Running With Hope (Hebrews 12:1-3): Sinus Surgery 4.3.17

Just a quick update before I head to bed tonight. I did end up getting a time for my surgery tomorrow so it will be tomorrow at noon, AZ time. I'm as prepared as I can be...got to spend the weekend with my hubby...it was good and hard all at the same time. He was teasing me today that I always cry when he's here so he wasn't going to come anymore cause I do better when he's not here lol. It's hard to explain--when he's not here I miss him but I don't get as emotional but when he's here, it's like this flood of emotions hits me, especially when it comes time to say goodbye. My nurse was super sweet after he left and came and just talked to me in my room and gave me a big hug. Her husband is in Iraq right now so I was like, "Now I feel silly for crying for being apart from my husband for a mere 21 days compared to how long you are apart from your husband!" She then told me that she thinks I have it harder because of being sick and all that I go through. Tonight, I'm reminded that God gives each one of us the circumstances He chooses that are best for us to make us more like Christ and that will bring Him the most glory. Sometimes those circumstances are incredibly difficult and sometimes we look at other's lives and think they have it easier or that you could never possibly walk through what someone else is going through. The truth of the matter is that God doesn't give us grace for our imaginations or worries or what someone else is going through--He gives us grace for the race He has put before us and as hard as it is, the Bible reminds us that we need to keep our eyes fixed on Christ--the Author and Finisher of our faith and not compare ourselves with others.

I was also very encouraged as I watched Matt and Cameron Dodd's testimony of how God has sustained a dying man...I was reminded that I will never suffer as much as my Savior suffered for me. What a precious truth to remember! The last 14 days have been hard as will the next 7 or more...my body doesn't heal fast because it's always fighting so many things so while the goal is to go home by the 10th, my recovery won't be over at that point, but hopefully the worst of it will be over.

Thank you once again for all your prayers, love, and support. My sister will update my facebook page tomorrow and I'll see about having someone update here for those of you that don't have facebook, or aren't friends with me on there.

May you all have a great night and remember these verses:

7 But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss [c]in view of the surpassing value of [d]knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, [e]for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and[f]the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 [g]in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

12 Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on [h]so that I may lay hold of that [i]for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 Ipress on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

~Philippians 3:7-14~