So many beautiful, compassionate prayer warriors are waiting right now, to hear the results of Dave’s latest cancer scan. We received the good news last night, but first needed to share with our children and family members. We’re still processing everything ourselves! Thank you for your prayers, encouragement, support, and compassion. We’re so grateful!

Last night at 6 p.m., we received the call:

Dave says, “Hello?”

“Hi!” says our oncologist. I can hear him over the line. He jovially says, “Get the ol’ lady on the phone!” Wait. What? Who talks like that if it’s bad news?

“I’m here!” I say, as I scoot closer to Dave.

“Okay,” says the oncologist. “We’re looking at your scan, and we have good news!”

We’ve been holding on to faith! Dave and I are sitting in the bed, quiet. I’m holding my breath, so I don’t miss anything. The oncologist and his right hand man are both there, looking at the scan, and they begin to explain some things. It’s a lot, so it’s hard to remember it all, but Dave and I put together the pieces that each of us remember.

“There are less tumors. Some that were there are gone. Others have shrunk in size.” He mentions one in particular, that had gone down to nine millimeters. “Tumors that were previously in the pelvic area are gone. Previous intestinal blockage is now clear.” What? Unbelievable! Yet, not…There’s more info. “No bowel blockage…”

I’m trying to keep up. We ask questions, “Is it better than the first scan; the one before the last sorrowful scan when the results were much worse?”

The answer: “Definitely.”

We’ll receive more details when we go in for the follow up appointment. It’s too much to go over on the phone. But I’m satisfied; it’s a joyful report. We’re both kind of in shock.

The doctors sound kind of shocked too. Only a month ago, we were told that the treatment is just to buy time and provide quality of life. We’ve understood this, aware that if chemo is just going to be full of pain and suffering; is it worth it? We don’t think so. We’ve been seeking God with everything we’ve got, and the healing service experience has given us the most hope we’ve had in a long time; along with a determination to grow our faith, push through, and trust God no matter what.

The oncologist says, “So the treatment is working.”

That’s not good enough for me, so I blurt out, “It’s GOD! We went to a healing service… hundreds of people are praying…”

And then Dave comes out with it, “I’ve been taking Fen Ben.

The oncologist says, “What’s that?”

So we explain that it’s an alternative therapy, Fenbendazole, which is actually antiparasitic for canines, which is providing positive results for people with cancer; shrinking their cancer tumors. Our oncologist doesn’t judge us for taking it. He says “I just have to see if there are any interactions with the chemo. Maybe that’s why your white blood cell count is low.”

But I say, “No, I don’t think so; because Dave has actually been taking it a lot longer, for several months. If anything, it can have an effect on the liver enzymes, but that blood work all came back excellent. We believe it’s the chemo causing the low white blood cell count.”

He pauses, and checks the past bloodwork, and confirms. “You’re right.” We remind him that because of the low white blood cell count, Dave didn’t even do chemo this month at all. The oncologist’s partner, who is on the phone call, had agreed it would be a good idea for Dave to take a break. We tell the doctors that Dave feels worse on chemo. The oncologist mentions we can do a low-dose version, with less side effects, starting in December. He says, “We want good quality of life.”

“GOD is doing this,” I say. I’m torn about doing the chemo. I don’t care who thinks I’m crazy. I know deep in my spirit and soul, that God is doing the healing through Jesus. I realize I’m planting seeds, right now, during this call. I’m thankful for the medical help, but I will give God all the glory for any healing.

Our oncologist is listening. He’s good at it. He has prayed for Dave. We’ve given him a card about our story and Strength Through Jesus t-shirt line. He even told us to put the cards in the Cancer Center lobby, which was encouraging. He has seen miracles in his practice, and I don’t think he thinks we are crazy. He’s paying attention. He says, “But, don’t just stop the therapy… We can do a very low dose of the same new chemo with less side effects, and really push deep into getting that remission.” Again he says, “We want good quality of life.” That’s what we want too.

Remission. He’s mentioned that beautiful word that means no evidence of cancer, when cancer patients get to “ring the bell” in celebration of being done with chemo therapy. It doesn’t even dawn on me until later, that the word remission even came up. Dave doesn’t even remember it being said. But I do.

When our oncologist says he doesn’t want us to just stop the chemo therapy, there’s a bit of concern in his voice. We know God can heal Dave without chemo or Fen Ben. He’s doing it right now. But we both immediately say, “We won’t. We won’t stop it; we’re a team.” And we are. We’re a team, working together to give Dave the best quality of life. We are comfortable with a lesser aggressive form of chemo that Dave can handle. We believe that God uses medical science, as well as outright miraculous healing. We also believe God can, and is, healing Dave without any of it. So, it’s not our “fall back”or “just in case.”

As Dave continues to heal, we are living one day at a time. The low dose chemo is currently part of God’s plan. Part of the journey is to connect more with others going through chemo, because Dave knows how it feels. It’s a chance to be a light for Jesus; for other patients, and nurses, and doctors. Others who are taking chemo, or alternative treatments, can find hope in Jesus, just like us. During our journey, we hope to lead the lost to Jesus, The Great Physician, who can do miracles for all of us. We also want to give others hope, and encourage them to grow their faith in Jesus as they walk along life’s difficult journey, just as we are doing.

Partial remission is where we are, and I knew in my heart it would be this way. My heart is filled with joy and humble gratitude. Instantaneous healing is exciting, but often when people get a quick healing, they go back to their lives as they were before… and put Jesus on the back burner. We don’t want that. The silver lining is that God has been growing our faith in Jesus, in an elevated way, as he continues to shrink Dave’s tumors!

As we cling to Him, God works in us and teaches us things during the healing process. There’s a parallel to other things in our lives with our family, friends, and even strangers. Dave was getting ready to enter hospice only a couple months ago. If we can trust God with our very lives, knowing Jesus can heal us on the brink of death; then God can surely take care of us and provide help and healing for all the other seemingly impossible situations which come up in our lives. This slower healing parallels to other things in our lives that need time, healing, and the tender loving touch of Jesus. We are experiencing joy about the here and now, and the added joy of knowing we can be together during the holidays. We can celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas, knowing that healing is taking place.

Before we hang up the phone, our oncologist says to Dave, “The Lord still has some work for you to do here! You’ve got TIME!”

We’re still processing it all. We will take it day by day, and praise God for every single moment he allows us to be together and share Jesus. We thank you for continued prayers for healing, for Dave, and our family. We are incredibly grateful for our loved ones and our brothers and sisters in Christ, who have been with us every step of the way in this cancer journey. Our prayers go out to you, for those battling cancer, and the people who love them. May God bless and heal you, in Jesus’ name. If you don’t know Jesus; you are in greater need of healing than Dave. We love you; and we hope to plant a mustard seed, so you, too; will join the Kingdom of God and experience His miracles on earth and in Heaven!

All of our links to our journey with cancer are below, in blue text, in order. I invite you to share our journey with cancer and Christ from the beginning, and to continue following at The Silver Lining blog for more updates. You can also search “Dave’s Testimony” or “cancer” on the home page.

The Silver Lining Ministry Facebook Page. Join us!

Strength Through Jesus Apparel: t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, and more. (We started this during Dave’s cancer to spread a message of hope. We make a small profit which helps our family on disability. We give 10% of every purchase to St. Jude’s, which pays for healthcare for families of children battling cancer.)

We’ve had a miracle healing. Here are all of our links describing the trials and traumas we’ve endured, along with the hope, faith, and joy. Be encouraged. Look UP! Jesus is there!

How to Invite Jesus into Your Heart and Receive Eternal life! If you accept Jesus as a result of Dave’s testimony; please let us know by commenting, so we can pray for you, and rejoice in having a new brother or sister in Christ!

Our cancer journey with Christ:

4/10 Dave’s Testimony: My Husband has Deadly Cancer… Palm Sunday Miracles

4/13 Dave’s Testimony: Coming Home… Chemo for Christ

4/17 Dave’s Testimony: Roller Coaster… Easter Joys in Fighting Cancer

4/21 Dave’s Testimony: Prayers Weave a Greater Web than Cancer… Chemo Time

4/25 Dave’s Testimony: Quilt of Valor… Covering Chemo with Prayers

5/5 Dave’s Testimony: God Gave Us Premature Miracle Twins 23 Years Ago… a poem

5/6 Dave’s Testimony: Hurricane Cancer Rages in the Eye of the Storm, Yet Blessings Rain Down

5/8 Dave’s Testimony: Mother’s Day… Mothers Who Love When Your Husband Has Cancer

5/16 Dave’s Testimony: Clouds, Cancer, Christ: God is in Control!

5/21 Dave’s Testimony: A Birthday of Shared Gifts… Best Days Since Chemo!

5/30 Dave’s Testimony: Memorial Day, Murph Challenge to Cancer… A Different Kind of War

6/3 Dave’s Testimony: Cancer, Chemo, Clots, Credit, and Chaotic Car Conversations

6/19 Dave’s Testimony: Dad has Cancer (Next Day is Chemo) Happy Father’s Day!!!

7/4 Dave’s Testimony: Chemo Rage Fireworks B4 Celebrating 4th of July!

7/19 Dave’s Testimony: Cancer, Covid, Camp, and a New Puppy! That’s How We Roll!

7/29 Dave’s Testimony: Sorrowful Cancer Scan Results and Strength Through Jesus Tee Shirts

8/17 Dave’s Testimony: Cancer Racer Crashes… Pit Stop Prayer Team Sets in Motion more NASCAR Laps to Go!

8/31 Dave’s Testimony: Covid, Cancer, Chemo, and a Dizzy Fall… Surviving with Great Love from Family and Friends

10/10 Dave’s Testimony: Terminal Cancer War… Our Soldier’s Personal Battle of Life or Death

11/6 Dave’s Testimony: Healing Service Offers Hopeful Miracles and Peace about Living with Terminal Cancer