Happy Birthday, Deb!

In time, today is Deb's 54th birthday. She is likely dancing and painting in worship before the Lord. To celebrate here, see the photo recollection of Deb's life which her family shared at the two Celebrations of the Resurrection in Mt Vernon, IL, (October 20, 2007) and Cincinnati, OH (October 21, 2007).

Celebration of the Resurrection

My strength and my courage is the LORD (Update on Deb for Monday, October 8, 2007)

Dear Ones,

Tonight, Charity has provided the following update, knowing how much the Lovers of Deb Smith are lifting Deb and the whole family up to God in prayer and thanksgiving:

First, I haven't had to make a meal in about two weeks, thanks to the meals from friends. What a gift!

Nellie, Zach and I returned home from Ashley later last week. We spent several days at our mom's bedside, and were relieved to see her temperature go down.

She is still sleeping most of the day and night. She is getting great care from family and her nurses. Her situation still remains critical.

As of last Thursday, her main hospice nurse said that her life expectancy, based on the symptoms she sees, is a few days or a week.

Love,
Charity

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God, indeed is my savior;
I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
(Isaiah 12:2)

Love and prayers are flowing like a huge river from many small streams!

What follows is a paraphrase of a comment left by Suzie Cain at Shared Notes to Deb & Tom and the Family on Loving Deb Smith. The sentiment and affection is a blessed memory and encouragement to pray for Deb and Tom and their whole family. Please do.

How fast time has flown. Many have known you as the wonderful couple who "put on Jesus" for all the rest of us as Fellowship was being birthed. We loved how you guys loved each other!

Deb, our hearts are breaking over your pain, but we rejoice in the love that surrounds you. Love and prayers are flowing like small streams from hundreds of people, forming a huge river that will bear you up to Jesus's throne in a huge swell of supplication and thanksgiving. We pray for relief from your pain, Deb. We pray for cool, sunlit days to enjoy this fall, and wish we could be there to give you a hug and thank you for the example you are to all women everywhere. Know that we pray for you every time you come to mind, and we pray for your family. Blessings to you with love and hugs.

You will cry for help, and he will say, "Here am I." (Isaiah 58)

In a recent comment on Loving Deb Smith, Deb Patten offered the following for consideration:

Dear Deb, Tom, and beloved ones,

Don (Poody) and I pray with perseverance for you. Our heavy and prayerful hearts join all of the family of Christ for you. I thought of you in this verse:

..."Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear ; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say, Here am I."
(Isaiah 58:8)

Dear Family of Believers,

This scripture is preceded by instructions on fasting. In the freedom of the Holy Spirit ... those of you who would like to, fast for Deb ... many already have ... Feel free to fast as you wish since there are many ways it can be done. It will be a wonderful time of giving glory to the Father on behalf of our dear sister Deb, and for Tom, and their beloved family.

Much Love,
Poody and Deb

Thank You, LORD, for the honor of having such a special friend

This post is from Tami Thurston, Deb's very close friend for 30 years. It is rich in Love and understanding, and will help many to focus their prayers and deep emotions about Deb and her family during this most difficult time.

To the friends and family of Deb,

Deb has been my best friend for the best part of 30 years now. There are no words to describe the depth of the pain I feel in my heart because of the suffering of my friend. I have stayed in close touch almost daily and have watched my dear friend's body deteriorate. However, I want to tell you all how I have seen her "heart" strengthening. When she is able to talk she always wants me to read her the notes on the blog. The words of love and encouragement have blessed her greatly. She has cried many times at the outpouring of love and amidst her pain has expressed how blessed she has been to have such wonderful friends. She has marveled at the fact that so many people are praying and care enough to talk to the Lord on her behalf.

I wish I had the faith to believe that her body will be healed here on earth, but I am finding my faith is not that strong right now. Lord, please forgive me. What I do know though, without a moment of doubt, is that Deb is anxious to some day dance with Jesus and be held in His arms. She longs to rest in the Father. I also know however that she doesn't want to leave her family. Her love for Tom and her kids and grandkids is deeper than any I have ever seen. The last year has been very difficult and yet all she has ever asked me to pray is for her family to be comforted and strengthened. My prayer right now is that Deb will find a peace deep inside and will feel the love of the Father in a way that she has never felt before. I pray for her family to feel the comfort that God can give in a way man can't. I also pray that they will know deep inside that God's plan is, and will be, the perfect one for them and for Deb. I also pray for a strengthening of their family. I know one of Deb's greatest desires is for the strength of her family to continue to grow no matter what the circumstances. Lord please touch each one of her children and Tom. Allow them to feel your hand guiding them through the days to come. Send them the Comforter. Give them strength beyond what they have ever known as they are called on to care for her physical needs. Lord I ask these things in the name of Jesus.

I'm not sure what our Lord has planned for Deb's body but I do know His plan for her soul. Deb and I have talked many times about heaven, and eternity. Let me assure you all that she is so excited and anxious for the day she will receive her new body and be in His presence. (We have always been sure that's a nice thin body with good hair!)

I pray right now for the pain to subside and peace to overwhelm her. I thank you, Jesus, that Deb knows You and has taught so many of us how to live with You deep in our hearts. I thank you that she has shown me what unconditional Love is and that she has been You to me so many times. I ask You, Lord, to help those of us who love her so very much to not be angry about what's happening to her and trust that Your plan is perfect. I ask You, Lord, to remind her spirit of that and to draw her close and help her to feel You. Heal her body Lord , if that is you will. If not here on earth, then thank You for the promise that she will be healed in heaven. Lord Jesus, come quickly! Thank you for the honor of having such a special friend.

Tami

Deb is quite critical and all are in need of desperate prayer!

At dusk, dawn, and noon I sigh deep sighs ~~ He hears, He rescues
(Psalm 55:17)

Dearest Brothers and Sisters,

Your fervent and constant prayers are a continued blessing to Deb and Tom and their family. They are needed now most desperately; please take some time to go before the Lord right now. Deb is still hospitalized, and word comes tonight, from Nellie that,

My mom has gone downhill since Wednesday of this week ... By Saturday she could barely open her eyes and barely speak to Zach and me. She is unable to eat on her own and is unable to hold food down ... Charity drove over this afternoon. I just got back to Cincinnati to take care of some things here then I am headed back in the next few days. I've been there for a week and I am exhausted. My poor dad is exhausted. We are all very afraid. My mom needs prayer and so do we. Also the people caring for her in the hospital need prayer as well ...We need a renewed strength and hope desperately.

Nellie

So, you don't drive a tractor, but you have a paint brush...

The following is parts of an e-mail Tom Smith wrote to Loving Deb Smith after an inquiry from Iris Lachey and Lisa Galbreath whether there was any "non-tractor driving" stuff do on the farms that might be helpful to Deb and Tom. [Commentary or paraphrases are brackets]

Re: Iris and Lisa's offer. . .others are also reaching out to us wanting to serve in some way on the farm. I believe what Jesus has up His sleeve is just a way to get folks over here to minister to Deb, in a way she can accept. I think the secondary purpose will be to paint a half mile fence (both sides) .

[If the primary reason folks are coming is to paint the fence, perhaps Deb would be able to handle the hub-bub more easily]

And of course everyone will have the opportunity to show up at our home each evening to eat, fellowship, pray hug on both of us, then we will smear a little paint during the day. Bring your own brush and work clothes. I'm thinkin early Sept. I've taken a new job as Farm Manager of a large farm 1300 acres, 250 cows, 11 bulls, with a mandate from the owners to not only turn her around financially, but to also restore her to her past beauty and dignity. One owner asked, "Please fix the fence and restore this old farm."

So you might pass this on, I mentioned it to Dave [Rice] and he was up for it. Hopefully others can too. Just being with folks will bless us. But Deb will need to do so in short increments. Her energy is low. George and Connie Lueking drove over and blessed us two weeks ago [all the way from Cincinnati with dinner for Tom and Deb]. We enjoyed a short dinner and then Deb thanked them and headed back to bed.

Deb has been in St. John's in St. Louis the last ten days. Nellie is here with us since yesterday. Staying in a hotel in St. Louis so she can be with her mom during the day. There is a chance she may be able to come home this weekend. Zach is planning to come over too.

We are seeking to be Christ Followers and live life one day at a time.

Thanks again ...

Hoping,

Tom

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May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy. I am happy because you have joined me in spreading the good news. You have done so from the first day until now. I am sure that the One who began a good work in you will carry it on until it is completed. That will be on the day Christ Jesus returns. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you. I love you with all my heart. I may be held by chains, or I may be standing up for the truth of the good news. Either way, all of you share in God's grace together with me. God can give witness that I long for all of you. I love you with the love that Christ Jesus gives.

I pray that your love will grow more and more. And let it be based on knowledge and understanding. Then you will be able to know what is best.
(Phil 1:2-10, NIV)

May God Always be Glorified!

Can you drive a tractor?

The next few weeks will be hectic around the Smith family farm, and Tom could use some help, if you can drive a tractor. This is especially so since Tom is also managing another farm under contract. So ... if you can drive a tractor and are itching to be a farmer-in-the-dell, as God so leads, please give Tom a call at 618-735-2966. He is very busy with the farms, so you may have to leave a message. This would be a major blessing to both Tom and Deb, as it may give them some time to be together, which is hard to come by right now.

Abundant Thanks and Update from tom and deb

Dear Friends in Christ,

Charity told us about the blog, and said "you've got to get ready to be loved". Wow, what an understatement. I logged on last weekend while Deb was in the hospital. But since our computer is on the second floor, and Deb can't do steps now, we had to wait until last Thursday when Darla brought her lap top out. You gave us not only an immense agape hug, but also fresh faith.

And faith is what we need. The last three months have been the most vicious warfare we have ever been in. The Enemy blindsided us. The first two Drs. we went to, and the first three MRIs, CAT scans and other tests couldn't discern what was really going on. It wasn't until a Physician's Assistant recommended a bone scan that we discovered the tragic truth that Deb had at least a dozen tumors on all her long bones.

Dr. Needles of the Pratt Cancer Institute in St. Louis did another round of tests including a biopsy and concluded Deb's cancer began as lung cancer and quickly spread to her lymph nodes and bones. Once the cancer gets to the bones it becomes very aggressive.

Need of the hour? A miracle. We still believe in miracles.

Thanks for continuing to pray alongside us.

Believing,

tom and deb

p.s. Your cards, gifts, and emails have brought us to our knees. Someone on the blog said the costs are staggering. This is true. In the past seven weeks we have spent just over $6000 at the pharmacy. Our health insurance has included several surprises. The big one being our pharmacy card is only a "discount card" which means they don't really pay anything, just negotiates a little off the price of the pills. Like 5 to 15 %. If you dear friends had not responded to the Spirit's prompting, I don't know where we would be. Thank you so much. Ephesians 2:10

Visit the Loving Deb Smith photo album

Nellie and her husband Zach lovingly offered the several photos of Deb and her family that you can see here on the left side of this blog. There will be others. If you would like to see any of these photos in a larger format, please visit the Loving Deb Smith photo albums space. If you want to add an RSS feed for this photo album to your RSS reader, here is the link. Besides the photos Deb & family have posted, you may post your favorite photos of the time you have shared with Deb over the years. To do so, just send digital versions of the photos you want to share to the Loving Deb Smith e-mail box so they can be added to the collection. Most digital formats are acceptable. Deb & Tom, their kids and grands look forward to seeing how Deb has blessed you.

Update from Darla on 6/16/2007 @ 11:00 PM

Darla, Tom's sister, provided the following update late this evening. Your prayers on Father's Day are most urgently needed, brothers ans sisters.

We have been with Deb in St.Louis. Charity and Hal are here this weekend. Nellie was here earlier this week. Our sister Sheila, and her husband are coming in this weekend from Dallas, TX, our niece is coming from Philadelphia, so ASAP means ASAP to us. Our dear sweet Pastor, sister, mentor, is gravely ill. Please pass this on so the body of Christ can pray tomorrow morning in corporate worship for dear saint, Deborah Smith. Gratefuly, Darla-