My Field Trip Today

I had a good night sleep, but once again woke up with searing pain in eyes. My doctors got me into an actual ophthalmologist's office by noon. This time the transporters were EMTs who took me by stretcher to a waiting ambulance outside of ER, then a quiet ride 3 blocks away to the Eye Center - that was a fun twist. I guess they thought this would be the most efficient way to keep me out of the sun too long.

The doctor put numbing drops in my eyes which immediately helped them feel better, telling the doctor that it was a surface problem and not a problem behind the eye. Then he looked all over them with this and that and said, "If you picked your cornea with a pin, it would hurt, but your cornea looks like hundreds of pin pricks." Oh, so that is why it felt like razor blades in my eyes! What a relief that it is due to the chemo and is fixable and not due to an infection or chemical meningitis.

The solution is lots and lots of good eye drops and ointment, and covering one eye with a patch after putting the ointment in my eye. That seems to be helping so far, at least with the pain. Tomorrow I'll switch eyes, and keep doing this until it's healed. The uncovered eye will receive drops or ointment every half hour.

The other discomfort that has started is in my mouth - a mucositis from the chemo. Swollen cheeks and gums, pain and stinging, but no sores, thankfully. It is beginning to interfere with eating though so please pray that this doesn't get worse and just clears up miraculously.

I received this note from a friend of a friend who's young loved one is fighting a brain tumor. I wanted to share what she said with you because it's just how I feel about my own current battle. Here's what she said, "This trial has strengthened my conviction that a foundation of faith in anything other than Christ will not stand up to tribulations. It reminds me of a sermon my college pastor preached a few weeks ago on Matthew 7:24-27:
The Wise and Foolish Builders
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

The stark contrast between the consequences of the wise man who built his house on the rock and the fool who built his house on the sand is evident. The trials will come regardless of the foundation, but quality of the foundation will determine the outcome. Notice that the difference is between one who hears and does Christ's words, and one who merely hears and does nothing. Had I not constantly reminded myself of God's Word and changed my attitude and perspective accordingly, I would probably be an emotional and spiritual wreck now, questioning the faithfulness and sovereignty of God. So I want to ask, how do you face trials? What is your foundation built upon?"

That ends my friend's letter, but I pose to you a similar question... are you saved? Do you want to have that firm foundation that the Bible speaks about? I would love to talk with you about this if you're not sure. You never know when your foundation will be tested, but eventually it will.