 |
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
 Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2007 1:02 am Post subject: Pray for Debbie Holbrook |
 |
|
Our dear friends, Joseph and Debbie Holbrook, from the Miami area are asking for continued prayers for Debbie's health. She faces the potential of significant surgery in the near future.
Debbie and Joseph have been such strong examples of vibrant and real faith in the face of trials and difficulties over the years; they have been bountifully fruitful in the cause of the Kingdom, and all of us reading this - whether you know them personally or not - owe them a great debt of gratitude.
We will keep you updated on Debbie's condition as we are able. She and Joseph are in good spirits and are even now engaged in some amazing visionary Kingdom ministry.
Isaiah 60
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
The Gentiles Bless Zion
1 Arise, shine;
For your light has come!
And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.
2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
And deep darkness the people;
But the LORD will arise over you,
And His glory will be seen upon you.
3 The Gentiles shall come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.
4 “ Lift up your eyes all around, and see:
They all gather together, they come to you;
Your sons shall come from afar,
And your daughters shall be nursed at your side.
5 Then you shall see and become radiant,
And your heart shall swell with joy;
Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.
6 The multitude of camels shall cover your land,
The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
All those from Sheba shall come;
They shall bring gold and incense,
And they shall proclaim the praises of the LORD.
7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together to you,
The rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you;
They shall ascend with acceptance on My altar,
And I will glorify the house of My glory.
8 “ Who are these who fly like a cloud,
And like doves to their roosts?
9 Surely the coastlands shall wait for Me;
And the ships of Tarshish will come first,
To bring your sons from afar,
Their silver and their gold with them,
To the name of the LORD your God,
And to the Holy One of Israel,
Because He has glorified you.
10 “ The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls,
And their kings shall minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
But in My favor I have had mercy on you.
11 Therefore your gates shall be open continually;
They shall not be shut day or night,
That men may bring to you the wealth of the Gentiles,
And their kings in procession.
12 For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.
13 “ The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,
The cypress, the pine, and the box tree together,
To beautify the place of My sanctuary;
And I will make the place of My feet glorious.
14 Also the sons of those who afflicted you
Shall come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of your feet;
And they shall call you The City of the LORD,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
15 “ Whereas you have been forsaken and hated,
So that no one went through you,
I will make you an eternal excellence,
A joy of many generations.
16 You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles,
And milk the breast of kings;
You shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 “ Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
Instead of iron I will bring silver,
Instead of wood, bronze,
And instead of stones, iron.
I will also make your officers peace,
And your magistrates righteousness.
18 Violence shall no longer be heard in your land,
Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders;
But you shall call your walls Salvation,
And your gates Praise.
God the Glory of His People
19 “ The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you;
But the LORD will be to you an everlasting light,
And your God your glory.
20 Your sun shall no longer go down,
Nor shall your moon withdraw itself;
For the LORD will be your everlasting light,
And the days of your mourning shall be ended.
21 Also your people shall all be righteous;
They shall inherit the land forever,
The branch of My planting,
The work of My hands,
That I may be glorified.
22 A little one shall become a thousand,
And a small one a strong nation.
I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time.”
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:34 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Please continue to pray for Debbie Holbrook and her husband, Joseph. As many of you know, she is continuing in her chemo treatment.
She has a wonderful blog which you can visit at:
http://www.friends4thejourney.com/
Here is her latest report....
10.13.07 Debbie’s Update · Oct 16, 07:12 AM
Dear Family and Friends,
Last week, I went with my daughters and my mom to the Cauley Square Tea Room for lunch. As we were finishing our lunch and with tears in her eyes, another waitress rushed up to me and said, “Oh, my lady, I am so glad to see you. You look so wonderful and well (she had seen me when I lost my hair from chemo the first time).” She then proceeded to tell me about losing her husband to cancer when he was 42. She talked about praying for me and having faith in the Lord and how encouraged she was about how well I was doing. And at the very end she looked me right in the eye and said, “You are going to be ok. I feel it in my heart!” Needless to say, we all sat there with tears in our eyes. What an encouragement! She is not the first to make the statement, “You are going to be ok.” But, this time I realized, more deeply, how important we are to each other, how much we need to encourage one another and how without even realizing it our lives speak to those around us, even when we do not know it.
The results are in and the new oncologist is in agreement with the original diagnosis of Stage IV, Metastasized Breast Cancer. There was a brief moment of hope that the cancer had not spread, but after further testing, along with the growing mass under my arm and the increasing pain in my chest, it looks like there is nothing else we can do. The surgeon agreed that further surgery would be pointless at this time and I will be starting my fourth round of chemo this Tuesday (October 16th). The oncologist said there is no medical cure for Breast Cancer, but she chooses to be optimistic because there are many new treatments she can try. So pray for me, for us, as I climb back in the ring to face my opponent (cancer) again.
It was hard to hear the diagnosis again and it is hard to face chemo again, but I continue to choose life. I have talked to several young people lately about how important our choices are. Our son, John, even mentioned his boss speaking to the staff about everyone having two files to choose from, one negative and one positive and I told him that is how it is for me right now. Yes, I have been diagnosed with cancer, but I am choosing to look beyond the cancer to God and to life with my family and friends and no matter what I have to walk through, I will choose to be positive and encourage those around me. Is it hard? Yes. Is it impossible? No. The scriptures tell us nothing is impossible with God.
So, until the Lord intervenes, I am moving forward in faith. Thanks for walking with me on this journey.
Blessings,
Debbie
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:29 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Debbie's new blog ... read it at:
http://www.friends4thejourney.com/article/194/need-a-hero-psalm-33
| Quote: | Need a Hero? Psalm 33 · Feb 3, 09:03 AM
16-22: There is no king saved by the multitude of a host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength. A horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength. Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
Our soul waits for the LORD: he is our help and our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name. Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.
There are times when all we can do is cry out to the Lord and trust that He will help us. The first week of December was like that for me. The chemo and the shot hit me so hard that I wasn’t sure I could make it. I was sick in bed for about nine days with incredible pain and nausea from the drugs.
I finally cried out to the Lord and told him I needed His help and He had mercy on me, just as I would run to one of my grandchildren if they cried out in pain. With His help, and that of my dear husband and children, I pulled through.
When I saw the oncologist I explained what had happened and she gave me a new medicine to help with the nausea that includes a steroid that helps with the pain. She told me that some people scream from the pain that is caused by the shot. The new med has made such a difference in the last couple of treatments. I am actually able to function after my treatments and don’t require as much time in bed. The symptoms are bearable now. Thank God!
Some good news is that the doctor allowed me to skip the treatment in mid-December and I was able to go to Ohio with my family to celebrate Christmas with them and I felt good. We had a wonderful time seeing everyone again and we celebrated Joseph’s parent’s 60th Anniversary! We spent Christmas Eve with my mom and family and we had a nice time.
The whole time was a gift to me. Then in mid-January (at my request) our family went camping at Lion Country Safari KOA and had a spectacular time.
The camp ground is right next to the Safari, so we could hear the lions roaring in the mornings. The grandchildren loved it, especially when we had to stop and let the zebras and rhinos cross the road in front of us or the ostrich came up to the window to look in.
I had had chemo and shot just a couple of days before the trip, but because of the new meds, I was able to enjoy the whole time and even helped set up the campsite! I spent a couple of days in bed when we returned, but overall everything went great.
My doctor is encouraged right now because my tumor markers (which tell how many cancer cells are in your blood) have dropped down from 50 to around 30 (which is within a normal range) and she feels no evidence of the tumor that was under my left arm. We should know the results of a recent PET scan soon to determine if the chemo has made any changes to the tumors in other parts of my body.
Our daughter, Sarah, was with me and asked if there had been any changes in the statistics for someone with Stage IV Metastasized Cancer in the last three years since the original prognosis was 18 months and sometimes up to five years and she said, “Yes, as a matter of fact we are beginning to see some patients live as long as 10 years. It is encouraging to know that in three short years there has been that much change. The other question we asked was if/when I would be able to take a break from the chemo.
This answer was not as encouraging because the answer is ‘never’ at this point. The doctor said this specific type of cancer has a triple negative for receiving hormone therapy so I will need to stay on the chemo indefinitely to hold the cancer in check. This was hard news for me to take and I would certainly appreciate your prayers on this. So, far I am dealing with it by being thankful that I am still alive and by continuing to take one day at a time. Isn’t that what we all have to do anyway…take one day at a time and trust God? I hope you are trusting Him as you walk through your own trials. He is so faithful! He’s my Hero!
Blessings, Debbie |
Joseph and Debbie Holbrook
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
gracielou
Joined: 20 Aug 2007
Posts: 110
Location: Gulf Coast
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 11:15 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Bro. Joseph and Miss Debbie, y'all are both heroes and we love you. We're praying!
_________________
Friendship is born at the moment when one person says to another: "What! You too? I thought I was the only one."--C.S. Lewis
The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread-- Mother Teresa |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
| Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 9:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
From Debbie's blog this weekend:
http://www.friends4thejourney.com/
| Quote: | "If You Were Any Braver, You'd Be a Lioness"
Last night Joseph and John took me to see the new movie, “Prince Caspian” based on the Chronicles of Narnia books written by C.S. Lewis. It is an incredible story about having the faith of a child.
I loved the part toward the end where Lucy steps out on the bridge and pulls out a small dagger, facing the enemy army alone until Aslan steps up beside her and defeats the enemy. Just before this scene, Lucy tells Aslan she is not very brave and he tells her, “If you were any braver, you would be a lioness!”
Those words spoke to something deep within my heart, for I have tried to be brave throughout this battle with cancer. It is strange to me when people tell me I am brave, for like Lucy, I don’t feel brave. I just greet each day the Lord gives and thank him for it. Other than that, I just take the next step…isn’t that what we have to do?
I have been battling some sadness/depression recently, but the oncologist tells me I have nothing to be depressed about. She says I am doing great, the tumor markers are down, there is no evidence of cancer right now and that I have a wonderful support system around me. She suggested that the chemo has lowered the Serotonin levels in my brain and prescribed a low dose of anti-depressant, so we shall see how it goes. It was very encouraging to hear the great report from her though. She said to keep up the good work.
I continue to have chemo every three weeks as a preventative to the cancer returning. I think this is the real reason for the sadness. It is difficult to accept being on chemo for the rest of my life, but I am glad to still be alive. I pray that research will soon produce a pill like Tamoxofen for those of us who are not hormone receptive. One encouraging piece of information is that one of the chemo drugs I am taking has now been approved for advanced stages of breast cancer. It was still experimental when I took my first treatment, so there is progress being made.
So, in the meantime, by faith I am choosing to embrace the things that are in my life. I find I have peace when I do, but if I resist or fight against them, I feel anxious and irritable. Thank you for walking through this time with me. I appreciate your friendship along the journey.
Blessings, Debbie
|
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
csm_admin
Site Admin
Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 911
Location: Mobile, AL USA
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 10:32 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Joseph posted this on the Friends4theJourney blog today:
| Quote: | Morning Smile · Jun 25, 09:17 PM
2 Tim 2:12. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him (KJV)
It is 12:15 pm and I am sitting in the hospital coffee shop eating lunch as I type. Deb is on the third floor in the oncologist’s office, getting her regular, every three weeks chemo treatment. I drove 12 hours on Monday, and another 12 hours on Tuesday to be able to be with her today as she goes through her chemo treatment. And the highlight of my day so far was a simple smile.
Facing terminal illness, one gradually becomes aware of how many people are suffering all around us, every day. Every trip to the oncologist’s office brings us into contact with dozens of people, men and women of all ages and stations in life, who are fighting for their lives. Many of them look weak, emaciated. Others look beat down, discouraged. Some come alone, others come with professional care givers, and the lucky ones come with a husband, wife or child.
I am always tempted to look around at the other people, sharing our battle of life and death and wonder what their story is. We once met a strikingly attractive young couple in their mid-thirties—the wife was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Another time, we met a delightfully outgoing couple from Jamaica who fly to Miami on a regular basis for her chemo treatments. They talked with us, encouraged us to have faith in God and volunteered to pray for us.
This morning, there was a couple in their 60s sitting to our right and an older woman probably in her late 70s or possibly early 80s sitting alone to our left. The woman on our right was accompanied by her husband, who looked to be a down-to-earth, blue-collar type guy… possibly a plumber or house builder. The wife looked a little anxious, perhaps fearful of facing cancer. Her husband sat there stoically with his arms crossed, and yet looking like he is hiding the fact that he has been run over by a truck.
I know the feeling. We didn’t plan for this. In all our dreams of our older years, the words “cancer,” or “terminal illness,” or “chemo” never figured into our thoughts. I know the helpless feeling of a husband, who wants to fix things, wants to make it right, but can’t. But this man does not realize that he is a hero, that at least he showed up. He is there at her side, silently sharing her suffering. There is probably no one to help him with his suffering.
I’m concerned about the other woman, on our left. She does not look well. Her head is partially covered, but the hair has fallen out in patches and is wispy thin. Her breathing is labored. Her skin is pasty, she does not look well, and she is alone. Suddenly, I’m glad that I pushed myself to drive from Ohio to Miami in two days so that I can sit next to Debbie.
The older woman to our left, who I will call Maria, starts to cough and move uncomfortably as if she is in distress. The nurse comes over to check on Maria and asks her what is wrong. At first she cannot clear her throat and speak. She can only shake her head. The nurse prompts her with a couple of more questions and asks if she is feeling dizzy again. Maria nods her head in the affirmative and then finally clears her throat, and does the most amazing thing – she smiles.
Perhaps I am romanticizing this smile this morning, because I so desperately need encouragement. I need to borrow from Maria some of her courage. Her smile transforms and lights up her face so that she no longer looks quite so ill. Her smile is kind and sweet. Her smile shows more concern to be polite to the nurse than concern for her own condition. She makes a choice to smile.
She must have felt my eyes on her, because she then turns to me and smiles again. She has no idea how much her smile helps me … helps me choose not to sink into a pit of self-pity and depression, not to give into to anger, and inspires in me the courage to keep moving forward. Oh God, forgive me for doubting your goodness, and for allowing my thoughts to dwell on myself and the negative circumstances of my life.
If we suffer with him, we shall surely reign with him. Sometimes reigning with him may be as simple as smiling in the face of death and sickness. |
Visit and read Debbie and Joseph's blog:
http://www.friends4thejourney.com
JOSEPH AND DEBBIE, WE LOVE YOU GUYS AND WE'RE PRAYING FOR YOU!
_________________
"We work because we are saved, not in order to be saved. We work from salvation, not up to it. Salvation is the gift of God." -- D.L. Moody |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
| Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:44 am Post subject: |
|
|
I always appreciate reading Joseph and Debbie's blog, "Friends4theJourney". Here is a small excerpt from the most recent update from Joseph ...
| Quote: | In my humble opinion, fear and faith are polar opposites. Faith is a trusting confidence in God; fear is a trusting confidence in something else… failure, death, cancer, tragedy. Fear is actually a negative form of worship… if I am not mistaken, the Hebrew word for worship means literally to “bow down.” When we fear something, we “bow down” to it and we let it fill our thoughts and imagination. There is a spiritual principle that we will come to resemble whatever we worship The same holds true for fear … by fearing failure, we allow failure to fill our thoughts and imagination … and we worship failure as ‘bigger than God’ we attract it into our lives.
When Debbie was first given the diagnosis of breast cancer, the first thing we did was pray. She quickly realized that she had been living in fear since she watched her father die of cancer. In one sense, she had been ‘bowing down’ to terrible cancer, as if cancer was bigger and stronger than God. She immediately repented and focused on fearing and worshiping God. Three years later, even though she still must go through chemo-therapy, she has already outlived the typical life expectancy for stage 4 cancer patients and all indications are that she is going strong into the foreseeable future. |
To read the entire excellent and encouraging blog, please click below:
http://www.friends4thejourney.com/article/230/fearless-at-the-cliff-edge-of-doom-psalm-46#comment
By the way, we want to say a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Debbie!
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Stephen Simpson
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 1052
Location: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
|
| Posted: Sun Mar 29, 2009 9:23 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Debbie's latest blog, "Romans 8:28 - Good Things and Gratitude" is now online here: http://www.friends4thejourney.com/article/262/rom-828-good-things?commented=1#c000586
To read the entire encouraging report, click on the link above. Here is an excerpt:
| Quote: | 3.27.09 – ROM 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
Joseph and I were talking this morning, wondering if any good would come out of this season of our lives. I realized that because my life has been extended beyond the original prognosis of one to one and a half years to nearly four years, I have been able to spend valuable time with my grandchildren. I am even helping home school my oldest grandson and we have had some wonderful discussions.
One day after the work was done we even watched Madagascar II and laughed ourselves silly. What a precious gift I’ve been given and I am so grateful. I am asking God to let me be able to see my two youngest children get married and to be able to see all of my grandchildren born.
This season has been one of sorting out what is really important. A lot of “stuff” has gone by the wayside and relationships with family and friends have become very important. Our marriage has become so much better because the desire to fight over petty things is gone. They are no longer important. It is much more fun to laugh anyway. This is the way it was meant to be!
I realized too that we are often put in places where we can be a source of God’s love to others. Yesterday, I saw the oncology pharmacist in the hall. She and I have been chatting off and on over the months and she is pregnant with her first child so, when I saw her I smiled and told her how great she looked. A strange look passed over her face and she asked if she could speak to me for a moment. She expressed concern that she had not felt her baby move for over 12 hours. I reached out and touched her arm in comfort and told her that perhaps he was resting after a busy couple of days, but encouraged her to have the baby’s heartbeat checked. After we said goodbye I called my daughter who is an RN in Labor and Delivery and she said she should go to triage and be checked. I called my friend back and told her and she said she would and thanked me. Later that evening she called me and I could hear the relief and happiness in her voice as she told me she could feel the baby moving again. I thanked her for letting me know and told her I had been praying for her. I hope she touched God’s love for her. I know I felt it. |
_________________
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -- Winston Churchill |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
csm_admin
Site Admin
Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 911
Location: Mobile, AL USA
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 8:33 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Our dear sister Debbie Holbrook passed away this morning. Her husband, Joseph, and loved ones were by her side. For the past seven years, she has shown the love and grace of Christ in the midst of her battle against cancer. Please lift up her family in your prayers.
Here is the Miami-area Memorial information from Joseph:
My beloved companion of 38 years, Debbie Holbrook, died today after a courageous 7 year struggle. There will be visitation at Caballlero-Rivero Woodlawn at 8200 Bird Road tomorrow at 6 pm and a short memorial service to celebrate her life at 8 pm.
_________________
"We work because we are saved, not in order to be saved. We work from salvation, not up to it. Salvation is the gift of God." -- D.L. Moody |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
