Strength and Weakness

Dearest Ones,

Darla reports that Deb has continued to draw close to Jesus in her suffering and weakness. She rests much, continues to have extreme nausea and, consequently, difficulty eating and keeping fluids down. Please pray for her comfort:

Your hands made me and fashioned me;
Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.
May those who fear You see me and be glad,
Because I wait for Your word.
...
O may Your Lovingkindness comfort me,
According to Your word to Your servant.
May Your compassion come to me that I may live..
...
My soul languishes for Your salvation;
I wait for Your word.
My eyes fail with longing for Your word,
While I say, "When will you comfort me?"
(Ps 119: 73-74, 76-77, 81-82, NASB)

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

-------------

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!

Online merchants @ iGive.com now support Deb Smith.

Now you can help Deb and Tom with the overwhelming cost of uncovered medical and ancillary services by signing up to do some online shopping at iGive.com. There are over 680 well-known online stores ready to donate up to 26% of the purchase price to Loving Deb Smith. And you will receive free deals and coupons just by being an iGive.com member. Also, if you join iGive.com using this link and make a purchase within 45 days from one of the participating stores, iGive.com itself will donate $5 FREE to Loving Deb Smith!

Here is how it works:
1. Join to Support Loving Deb Smith. It's FREE, private, & easy.

2. Shop the Mall at iGive.com. You'll see familiar stores like Lands' End, Office Depot, JCPenney, Expedia, Barnes & Noble, and eBay, etc.

3. Up to 26% of each purchase gets donated to Loving Deb Smith!

Remember, shop within 45 days of joining, and get an extra $5 donation, FREE.

If you use this link to join for FREE, Loving Deb Smith will be selected as the cause you'll support.

Please forgive the sales pitchy tone of this post. This opportunity has been a while in coming, and now that the details are worked out, it is worth a bit of a promotion if it helps Deb & Tom. You will note that there are many specialty merchants involved, including ones you may have dealt with in the past. Using iGive.com makes the shopping experience more meaningful.

P.S. iGive.com would like you to know that all the causes at iGive.com have been listed by members for their own and others' benefit. They don't endorse the causes, and the causes don't endorse them.

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.

US Bank deposit account to benefit Deb Smith

Dear Ones,

Elsewhere on this blog there has been significant mention of the by no means trivial financial dimension of Deb's illness. There also has been mention of several opportunities for brothers and sisters to gift Deb and Tom directly or with help like food, gas cards, Amazon.com purchases, etc. For those who feel led to make a direct monetary gift, please note that there is now a deposit account set up at US Bank to help defray Deb's uncovered medical expenses . Visit any US Bank branch office to make a deposit in cash or by check for "Deborah Smith", and they will deposit it into Deb's account. Nellie and Charity are the custodians of the account and will be sure that the funds are used solely for Deb's care.

Moejo from the Fender Forum

Marc (the Compassionate) O'Hara sent the following via e-mail to Loving Deb Smith. Thanks, gentle brother.

I belong to a discussion group of guitar players that enjoy playing instruments made by the Fender Musical Instrument Company. The community discussion takes place in a section called "Moe's Tavern" that takes it's name from The Simpsons cartoon. It's not a Christian discussion group although a lot of folks are Christians from all walks of life. When we share our troubles or ask for someone to be remember we ask for "Moejo" and usually members will offer prayers.

Here is the link for Deb:

http://www.fenderforum.com/forum.html?db=&topic_number=634509&lastpost=2007-07-0510:33:04

Marc O'Hara

If you belong to online affinity groups who might have an interest in lifting up Deb and her family in prayer, please encourage them to do so and let them know about Loving Deb Smith.

The pain of insurance woes

Also, yesterday was quite a drain on Deb. After traveling all the way to Creve Coeur, MO, for a chemo treatment, Deb and Tom learned that their health insurance would now not cover the administration of the treatment in an outpatient setting. Imagine the round trip in pain, and now having to repeat the trip on July 6 at an alternative location nearby which should be covered by their insurance.

On the plus side, through very hard work on the part of Darla and her team, a very expensive nausea medication will now be available (if it can be found in rural Illinois) for 70 times less than it was costing last week. This is one example of the heroic stewardship Deb and her family are following with regard to the financial gifts they have received from all of you very special friends.

Praise be to God Who does not forsake us!

Your financial gifts are a blessing without measure!

Since Loving Deb Smith started (kudos Barb and Ric for hearing and speaking the leading of the Holy Spirit) the financial gifts on Deb's behalf "have been great", and "unbelievable", which has blessed Deb and Tom without measures since the magnitude of the financial need is staggering. The community of caring now includes known and unknown persons and organizations from all over the country and possibly abroad.

Your gifts are large and small. Darla and Deb and Tom are treating all these gifts as very precious and pray over every dollar.

The gifts provide for uncovered medical expenses (which are unfathomably huge). As previously noted here, Darla and a medical social worker are working every angle to insure that they take advantage of every benefit and charitable source or discount. Those of you who are familiar with any opportunities in this regard should contact Darla using the contact information provided elsewhere on Loving Deb Smith. For example, just yesterday there was a breakthrough regarding the free provision of one medication, but there is a long way to go, and readers of this blog can help. Through the facilitation of one of the Deb's doctors, Kroger will be providing one of Deb's medications free for three months. The nausea medications are the surprisingly expensive. Tom and Darla are also working with the local pharmacies to find ways to maximize the effectiveness of your sharing what God has provided. There are few words to express Deb and Tom's continued appreciation for your kindness.

For Those who would rather have a more direct way to help with Deb and Tom's financial needs, here is an idea: Kroger and Wal*Mart, where Deb's prescriptions are filled, offer gift cards at many different amounts. These gifts will be used to defray the cost of medications and other medical needs. If you have other suggestions for non-cash ways to help Tom and Deb financially, please share them in a comment or e-mail them to Loving Deb Smith. Thank you.

Amazon Grace!

Dear Ones,

You may have noticed the unobtrusive Amazon search box in the left side bar.

Please encourage anyone in your circle of love who may have a propensity to help to do their Amazon shopping using this link, since Deb & Tom will receive a portion of all spending. The wider you can share this story the more "Love Bombing" you can accomplish through Loving Deb Smith. Those who prefer to offer Deb and Tom something tangible rather than send a check (see instructions elsewhere on Loving Deb Smith), may want to purchase those items on Amazon and have them shipped to their house. Anything from paper products, to consumable household items, food, gift cards, etc.

One thing you can do easily to spread the word about the Amazon opportunity is to copy this post and paste it into an e-mail that you can share with anyone and everyone.

In the left side bar section titled "HELPFUL CHRISTIAN WRITING AND MUSIC" there are a growing number of books and music resources you may wish to consider. If you hover over the text links an Amazon preview bubble may appear. In any event, clicking through the links will take you to Amazon to purchase the resource.

Any other respectful ideas you have in this regard definitely are welcome. Please pass them on as comments to this post or e-mail them to Loving Deb Smith.

MANY BLESSINGS!

Everybody's gotta eat Cincinnati's favorites!

Often, caregivers of seriously ill people have little time or energy to care for themselves -- little sleep, a bite to eat on the run, etc. You can help Deb and Tom concretely by providing homemade food for the family. But if you live in Cincinnati, or North Carolina, or Colorado, or Michigan, home cooking might be out of the question. Perhaps you would consider sending along some Skyline Chili, Montgomery Inn ribs, Graeter's ice cream, Busken's baked goods, or LaRosa's pasta sauce and all the fixins. Check out Cincinnati Favorites.com or Best of Cincinnati.com if you feel led to help in this way. You can find Deb & Tom's address in the left side-bar, along with those of Nellie and Charity.

We just got word that mom is coming home tonight!

Nellie provided this update. Looks like Deb will be/is home.

I just can not tell you how nice it was to be among people who truly care for my parents. There really are not words to express how grateful I am ... It has helped to give me a much needed boost of energy.

I began the social security/medicare application process a few weeks ago. We were automatically denied for any type of asisstance, but I was told that we could be eligible for medicare benefits which would be wonderful. I also learned that if you are approved (which can take six months) there is a mandatory 29 month waiting period. I am going to pursue it anyway. You never know.

I am going to talk to Darla this week and see what is available as far as services go in their area. It is so rural, that I fear that they won't have a lot of the services that we might find here. If only we could get the medicaid approval!!!! All of that would be covered.

My mother-in-law has agreed to post something in (her) the restaurant ...

We just got word that mom is coming home tonight! Zach and I will be there in about 24 hours to help with getting hospice in and cleaning the house.

Regarding Nellie's note that her mother-in-law will be "posting something in the restaurant", if you own a retail business and would like to do the same, or know others who would be interested in doing so, and want some help with materials, please contact LovingDebSmith

Other Ways to Help Encourage Deb & Tom

The needs Deb & Tom and their family have at this time are overwhelming. Surely some who are reading this blog know this first-hand. You have enjoyed the Boundless Love of God in those times. Your loved ones, church family, co-workers, and even strangers lifted you up in countless ways.

Please share suggestions and resources you found helpful to you. These could be very practical steps you took to ease a loved one's pain and anxiety, how to get help with financial matters, or they could be references to online resources, what's a good book to read or the music you and your loved ones found most comforting. The great suggestions are surely limitless. Thank you in advance for whatever you can offer.

How you can help Deb and her family

You may have already seen this information. If so, please pass it along to others in your life who know and love Tom & Deb Smith of Ashley, IL and Cincinnati, OH, and would want to know about their situation.

Deb Smith (of Tom and Deb) was just a few weeks ago diagnosed with cancer. The cancer is already very advanced and is in her bones, lungs and lymphatic system and eyes. The doctors initially gave her 6 to 18 months, depending on treatment and so forth. However, it has been much more aggressive than even they foresaw, and she is now (just in the last few weeks) hospitalized in St. Louis. She is in a lot of pain, which they are trying to control with a morphine drip. She also has difficulty swallowing, presumably due to the radiation treatments. The doctors say they expect her to stay hospitalized. Tom drives 200 miles round trip to be with her every day. While insurance covers some expenses, there is still much it can't, and they are really strapped. The medicines and the travel are particularly draining on their resources.

A number of Tom and Deb's friends are calling on those who know and love them and suggesting ways we can all get involved to help. And quickly. Here are some ways.

PRAYER. God still heals, and Deb needs healing. Her daughter Charity said that we should pray for healing, for hope, and for freedom from pain.

MONEY. Tom's sister Darla is taking charge of processing contributions to help them. Checks should be made out to "Grace Community Church" and sent to:

Darla Wexstten
16738 N. Tolle Lane
Mount Vernon, IL 62864

CARDS. Deb receives great encouragement from the cards and notes she receives from friends. Calls, visits, and e-mails are out. She has very little stamina right now. So an encouraging note or card to remind her of the many ways she has blessed you over the years both personally and through support of Tom and the church could help brighten her day. Here's her address at the hospital:

c/o St. John's Mercy Medical
615 South New Ballas Rd.
Creve Coeur, MO 63141

Tom could use encouragement too. Here is his contact information:

pastortomsmith@yahoo.com
Tom and Deb Smith
10517 N. Panzier Lane
Ashley, IL 62808


There may be an opportunity for an informal fund-raising get-together of some kind in Cincinnati in the very near future, so that the local folks here could meet, maybe get some musicians among them to ply their talents, gather picnic-style, pass the hat, and pray. We'll see what comes of that, and let you know.

STAY INFORMED. Read this blog for updates. Thanks to Barb & Ric Hine for the inspiration. Also, in you wish to be added to the e-mail update list, send a message with your contact information to Loving Deb Smith.

GET THE WORD OUT. If you have the e-mail addresses of others who need to know about this, that would be most helpful if you pass the information to Loving Deb Smith or spread the word yourself.

You may receive this information from other folks who love you and Deb and Tom. If you do, it just shows the unity of the Body of Christ, the truth of John 13-17. Might be a good idea if you could also send this note to folks in your life who might want to know this information or be able to help Deb and Tom Smith in some way in this time of great need. Please ask them pass along to their networks as well.