Thank you Father for your help this week through the struggles of life. Thank you for meeting us where we are at. Thank you all for your continued love, prayers and support.

This week was much the same as last. The pain in Theresa’s left shoulder dominates each day. She was to get an injection in the joint last Monday, but had competing appointments and so had to move it to this Monday. Though come to find out, there really wasn’t competing appointments, I just put an appointment on the wrong day. I felt so bad. She has gotten a few deep tissue massages that help some, and is having to take pain meds regularly. She finds the massages help a little in increasing the motion and temporarily with pain. She is really hoping the joint injection Monday will calm the pain. This week also she became pretty fatigued. She has had this off and on over her course of treatment when she gets profoundly fatigue. Her body feels weighed down with lead and she feels she can sleep for days. This usually comes after her treatments but can also come out of the blue. It hit her this weekend, so she has slept a good amount, which she has needed since the shoulder pain makes it difficult for her to sleep. As you can guess chronic pain and the loss of health can be very trying. Yet Theresa has found that the power to persist though it is outlook or mindset. It is easy to get discouraged, give up and become negative when you are presented with curveballs like this. But Christ offers so much more. He walks with us and helps us through these times and gives us hope. The new testament implores us to think about what is good and profitable, to hope all things, to pray without ceasing, to give thanks in all things, to have a humble and grateful heart, claiming His lovingkindness and faithfulness to see us through these times. And when you train yourself with this mindset, you realize that His words are more than just on paper, but actually can be counted on to live by and are True.

John is such a beautiful book. He gives us a lengthy intimate view of Christ’s teaching to the disciples in the upper room before fulfilling his hour. He finished His prayer in Chapter 17 by calling God loving and righteous despite knowing His unjust suffering would begin in a few short hours. He could do this because He knew the Father intimately. He knew his Father, he knew he would see him through. He gives us the same confidence, that allows us to accept what ever comes our way and trust He will be there with us in power and grace.

One of my commentaries, had this quote from Ryle from an early part of the prayer recorded in John 17. “The crucifixion brought glory to the Father. It glorified His wisdom, faithfulness, holiness, and love. It showed Him wise, in providing a plan whereby He could be just, and yet the justifier of the ungodly. It showed Him faithful in keeping His promise, that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head. It showed Him holy, in requiring His law’s demands to be satisfied by our great Substitute. It showed Him loving, in providing such a Mediator, such a redeemer, and such a Friend for sinful man as His co-eternal Son. The crucifixion brought glory to the Son. It glorified His compassion, His patience, and His power. It showed Him most compassionate, in dying for us, suffering in our stead, allowing Himself to be counted sin and a curse for us, and buying our redemption with the price of His own blood. It showed Him most patient, in not dying the common death of most men, but in willingly submitting to such pains and unknown agonies as no mind can conceive, when with a word He could have summoned His Father’s angels, and been set free. It showed Him most powerful, in bearing the weight of all transgressions of the world, and vanquishing Satan, and despoiling him of his prey.”

Thank you Lord! May you all have a blessed Thanksgiving as we have so much to be thankful for. Continue to keep Theresa in your prayers. Pray that the joint injection works beyond expectation. Thank you for supporting us in prayer.