Sent and Received

Soon after the surgery began, the surgeon asked to meet me in a consultation room. With a heavy heart, he asked me to sit down. "Pastor, I'm saddened to tell you," Dr. Thaemert, a trusted friend and member of our church family, told me. "We have some serious complications. I wasn't able to remove Jeannie's gallbladder. There are inoperable cancerous growths surrounding it." From that moment, I knew Jeannie's situation was very grave. In the following days, we learned how extensively the cancer had spread. Over the next four months, our Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, lovingly guided us through the valley of the shadow of death. Daily, the physical evidences of decay were unmistakable. Yet, the manifestation of eternal life shined through the shadows. Sent and Received is a compilation of e-mails sent to our family and friends during Jeannie's battle with cancer, and contains poignant reflections of the family's experience.