can you believe that? Jesus was praying for me and you at the Garden before He was crucified!
Then in John 17:20-26 He prays for the unity of the church.
What a great thought...Right before Jesus was arrested and beaten and crucified He took time out and remembered to pray for us! My mind is not big enough to fathom this concept, but then again I've never been known to be the "sharpest" tool in the shed...God bless you this week. I hope we take time out of our busy lives to say a prayer for someone else even during our time of crisis...

Tony

P.S. In case you're wondering what my family does while I'm in chemo for four days. My wife took the girls to the Children's Museum in Abilene. It was inexpensive and as you can see they had a blast. We highly recommend this as a family event. I also ask that you notice the question that I have posted this week. I thought it was a pretty tough one...

Well here we go off to another great week! Just a quick note about my health and then a short devo. As far as my health goes, this has been an exciting week. Lots has happened since I last posted, the two major things are this last wednesday I had a feeding tube put in. I am eating fine, but my Dr. seemed to think it would be a good idea since we don't know what the future holds and I was losing weight pretty quick. Thank God I have not had to use it and my appetite has been pretty good. My wife made my favorite tater tot casserole and I ate the whole thing by myself over the last few days! That was exciting! Another unexpected event that has occurred is that God has decided I no longer need a voice! I now talk with a speech impediment. If you call my phone and I don't answer this is why. I am now talking with a very heavy tongue and I am very difficult to understand. My daughters think it's hilarious when I try to discipline them, but I guess they get their warped sense of humor from their mom...
Again, I cannot tell you how overwhelmed we have been by the love we have received in so many different forms! I am feeling really good and I am really missing being around students and preaching. Since I cannot really preach a vocal message, I have a feeling I will be posting a little more regularly. I have a Dr.'s appointment this coming thursday in Abilene. I covet your prayers. I guess they will tell us when we do our next round of chemo.

Isaiah 53:5, my paraphrase says, "by his stripes I am healed..."
Since I have been diagnosed, again, I have really had an encounter with God and we have been talking about this situation. I thought about it the other day, about the difference in my relationship with God now, and my relationship b.c. (before cancer). I love to drink Starbuck's coffee, as some of you may already know...(hee hee). There's nothing like sipping on a Venti 2% cappacino with sugar, wet! Now some of you know exactly what I'm talking about. Others have not yet seen the light to know what exactly this is. This is basically 20oz. of "heaven of earth". If you think you can handle it, you can eat a Reese's Peanut Butter cup with it, and you will be a changed person! It is the sweetest, most tasty treat on this side of heaven! I am sitting here drooling on the keyboard as I type this because we do not have a Starbuck's here in Brady. I love Starbucks and they have their own lingo when you order in there. They try to be responsible to the coffee growers and the enviroment and often feature stories about who grew your coffee beans and what part of the world it was grown. My true encounter with Starbuck's came the first time I pressed my lips to that cup! It's like time stood still. That was my first encounter with Starbuck's. Before this encounter I could only talk and imagine what Starbuck's was like. After I had the first taste though, then it became an encounter! I now feel like the hand of God has touched me. I have had that encounter with God. That's what's different. Many of us can talk the Christian lingo. We can wear the Christian clothes. We know the Sunday School answers, and we can quote scripture with the best of them, but we have never felt the hand of God.
Let me encourage you to check yourself right now. Where are you and where is God? Are you and God one right now? John 3:30, says, "I must decrease and He must increase..." Let's stop talking and start walking! I pray that we all have an encounter with God this week that is obvious to all...God Bless your socks off!

Tony

Change...

Time really seems to get away from me these days and the funny thing is I don't know why. All I really do anymore is sleep! Let me see if I can get everyone caught up as to what's going on in our world. I have always been a man who thanks God for everything, but here lately some things have been tough to accept. I guess since we last visited lots has happened around here. I have started chemotherapy again! Not very excited about it, but it's happening. Praise God we got through the 1st round with very little excitement. I am very tired and sleep all the time, but Mindy says that's nothing new! I try to work when I can, but the heat is not good for me and I have been advised not be around large groups of people. I can have visitors, but sanitizer is a must. I am doing my treatments in Abilene and it is working out ok. At time's I'm not a happy camper, but then I remember that I'm there as a representative of Christ. I don't know how others treat those nurses, but I know when they see my Bible; they're watching ME. I do my best to be a representative of Jesus in ALL situations. I have started doing a little better now that I'm at home, but often put on a strong face for my girls and remember Philippians 4:13, " I can do all things through Christ who strenthens me..." All of a sudden this isn't just a T-shirt logo anymore. I know that you want to know what you can do for us to help us. I am going to list some things people have done, but don't expect you to do the same, however I want to show how awesome our friends and family are, I will not name names. Someone has finally bought our car from us, which is one less payment we have! Praise God!Someone else in our family paid our utility bill last month! I am not a person who accepts gifts very easy, but God has really taught me humility here lately! While I had treatments in Abilene, my wife and girls stayed at the League house which is $35 a night, the first morning my wife went down they told her it was paid in full for as many nights as we needed it! God is so good! I have found out that I don't have wealthy friends, but we have FRIENDS. I am writing this through tears, because God's love is so great! It is so awesome to receive cards and letters, they really lift us up. Please continue to pray for my Awesome wife, I don't know how I would function without her. Keep praying for healing, because I know regardless of what doctor's think, I know who the Great Physcian is...God Bless you to all my friends and I will write more later, sorry if I rambled.

Tony

And we're back...

Wow, it seems as though it's been forever since I've done this. Let me tell you it feels really good to be doing this right now! As some of you know I haven't typed in a month, let me explain why. I have been a very sick little man! Since my last devo, I have lost 18 lbs. That's not a good thing, I was not trying to lose weight. As you all know I have already had one bout with cancer in my throat. I began feeling sick about two weeks ago, but just kept trying to move on. Last thursday my world nearly came to an end. I had already been to see the doctor and had been diagnosed with pneumonia. I came home with an antibiotic, after three days of not eating and still feeling really bad, I developed a cough that would make me pass out. I knew that wasn't a good thing. I finally had enough and asked my wife to take me back to the doctor. I knew I didn't have the strength to get to Fredericksburg so off we went to Brownwood ER.. We arrived at noon, (so I'm told) and they began to run tests on me. I was admitted and spent the night in Brownwood. The next morning is when all hell broke loose! Friday Morning they came in and said I had fluid around my heart that was not supposed to be there and it needed to be relieved, but they couldn't do that there. They would need to send me elsewhere. They sent me to Abilene Regional where I would spend the next week. They did a procedure on me to remove all the fluid and check the fluid to see if maybe my cancer was back. I am now recovering from that procedure and we're still not certain on results from that fluid. It seems as though I am starting to ramble so I will stop for now. I just wanted to update all our prayer warriors and let you all know that I have seen too many miracles to count in the last couple of weeks to mention. I will be mentioning some of them as time goes by! Thank you for your prayers and let's keep it up! I didn't post a picture of myself this week because I don't think you all would recognize me. I am down to 120lbs.
God Bless

Tony