More Blogs Reaching Out in Prayer for Deb

In these times it seems God uses the blogosphere to bring the Body of Christ together, to provide the opportunities for believers to bind themselves to one another in Love such that the world can see the Truth of the Gospel. You already know about several from recent posts here. Some more recent examples:

• over on 1LoveFellowship a sister named mebeth has posted this entry which she followed up with a link to Loving Deb Smith

Please pray for an old friend's mother

When I was little, in the 70's, my parents were in The Jesus Movement in Cincinnati, OH. Probably my first close playmate was a girl named Charity. Her mom and dad were the pastors at the Church my parents belonged to. Her mom is named Deb Smith. It's thirty years later, and she is in a desperate struggle with cancer. Please pray for her healing, her financial well-being, and, most importantly, the peace of the Holy Spirit to permeate every fiber of her and her family's hearts. Thanks!

• on the new blog CONVERSATIONS Paula Clouse has put up a slide show dedicated to Deb and her artistic gifts. The show features photos taken recently in the Colorado Rockies.

• Angie Shope notes, "I also have linked to lovingdebsmith on my blog at http://www.freewebs.com/msangies/. I have also posted a request for deb along with the link to many groups that I belong to as well.

Blogosphere = Loving Deb Smithosphere

Who'd have thunk it? As you know by now, Googling "Loving Deb Smith" is gratifying in itself. You see many links back to this site or parts of it. Loving Deb Smith is also getting some recognition from other search sites, including Technorati, Ice Rocket, and Google's Blog Search.

Now, in addition to fostering blog entries about Deb's illness and the family's incredible needs at this time on blogs like Brave Heart and Community, the Loving Deb Smith blog has encouraged Randy Moody to write at length on his family's web site: Randy and Rosie Moody and Family. Here is an excerpt:

It was 1971. I was living back at home, for the time being. I got a call from someone named "Tom Smith" who claimed to be a "campus minister" at the University of Cincinnati. He claimed to be a friend of Gary Sweeten. Said he had a "campus house" near the university and wanted to find a core of committed college-age brothers to live there and minister. At first I thought he was joking. "Tom Smith"? Come on. You can do better than that. Who is this really?

But I called my friend (since 5th grade) Poody (Don Patten) and told him about it. We prayed about it, and decided to move in together. For both of us, the effects of that decision were life-changing. Tom baptized me in a swimming pool in French Lick, Indiana. Under Tom's mentoring and influence, I came to have a ministry. And Poody came to have a wife. It doesn't get more life-changing than that!

Tom met and married a sweet sister named Deb, and their ministry has effected the lives of countless people, young and old, throughout the US and the world. They both have impacted me deeply.

...

I am praying that the Spirit of Life, the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead, will give life to Deb's mortal body through his Spirit who lives in her (Romans 8:11). I am praying that that dark and evil cancer will wither and fade away in the blazing light of the presence of His Spirit in her. I am praying for total freedom from pain and discomfort for her, and complete restoration of health. There is nothing too hard for Him!

As I pray for Deb, I am also praying the same thing for two other friends, both of whom are also battling cancer — Mary Lafleur and Dave Perkins. Please join me in praying for these precious folks.

If you have a blog or web site on which is would be appropriate to mention Loving Deb Smith, and God leads, would you kindly do so and let us know at LovingDebSmith@gmail.com ?

The Kingdom

Check out the podcast player in the left side bar for the newly added performance of The Kingdom by good friend Randy Moody. Deb has always enjoyed Randy's heartfelt singing and playing that brings you into God presence. Here it is a present for Deb.

If others wish to share .mp3 files of their own music which they know would lift Deb up, please contact Loving Deb Smith. Thanks.

Prayer and Praise for Deb from the Colorado Rockies

At an annual praise workshop event in Estes Park, Colorado, Paula Clouse from Grace Community Church asked for prayer for Deb. She reports:

There were people from all over the United States as well as Canada, Australia and Kenya who together lifted their voices in a chorus of petition and praise for Deb Smith. It was an amazing, powerful witness to the unifying power of prayer ... it was something akin to the awesomeness and power of being hit by a tidal wave. I was overcome with gratitude and joy, knowing that people from so many places were calling out Deb's name and "storming the gates of heaven" on her behalf. The power of the Spirit was absolutely electric.

Thank you, Paula.

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

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name!

The Psalms of Davidare full of joy and sorrow, lament and celebration, confession and forgiveness, and especially praise.

Nancy Eckel of Cincinnati shared in a comment that Ps 103 is one of Deb's favorite scriptures, and that she thinks of Deb whenever she reads or hears it. Here is Ps 103 for your reflection and devotional use:

1 Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children--
18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts...

Loving Deb Smith in Music

There is now a podcast player here on Loving Deb Smith. The intention here is to provide Deb with the opportunity to hear music she loves that has been lovingly prepared by brothers and sisters who love her. Also, this is a way to share any recordings of Deb speaking, singing, calling the Body to worship, etc. So if you can help in this effort, please send an e-mail with .mp3 formatted material attached. The more material you offer, the more joy for Deb in God's healing presence.

To listen to the material already provided in this podcast, just click on the play button. To subscribe to an RSS feed of the podcast, click on the Subscribe Free link beneath the podcast player.

In the words of Steve Perry...

Jill_Klinehamer, Charity's friend since college, offers the following:

My name is Jill. I am 35, and live in Cleveland, Ohio. And that is enough about ME! I know Deb through her daughter, Charity, who was my freshman roommate at Taylor U. I haven't seen Deb since Hal & Char's wedding, but I am deeply interested in, concerned about, saddened and moved by Deb's battle with cancer. Charity has been a dear friend for over 15 years, and an inspiration to me. I would not be who I am today without knowing Char, and Char would not be the amazing woman she is without the dynamic influence of her inimitable and fantastic mother, Deb.

Deb, I can't begin to imagine the depth of your pain. I am so sorryyou're feeling lousy. Pain is a drag, and I know a spunky gal like you has a billion better things to do: paintings to be painted, animals to be fed, children to be loved and squeezed! So, I am using all my might to hope and wish and pray as hard as I can to SEND THAT PAIN PACKING! Knowing such an ebullient soul as yourself is in such misery tears me up (either definition of the word "tears" is applicable, here.)

When I was in junior high, I had a crush on Steve Perry from Journey. He had a ridiculously huge nose, an unusual facial mole, and a mullet to beat the band, but I wanted to marry him anyway. I've since come to my senses, but I still can't help moving to the beat on the odd occasion that I hear certain Journey songs.

Don't Stop Believing is a flagrantly cheesy song, but if it would make you smile, I would don a mullet wig, stand up on the end of your bed, and sing (into the imaginary mic of my thumb) "Don't Stop Believin'!!!!!" for you. You would probably kick me in the shins, and I would fall off the bed, crashing to the floor (which would not necessarily stop me from singing) but IF if would bring a grin, however fleeting, I would do it for you, girl!

I have always been a champion of the underdog, and I've never let personal humiliation stand in the way of my attempts to make someone feel better...if only for a moment. :)

I love you, Deb!!! Hang in there! You can do this!!! :)

Kind words from Mission of Grace

Over at Mission of Grace, you'll find these kind words of concern for Deb from Paula Clouse. Thanks, Paula.

If you or anyone else you know is blogging about Deb & her family, or providing links to Loving Deb Smith, please let us know at LovingDebSmith@gmail.com.

MANY BLESSINGS!
Peace and All Good in Jesus!

I am including the following link to our Mission of Grace webpage because I believe that missions is as much about ministering to and caring for members of our families and local communities, as it is caring for those in faraway cities and distant countries.

As most of you know, our dear friend Deb Smith has recently been diagnosed with cancer. Her family has created a blogsite for friends and family to stay in touch, send encouragement and prayers, and generally keep up with Deb's progress.

Please avail yourself to the website, and write a prayer, post a photo, send a card or a few words of encouragement. Deb has meant so much to so many of us...let us give honor to whom honor is due...

http://lovingdebsmith.blogspot.com/

Audio Hugs from Barb Hine