The biggest thing is we have scheduled our annual parties! They are next week! The first one is this Tuesday, February 7 at Riley Children's Hospital in Indianapolis, IN and the second is next Friday, February 10 at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, KY.
Everything is coming together nicely for the parties. We have had a great response in terms of giving gifts for the families, financial donations, business donations, and volunteering. We had so many volunteers ask to come that we had to turn some away for infection control and policy reasons. I always hate having to make that call, but love that we have so many people who are willing to serve!
One thing that everyone can do, however, is pray like crazy! We have some specific requests:
- That God will provide enough Bibles for the parent baskets (Normally we put a special devotional Bible designed specifically for families facing chronic or life-threatening illnesses into the parent baskets, but there may be a shortage this year. Please pray that we will be able to get the Word of God into the hands of these families.)
- For our volunteers - for wisdom and discernment as they interact with the families; that the Holy Spirit would guide their words and their actions so that they are able to share the love of Christ and serve in a way that reflects Him
- For the parents - for peace, comfort, hope, encouragement, and strength.
- For the siblings - for peace, comfort, hope, encouragement, and strength.
- For the patients - for peace, comfort, hope, encouragement, courage, and complete earthly healing.
- For all involved in the medical care of these children - for wisdom, guidance, discernment, compassion, and peace.
- That all who encounter Break the Grey in some way will be blessed by the love and hope of Jesus Christ.
- That God would continue to open doors and bless us with opportunities to share the hope, comfort, healing, peace, and encouragment of Jesus Christ with these families
- That any and all glory, honor, and praise attributed to Break the Grey would be God's and God's alone.
I think those are our specific and immediate prayer requests for our parties. Please join us in covering this event in prayer!
In other ministry news, one of our volunteers came across a great website with resources for siblings! We've had a request recently for resources for siblings of kids with cancer or other life-altering illnesses and we went on a hunt. We found a great website with book reviews and websites for siblings and their families. Check it out here. We hope that this provides some added coping for our families. If you end up using any of these resources, please let us know! We'd love to know what you think!
Lastly, we received some sad news today. I met Alex Smith and his family several years ago when I was going through treatment for immune deficiency. Alex was diagnosed with a primary immune deficiency disease (PIDD) in January 2007 at age 11 - only a couple months after I was diagnosed in November 2006 at age 17. Alex went through IVIG and then switched to subcutaneous IgG. He finished his treatment and began trialing off May/June 2011. Unfortunately, his most recent blood work came back yesterday and his family received some tough news: Alex, now 16-years-old, has relapsed and he must once again begin replacement therapy. He and his family are just waiting on insurance to approve it. To add insult to injury, they were told that his disease has progressed into common variable immune deficiency, which is typically an incurable, chronic immune system defect. Please pray for him and his family as they absorb the news. His mom, Laura, had this to say:
"We received some pretty crappy news yesterday. Alex's PIDD has not been cured. He officially has CVID now. He needs to restart Gammaglobulin infusions as soon as Insurance approves them. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of the brand we want to use. While donating won't help his short term, it will help save the lives of many people, and could help him remain healthy in the future.
1) If you are able, can you please donate plasma?
2) Will you pray for the paperwork to go through quickly?
3) Will you say a prayer that he feels better quickly?
4) Will you also pray that he does not get behind in school?
Thanks friends! We just want him to feel like his old self again."
1) If you are able, can you please donate plasma?
2) Will you pray for the paperwork to go through quickly?
3) Will you say a prayer that he feels better quickly?
4) Will you also pray that he does not get behind in school?
Thanks friends! We just want him to feel like his old self again."
Their whole family is absorbing this challenge with grace and an incredible faith in Jesus, but it is still hard (speaking as someone who went through immune deficiency treatment, came off-treatment, and then relapsed). Please pray for their family.
As always, thanks for your support! Please continue to pray for our ministry - for our upcoming parties and for our families. Thanks!
Hoping, Believing, and Never Giving up,
Sarah
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