and he's off!

This less than flattering photo was taken while we waited for breakfast at Cafe Patachou (swoon!) at the Indianapolis Airport this morning...but hopefully serves as a good reminder to pray for James as he heads home today. James got off without a single glitch, which we do not take for granted!

In the days and weeks to come, please pray
*for kind and compassionate flight attendants. We understand the reason to be twitchy around Asians with a cough when you're traveling internationally...but there is no need to be rude. Unfortunately, that hasn't stopped some flight attendants from displaying a total lack of courtesy. (Yes, even when they knew he was a cancer patient! But let's not make my blood boil...)

*for James to continue to feel healthy and well. May he be strengthened to take full advantage of every opportunity that he has to meet with people, enjoy good food, fellowship with local believers, and relish time with family.

*that God's Spirit would work unhindered in the hearts and lives of those who know James, those James will be speaking with...I expect James to have the opportunity to speak personally to well over 200 people in the 3 weeks he's there. May God be glorified as James shares the story He has written!

Thanks, friends! I look forward to sharing updates as I get them, and I know you join with me in joyful expectation to hear about all that God does with James' time at home.

For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To God be glory forever! Amen.

~Romans 11:36

Best Books from 2015

Do you read? And when I say, “Do you read?” I mean, do you read more than your Facebook, Twitter, And Pinterest feeds? More than emails and blogs? Like, you know, actual books? If you don’t you should, and you know you should. (Keep reading - that’s the extent of my guilt trip.) If you do read, chances are you might be looking for something to read. Here are my “best” books from 2015...they weren't necessarily published in 2015, but they're the ones that had a deep impact on me, the ones I enjoyed the most, the ones I imagine I’ll go back to reread one day. (They're in no particular order.)

Run With the Horses, Eugene Peterson – this is Peterson’s reflections on the book of Jeremiah, a book that is rarely preached, but is rich in truth just the same. Jeremiah as a character study is absolutely fascinating, and Peterson gives great encouragement for living out one’s calling to the hilt.

Encounters with Jesus, Tim Keller – James and I will probably always remember 2015 as “the year of Tim Keller” as we read just about every book of his we could freely get our hands on. This was one of my favorites – it’s originally material Tim put together as sort of a seeker’s Bible study/apologetic for the Christian faith based on the life of Christ. His reflections and insights are superb. Highly recommended.

Walking with God through Pain and Suffering, Tim Keller – this tome is absolutely astounding. If you are in a season of pain or suffering, this book will undoubtedly speak to your heart...especially once you get past the first part on worldviews of suffering (fascinating in its own regard and worth reading, nonetheless, however). Keller’s insights on the problem of evil in view of Christ are fabulous.  Expect to be deeply encouraged.

Praying the Bible, Donald Whitney – a short read, but a must-read for anyone who wants to improve as a pray-er. Think how-to book combined with godly counsel from a deeply Christian man. Dr. Whitney was one of James’s seminary profs, and we can honestly say that he lives what he writes (so anything you find by Whitney is bound to be very good).  

In the Land of the Blue Burqas, Kate McCord – this book was recommended to me by a friend of mine, and if you haven’t read it yet, I’d encourage you to do so. I was struck by Kate’s ability to counter Muslim thought and culture with Christianity and the teachings of Jesus, and was challenged to grow in my ability to do the same in the context of my ministry. One caveat - it was a little hard to discern just how or when or if she ever asks her Muslim friends to make a commitment to following Christ...or if she only ever asks them to “consider” what Christ is saying & who He said He was.  But I understand that I don’t live or minister in a Muslim context...nor am I bold enough to write about it even if I did...so I am willing to hold this critique lightly, recognizing that her book may not explicitly describe her ministry in full.  Excellent read, especially if you want to understand Islamic thought and culture.

Seeking Jesus, Finding Allah, Nabeel Qureshi – Another one recommended by another friend of ours. This is a book that is hard to put down once you start reading, so buyer beware. Nabeel writes of his path towards faith in Christ. I was most struck by how similar his story of faith – and the barriers he had to work through - is to that of the intellectual Chinese, and the cultural barriers they encounter in coming to Christ. Loved it.

The Day the Crayons Quit, Drew Daywalt – quickly became a “classic” in the He family, one that we return to over and over again, especially when we need a laugh. (And when do you not need a laugh?) What is funnier, orange and yellow crayon arguing over who is the true color of the sun, or naked beige crayon too ashamed to come out of the box? Please hurry to your library to check this out if you’ve not read it yet.

The Hardest Peace, Kara Tippetts – Okay, so not one I would recommend you read when you or a loved one is maybe, possibly dying of cancer. But wow, what a testimony to how one can go through pain, suffering, and loss with deep faith. (I still remember my friend saying, "WHY?!  WHY would you read that right now?!!!!!!") Beautifully written. Expect to cry. More than once. Read it any way.

Unicorn Thinks He’s Pretty Great, Bob Shea – I think technically the first time we read this was 2014, but we’re sneaking it on to this list because...there just aren’t enough books in the world that make you laugh out loud. This is one of them, and one that we He girls return to again and again. Taste my cloven justice!

Galatians, A Journal and Doodle Bible Study, Kari Denker – I worked my way through Galatians this year, and thank God for the way He used this study to root out remnants of legalism that have long been lurking in my heart. Doesn’t get any better than the Word of God, folks, and this is an excellent way to study it. (As long as we’re on the subject, I’d also heartily recommend “Galatians for You” by...shock, surprise...Tim Keller as well.)

The Biggest Story, Kevin DeYoung – I read just about everything Kevin writes, and this is his writing at its finest. The whole story of the Bible in a fairly succinct, theologically rich, sometimes hilarious story that your entire family should read and reread.

What about you? What did you read last year that taught, encouraged, inspired, or convicted you? Let me know in the comments below...

short and sweet

Hello again - just about to shake off some winter chill with a short run, but before I do here's a brief update on James.

He had his port out on Monday, and just as we all had prayed, he came out of anesthesia superbly. In fact, it was his best surgery recovery to date. Thank you, friends!

I had expected to get a chance to speak with the surgeon, and while he did give me an update on James post-surgery, it was only the briefest of conversations. He actually seemed like he had forgotten who we were. (I know! I was as shocked as you are!)  

On the other hand, I did get to talk at length with the surgery care coordinator about many things that God has done over this past year plus, starting with bringing me back to the surgery waiting room so soon...when there were definitely times I didn't even know if we'd ever be back. We continue to be in awe, and are so thankful when God gives us the chance to share with someone and we actually have the words to say that encourage, strengthen, or inspire. 

God has been so gracious, and we can testify that He has faithfully carried us every step of the way. Thanks for being here to cheer us on. 

Continue to pray for God's healing for James, for a continued reduction of his cough, for pain from surgery and this last year of cancer to subside, and for James to feel, well....WELL.

All for now...be sure to check in later this week for other fun stuff like book recommendations and my new recipe faves from 2015. (Fingers crossed!)

A Man, A Plan, A Scan...China

Hi friends! Trusting that you had wonderful, bless-ed holidays and, like me, have sufficiently dug out of the new year haze to feel more hopeful than overwhelmed. James had an appointment with Dr. Einhorn this week which gave us greater understanding as to what just happened. And, we have something of a plan!  Exciting times ahead for sure.

James remains disease-free.
When we asked Dr. Einhorn how they made this determination, he graciously responded with a chuckle and a, "Well, that's a fair question." Apparently, once you've had cancer, in a sense you never really have a "clean" scan. Because of previous tumors, because of scarring, because of necrosis (one of my all-time favorite medical words!) there are lots of causes for "blips" on a PET which need to be monitored but do not warrant further treatment.

Instead, oncologists look for "progression" of the disease which looks like new tumors or growth of previous tumors. James has none of this.

James does not currently need further treatment.
If you recall, last summer James had two spots that showed up on his PET scan which then led to more chemotherapy. One, a lymph node, and the other, a spot on his hip (ilium). The lymph node in and of itself was not enough to warrant chemotherapy, as it was considered one of those typical "I had cancer in the last six months" blips. The bone, however, was understood to be metastatic lung cancer which needed immediate attention.

Yet Einhorn's team knows the following about squamous lung cancer - only in the rarest of cases does it metastasize to bone, and, as Dr. Einhorn remarked, "would that everyone's metastatic cancer responded so well to chemotherapy." That is to say, the tumor in James's hip really shouldn't have responded the way that it did. It is so unusual, in fact, that they remain unconvinced that it was ever actually a tumor. (On the other hand, James & I believe that it was, and that God miraculously intervened. Choose your worldview, and the interpretation of events will follow, I suppose.)

So, with the hip tumor "mysteriously" gone, James is considered disease free and thus no longer needs treatment.

Important Next Steps
1. On Monday, January 11 at 10:45, James will return to his thoracic surgeon to have his port removed. This is a huge milestone.  I am sure it will feel a lot like freedom. Pray that James comes out of anesthesia quickly (this is usually a struggle), pray for healing without complications, and pray that we'd have the opportunity to testify to the surgeon, Dr. Freeman. A Christian colleague of his described him as an honest, ethical man who is otherwise lost. May God's dealings with James speak to his heart.

2. James will be allergy tested on Tuesday...he is currently on an asthma inhaler & it has helped tremendously with his coughing. We believe that James has allergies, and think that having allergies on top of compromised lung function (due to scarring from cancer, chemotherapy, and radiation) may be contributing to his cough. It will be interesting to get a perspective from another discipline within the medical community...we've been encouraged that James was actually able to run a few hundred feet a couple times this week after being on the inhaler. (Something he's not been able to do in over a year!)  Continue to pray for complete restoration & healing.

3. Dr. Einhorn will continue to follow-up with James every two months this year. However, he understands our desire to return to China and has no problems with us returning as long as James continues to have clean scans. He would like to get James to the summer, so whether that means we return after May's follow up or wait until after July's follow up is yet to be determined. Einhorn seemed comfortable with both, though of course it all depends on how James is doing. Pray for wisdom, and pray that we would perceive and follow God's leading.

4. In the meantime, James gets to return home to celebrate Chinese New Year with his family. It will be a joyous celebration, no doubt. Pray that God would work mightily among his family and friends, that they would be humbled and give glory to God, and that the Spirit would use James's testimony to convict them of righteousness and judgment.

5. James will have a full-body PET in March to check once more on his hip "tumor." We may never really know what that was...but maybe the PET scan will give them some helpful information. James does have occasional pain there, and while he is awfully young to have arthritis, that is one possibility. Pray that God continues to heal this area...or that doctors can determine what it is to treat it accordingly.

6. For the long term, James will continue to be monitored by Dr. Einhorn. Every four months for years 2-3, every 6 months for years 4-5, and every year after 5 years. Dr. Einhorn has several "international" patients that he monitors, and is completely comfortable getting scans from James from overseas. Interestingly, Dr. Theera, the oncologist who first diagnosed James when we were in Bangkok, Thailand, was once a colleague of Dr. Einhorn's at MD Anderson. It is possible that James will return to Bangkok & Dr. Theera for at least some of his future scans.

As this is turning into a lengthy post, I won't say any more but to thank you all again for all the many, many prayers on our behalf and to say that God continues to be gracious. James is regaining strength, hair, and eyebrows...and we are thankful.

on infusing faith to others

As we've shared our news, we have been so humbled to see how our story has strengthened the faith of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. That God would be able to use this whole circumstance not only for our good, but for the blessing of others is simply astounding. Below is one of the emails we received that was a tremendous encouragement to James and I, and such an expression of rejoicing with those who rejoice. Our friend Mike relates events from the first week of November, when we traveled south to participate in a missions conference. 

This truly is a miracle only the Lord could orchestrate -- and to me, it's not only an extraordinary outcome, but this news comes at a miraculous time of the year.

Kristen and James, I'll never forget hearing your testimony during the dinner at the conference just a few short weeks ago. It had many of us in tears as we listened to you describe not only what both of you had been through so far, but the way you continued to put your trust in God, despite what seemed inevitable.

At the end of the conference when we interviewed the two of you on camera, that faith continued to show through, even as James had to step aside because his cough was so bad that night.The two of you were graceful in your acceptance of the circumstances -- and you demonstrated that grace and your faith in every word you said.

And now, to hear this amazing news is such a blessing to all of us. When I spoke praise in my prayers yesterday at dinner, my wife -- who'd heard your dinner testimony -- burst out in tears. We've been celebrating with you ever since.

In homage to our Old Testament roots, there's an old Chanukah blessing that goes like this, "....Ba-ruch A-tah Ado-nai E-lo-he-nu Me-lech Ha-olam she-a-sa ni-sim la-avo-te-nu ba-ya-mim ha-hem bi-zman ha-zeh." It translates to, "...Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, who performed miracles for our forefathers in those days, at this time."

Clearly, God is not finished performing miracles. I'm grateful that He revealed His hand in this way...and Kristen and James, I unabashedly thank God on your behalf. May He continue to bless you both -- and may your story infuse faith into the lives of people everywhere.

Now Here's News Worth Mentioning...

Over the past few days, news has been trickling in from Jay, Dr. Einhorn's nurse. We first heard that James's cancer diagnosis had not changed. After a review of pathology, it was determined that James had squamous cell NSCLC with no genetic mutation...which means no form of pill chemo for treatment. And then we discussed the potential use of immunotherapy drugs. (Blech, but...well...okay.)

And then...THEN...the following news this afternoon.

After review of medical records by two "Tumor Boards" (i.e., the nerdy club you get to be in as an oncologist) and two teams of geneticists, Dr. Einhorn has determined
1. James is disease free
2. James does not currently need any treatment, and
3. "Cure" is possible, meaning that it is statistically probable that James will survive 5 years or more.

WOW.

Just, wow.

We have been overjoyed to get to share this news with some of you in person/over the phone, and it has been, by far, one of the highlights of our lives to share what God has done and to laugh and cry with you as we rejoice together. Words cannot express our gratitude to you who so faithfully walked this hard road with us. God was so gracious in giving us such awesome friends who loved and supported us every step of the way.

I am sure you have questions - we do too! We will meet with Dr. Einhorn in January where we can ask all the questions we have and get insight into how best to proceed. For the near future, Dr. Einhorn plans to monitor James every 4 months via lab work and x-ray.

In the meantime, continue to pray for James's health...he is happy to report that nearly every day he feels better than the one before. He is back to walking at very nearly a normal pace, can breathe, and says that his lungs feel so much clearer. His cough is greatly reduced, he is sleeping well, and has all kinds of energy. Apparently his eyebrows will be the last great holdouts for recovery - ha! But as one of our friends said, "I'm going to keep on praying, because I want to see James FULLY RESTORED." Yes, and AMEN. Pray too that God will give us wisdom as to how we return to "regular scheduled programming" in terms of our lives. Our return to Asia will be one of the issues discussed with Dr. Einhorn.

Now go and have an awesome Christmas...with hearts a little lighter, and just a tad more joyful than you had hoped for. It's our gift to you.

xoxo
--james & kristen

where james gets "famous"

Last Friday we had the chance to speak to Jay, Dr. Einhorn's nurse, and got a small update on things over at IU. 

IU was able to procure samples from St. Vincent's...after a bit of wrangling professional reminding. (It went something like, "This patient is not getting chemo treatment while we wait on you!")  So, there was a bit of delay intially, but things are good now. 

Dr. Einhorn consulted with his partners who have all agreed it is good for James to stop treatment for now. (This made me laugh...I'm sure the other doctors are not slouches, but does anyone disagree with Dr. Larry?!)

Additionally, there's a team of thoracic cancer researchers at IU who have already been made aware of James's case. Their next meeting will be December 17th. James will be one of the patients they plan to discuss. ("Oooh! I'm getting famous!" James said.) They will be reviewing all the results and together will determine the best course of treatment. Jay said that sometimes one doctor sees it as a straightforward case, while another notices something that changes the equation. Pray for God's wisdom to be granted them!

In general, James is feeling much better these days sans chemo. He has been complaining lately of the inability to focus/concentrate when he reads. Pray that his mental acuity will return to him as the chemo works its way out of his body. He is sleeping better and is coughing less and less. Pray that God will completely heal and restore his lungs! I was remembering yesterday how last fall, even into November, James was able to run. Now, because of his lungs, he can't. We are continuing to trust God for great things, and are encouraged by your faith as well. Thank you!!  Have a great week...