Surgery Week

Hey, thanks for sharing this journey with us and for your constant messages of love and support!

It has been a delightful two weeks since I’ve written last, and we’ve loved soaking in the hot Aussie summer and enjoying all that this ‘break’ from treatment has afforded us. There is much to update you on, as well as ask your help in prayer for the upcoming procedure.

Firstly, we were a little surprised (in a good way) by the news that Murphy’s 5th round of Chemotherapy was postponed in order to make way for surgery. The shock of this news left us a little disconcerted, because as two high school teachers, Nat and I like things going to plan, haha! However, after having some initial concerns answered, we were very comfortable at the news that surgery is now booked for January 19th a decision that was made because Murphy’s December scans were very pleasing to the oncologist, and the treating team. Therefore, in this window of time, we have had an absolute blast! We’ve been out to cafes, riding bikes, walks at the beach, being blessed with a trampoline, many great visits to Nanna and Poppa’s house, as well as Uncles and Aunty’s homes for coffee catch ups and dinners! There was one huge highlight for me, and that was seeing Murphy back IN CHURCH taking communion and worshiping! Murphy hasn’t had the opportunity to go to church since his diagnosis in September of last year. Needless to say, there were not many dry eyes in the rows around us – thank you to the helpful pastoral team at Influencers Church for helping make this happen. Check out these pics…

FAITH has been a word that continues to be prevalent as we delve deeper into reading and learning the Bible’s scriptures on Healing. The verses I shared in another post speak of healing as the product of faith! I was woken up a few days ago in the middle of the night with the picture of the disciples of Jesus in the boat lacking faith! (Mark chapter 4) These guys had seen Jesus perform miracle upon miracle, and then they woke Him in the middle of the night to inform Him that there was a storm going on. Jesus, in the most humble and patient manner, calms the storm with His spoken word, then He informs His followers that they lacked faith, by waking Him instead of trusting that He was in control. Murphy is in the great care of our saviour, Jesus Christ, therefore, join us in faith for Murphy’s healing. There’s a reason this blog has the title it has – in faith we declare a miracle for Murphy.

Truthfully though, I traverse the two sides of faith and the practicalities of treatment. Today we sat in a meeting with the senior surgeon who will be performing Murphy’s procedure this Thursday. There’s no denying I was saddened at the reality of our boy, Murphy, lying on that operating table surrounded by strangers who will cut him open, move vital organs, and cut out the primary tumour. This 5-10 hour operation will require a room of professionals working on our helpless boy – this image breaks my heart. But; we know this procedure is vital for the progress in Murphy’s treatment. We are full of faith that the operation will go to plan and the primary tumour will be removed in Jesus name. I can’t wait for the surgeon to find out that the primary tumour has in fact shrunk even further, and that he is able to remove what little is left! It is this faith that Murphy has too, when we talk about it with him, here is Murphy’s approach to the idea of being cut open and have it removed:

“Let’s go to hospital right now and get the biggest sick lump out of me as the big sick lump (primary tumor) powers-up the little lumps, so we take away its power. Then the little lumps will blasted by the chemo after and I’ll have no more sick lumps.” Oh to have childlike faith!

Can you be childlike for a moment and have the faith of Murphy to see his lumps be gone!

Lastly, if you would like to know the ‘plan’ for the year, here is what was explained to us the other week, according to the national protocol to treat stage 4 Neuroblastoma.

1.     Recovery from surgery

2.     Round 5 of Chemo

3.     2 rounds of high dose Chemo, with duel stem cell transplants

4.     Radiation

5.     Immunotherapy

All of this treatment will take around 12 months, lots of toy rewards, many chicken nugget Happy Meals, but also countless nights in hospital, tears of joy and tears of pain, and a lot of discomfort for our boy. Please pray that this miracle happens so much sooner than what we can see in our human eyes.

Murphy’s showing off his Mr Potato Head that he made with his grandpa, whom he calls Grannar

What an inspiration he is!

Let me finish with some of the most exciting news to-date. This news came from our oncologist last week, who read us the results of a urine test. His facial expression and his whole body bounced out of his chair delivering the news that the ‘marker’ they look for in Murphy’s urine was so dramatically reduced it was virtually the same level as a ‘normal’ kid walking off of the street. He then emphasised this again by using some great Aussie language, “It’s bloody fantastic news”…

Let this ‘bloody fantastic’ update fuel your faith as we look ahead to a significant part of Murphy’s treatment.

Dan

Christmas '22

Hey!

This has been a Christmas like no other. In fact, I can say the same for this entire year -Two thousand and twenty two. However, the year hasn’t been a wash, through the hardships of life, we have grown and furthered our learning of God’s love. The ending of this year has a glimmer of hope, with some news of Murphy’s scan last week.

Indulge me for a moment; let me recount the last few days, as there has been much excitement.

Last week we needed to delay some scans because Murphy spiked a temperature. As per protocol, this lead Nat and Murphy to stay overnight and have a platelet transfusion. Murphy’s bloods came back with a positive culture, which meant there was an infection that needed to be urgently treated. Due to Chemo destroying all of the good cells (soldiers, as murphy calls them) to battle out the infection on their own, the doctors come with a deployment of new troops, by way of antibiotics. Up to this point in Murphy’s treatment, he has had a fever with each Chemo cycle, but his bloods have never produced positive cultures (meaning there hasn’t been an infection). Therefore, last week was a new ‘first’ for us all. In true Nowak fashion, Murphy left it until the WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS to give us something new to navigate.

 Nat and Murphy started their next hospital stay Wednesday last week. Instantly we were deeply saddened with the thought of spending Christmas in hospital. The mind is an amazing thing, and I fought of mental images of a split Christmas morning where I had to navigate the morning with Calista, Hugo and Ted, while Nat woke up with Murphy in the lonely hospital room. My heart sunk, as I thought through the new reality of how we are constantly at the mercy of this wretched disease. But we prayed each morning and kept presenting our requests before the Lord. My simple prayer last week was, “Lord, this is insignificant, but can you please bring Murphy home for Christmas”.

 With news, on Thursday afternoon, that we were more than likely to end up in hospital for Christmas, Nat switched into elf mode! After a trip to the nearby Rundle Mall, Nat bought a few supplies to turn the plain  hospital room into a Christmas cave, “Murphy’s magic Cave.”  A wonderful reminder that through the hard times, you can always choose how your personal outlook is. Nat was laden with two oversized shopping bags FULL of wrapping paper and decorations. The shop attendant at Kmart felt the need to give Nat some extra cheer by telling her she could have the display tree out front, with the decorations still attached! After a slow walk back to Murphy’s room, and a few hours of having fun with some elf friends, the cave was complete! Check out the photos!

Murphy in front of his Christmas cave!

 Friday was a special day for Murphy, and all of us! He woke in his Christmas cave, and had the joy shared with the entire oncology ward, as word spread about the cave! With the morning rounds, the doctors smiled as they entered the tinsel filled room. The infection had now become susceptible to the antibiotics and the right treatment was acting well. These new antibiotic troops did their job well, and his fevers were now well under control, and the bloodwork showed some promising signs of improvement. But the most pleasing result is this:

The results of the one scan showed SIGNIFICANT reductions of the cancer! Praise God! Yes, that’s right, the doctor used the word SIGNIFICANT. With great joy, smiles, relief and tears, Nat and I looked at each other in pure elation. The oncologist explained why he made such a bold statement. The primary tumour has reduced in size, as well as the other substantial tumours in the liver are NOT VISABLE on the scan. From the multiple tumours that were found in the Liver on the scan in September, only one remains! Cancer has disappeared from this site in Murphy’s body, meaning a really positive and miraculous result to the induction phase of Murphy’s treatment.

 Your prayers are powerful, and they’re working! This is a sign of your great faith, thank you!

 This scan below is proof. On the right is the September scan, showing the main tumour at 59mm x 43mm, and the left scan is from last week, 24mm x 31mm. In a week where we have had nurses tell us that 5 years ago this type of cancer had next to no cure, we get to look at a scan showing us a shrinking tumour.

 It was a Christmas to remember! With all of this good news, we couldn’t be too sad about spending Christmas in hospital. However, God had better plans. He heard that small prayer still of us wanting our boy home, and that’s what then happened. The hospital team worked hard to provide a solution which allowed Murphy to spend Christmas Eve, as well as Christmas morning at home! This joy has been good medicine for Murphy!

 Thank you for your support. Praise God that He is in control.

 The week ahead has another round of chemo for Murphy, please keep praying that the cancer continues to shrink, and that Murphy’s body doesn’t get affected as badly this time around with round 5 of chemo. The make-up of drugs used this round is the same as round 3, which saw Murphy spend many extra nights in hospital with sickness.

Can you pray with us?

Hey,

This week we have a number of scans, therefore I would love for you to read the following and be full of hope with us, as we declare healing in the name of Jesus Christ for our boy, Murphy.

Firstly, thank you for taking the time to care for and love our whole family by praying and believing for a miracle for Murphy. Last Sunday our family had an intimate time of worship at home, and taking communion together, and immediately following this moment Ted began chanting “Miracle for Murphy, Miracle for Murphy” with fists clenched and feet stomping. Glenda put it so well, she called it his war cry for Murphy. Similarly, we have heard of stories from some families who tell us that their children pray daily for Murphy, be it before bed, or when they sit down and say grace before eating dinner. These seemingly repetitive routines, saying grace, praying for Murphy before bed, or chanting non-stop for a miracle for Murphy are vital to keep our attention turned to the Healer, God.

Update: Round 4 of chemotherapy in Adelaide has presented us with a number of complications, as well as some pleasing results. On one hand, there has been a reduction in vomiting, but on the other hand, a great increase of nerve pain and sleepless nights. These past few nights have been horific, where Murphy has wailed, cried and screamed on and off for hours. Then once we arise from the nights  so called ‘sleep’, we need to help Murphy navigate the morning of soreness, stiffness, pain and other complications. It has been remarkable though seeing Murphy find joy through all of this when he musters up enough energy to giggle at a joke, or attempt to play with his older brothers.

At the end of this post, I will share with you a series of Bible Verses that are centered around healing. I was encouraged by an amazing pastor to draw from the written Word of God, The Bible. The verses I will share later are only some of the many many verses that the Bible equips us with to withstand great health trials! Maybe you could pray through them for your sickness, or others that you know. What a great way to enter the new year, full of faith and belief in God the Healer!

These verses are from the New International Version (NIV), yet I will rename these the DBV, the Daniel Bolded Version. Please read and pray along with us. After each verse I have added a short prayer for you to join us in praying. Nat and I have made a habit of reading through these verses each morning, maybe you could join us in this new routine towards Murphy’s miracle?

2 Kings 20:5

5 “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord.

Lord, with that same confidence and assurance, we ask you heal Murphy in the name of Jesus Christ.

Psalm 6:2

2 Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint; heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.

God, as Murphy’s bones are in complete agony, may you be the strength he needs! May his Sonic legs not feel the pain of cancer but the power of You!

Psalm 30:2

2 Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me.

God, we have seen miracles before, and we will see many more.

Psalm 30:10-11

10 Hear, Lord, and be merciful to me; Lord, be my help.” 11 You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

Father God, may Murphy live a FULL life of dancing. May you turn the wailing of the night into the peaceful rest that sleep was designed for. May the sun of the morning bring a joy and a fresh spirit.

Proverbs 17:22

22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

God, we give thanks for Murphy’s cheeful, joyful and bright spirit! May it remain.

Isaiah 33:2

2 Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.

 Lord, we look to you as our strength and hope, nothing more.

Isaiah 40:29

29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

 As we are weak, make us strong again.

Jeremiah 17:14

14 Heal me, Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.

Lord Jesus, heal and restore on earth.

Mark 5:34

34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

God, you are the Great Physician. It is in Your nature to heal, therefore, we expect you to heal again. God, we have faith that Murphy will grow old and be cancer free.

Acts 9:33-34

33 There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. 34 “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up.

Jesus Christ heals Murphy.

1 Peter 2:24

24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”

Amen.

Goodbye Queensland :(

Hey,

Not even 12 months ago, my family landed during the height of covid in Queensland in early January. This was after a 30 hour transit from Atlanta, USA, where we resided for two years. Overcoming jet lag, then adjusting to Australian schooling, mixed with a few natural disasters, the year was off to an interesting start; however we as a family felt we had so much to be thankful for and look forward too. Then 12 weeks ago, Murphy’s diagnosis and journey with cancer began. We have had both sets of parents drop everything and get to us to support. My parents drove straight to Gympie to help our other three children, while Nat’s parents flew straight to Brisbane to support there. In the weeks following, Murphy went into the very capable and trustworthy hands of the medical team at the Queensland Children’s Hospital. We have had close friends and family fly up to visit and support, which we are so grateful for. Calista, Hugo, Ted and I maintained our Monday to Friday life in Gympie, while commuting to Brisbane for the weekends and some mid-week visits (a 4 hour round trip). With all of the support from family, friends and the support that the other kids and I could bring on weekends, we have felt it necessary to relocate to South Australia, where most of our family live.

Therefore:

Goodbye Queensland and Hello Sound Australia.

This has been a long and tough twelve weeks for everyone following the journey, but we know this will need to be approached like a marathon and not a sprint. It is with great sadness that we have, because the life that we had in Gympie was a joy filled one, and the kids all loved the people that crossed our path. The outpouring of care has been exceptional from our neighbours, church community and our incredible school community. Not to mention the many people who have blessed us by praying, and supporting through many different means.

I had my final day teaching last week at Cooloola Christian College, and during the staff lunch celebration, I was able to share my gratitude for their love and care. Nat and I have been brought to tears many times thinking of the way that the whole school community have gone to extreme lengths to provide exceptional care for our children. God has placed many angels along our path, and they have all sacrificed a great deal, thank you.

Gympie folk:

 Thank you for the borrowed vehicles, cleaning of our house, cooked meals, mowed lawns, bags of goodies, loving hugs for our kids, messages of hope, laughter, stories, welcomed distractions, getting Calista ready for her dance concert, the “how are you going?” questions, the moments of silence, more cooked meals, more bags of toys. But most of all, thank you for loving our family like how Christ would.

 QCH:

The staff at Queensland Children’s Hospital don’t work, they serve. We have first hand experienced their unrivaled dedication to their job. The nursing staff have provided friendship for Nat, and loving care for Murphy. The doctors have lead with great experience and knowledge. Thank you.

Last week:

 Last week Nat and Murphy flew to Adelaide, along with Glenda and Calista. This was a relatively quick decision, therefore within a matter of days we packed up the house in Brisbane and farewelled them at the airport. Hugo, Ted and I drove to Adelaide, with the wonderful help of my brother, Scott. Our boys trip may have been a little slower than the girls, but I would argue it provided a few more memories for the boys!

Can I remind you, as I do myself daily, this has only been TWELVE WEEKS. It has felt like a year, and there have been some moments of fatigue that fly by. But we are all holding on well to the fact that our God has bigger plans, and He knows the beginning to the end. I said to Nat last night before we fell asleep, “God doesn’t care much about the ending, He cares about how we get there.”

Upon landing into Adelaide, Murphy has met the team at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide, and they’ve all commented on his zeal for life! Murphy will make a mark on many people here, just you wait and see. Please pray that Murphy will NEVER lose his joy, and that his joy may flow out of him into the many people’s lives that he’ll encounter.

Let me leave you with this encouragement from Murphy himself.  

 I lay there on Murphy’s bed last night, while he drifted off to sleep. He placed his head on my chest and wraped his arms around his teddy. He looked at me on my phone, and he said, “who are you messaging?” I answered with a simple response, “I’m writing a letter to lots of people who are praying for you”. After a slight pause, I then asked if he wanted to share anything with you. And his immediate response was, “My tummy doesn’t really hurt” and “I’m already feeling better”. Therefore, be encouraged. This is our boy who has stage 4 neuroblastoma, lying in a bed wanting to share with you that he is feeling good. Praise be only to God. Murphy is a boy who is surprising us all at how he tackles this cancer. His legs are still fast, his heart is still full of joy, and his mind is still as cheeky as ever! 

God bless,

 Daniel (and the rest of the Nowak clan)

Thanksgiving

 Hey prayer family,

These past few weeks have been a time of checking where my eyes have been. I didn’t need to look any further than verse 1 of Psalm 123.

 I lift up my eyes to you, to you who sit enthroned in heaven.

Situations can quickly allow our eyes to look and focus on ourselves, or maybe around us in other places. I read Psalm 123 a few days back and the beginning of this Psalm was a reality check, I asked myself the question, where are my eyes focused or pointed? Immediately, God revealed to me that I had been praying natural prayers, and not SUPERnatural prayers. It is comforting to know that the Psalmist had the same problem we all do, our eyes are naturally pointed down. It takes some effort to LIFT our eyes to God. But by lifting ones eyes to Him, our Creator, we learn to see things as He sees things!

Lord, let us see things how you see things. As the loving creator of all, graciously lift our eyes to you when we’re inward facing, or outward facing, please let us be upward facing.

Murphy Update:

Murphy is home now, which means the doctors are ok for him to have a short out of hospital stay at home. Supermum, Nat, has had quite the fortnight (that’s a two-week period for those reading in USA). Nat has been given the next wave of detail and information for what the next 12+ months looks like, in terms of treatment. Therefore, with this information on board, for us, we are reminding ourselves to daily lift our eyes on Him. We are thankful though for this information, as it allows us to know what to prepare Murphy, and our family, for in the coming months.

Murphy’s third cycle of chemotherapy was a different combination of drugs, and this cycle knocked him about, a lot. The sickness didn’t stop for a long time after treatment, and there were some unforeseen visits back into hospital after his releasing to go home.

Murphy had RSV during his last round of treatment. This common illness added a layer of complexity to his stay in hospital because it meant he couldn’t even leave his room, for fear he could infect other children. This meant it was a long two weeks in hospital, not being able to walk around the ward! For those of you who know super-speedy-Sonic Murphy, knows how difficult this was!

A great victory has been that we were able to have a family Thanksgiving dinner! This past Saturday, Nat, the four kids and I sat around the dining table and ate roast, veggies and salad and talked about all of the things that we are grateful for! The common thread from the kids responses was that they were all very thankful to share a meal together for the first time in a while. It was a meal we will remember. With much crying, laughing and sharing, we knew this was a special treat. Once we ate and cleaned up, the boys and I were blessed with the amazing baking of the girls, Nat and Calista. Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Scrolls! A small slice of America. Much thanks to our lovely American ‘grandmother’, Miss Gail, for posting over a supply of pumpkin spice!

Prayer:

• Please pray for the specifics around what Murphy’s body is going through

• Can you pray for his immune system

• Pray that SUPERnaturally Murphy doesn’t have the side-effects that comes with the drugs

• Pray for SUPERnatural healing to take place

• With each round of chemo, pray that Murphy’s neutrophils lift without the need for heavy doses medication

• Please pray for Murphy’s spiritual eyes, even though he is on a 4 year old. Can you pray that Murphy knows where his help is coming from, the Lord Almighty!

• Finally, please pray that in the ‘cold’ and lonely confines of hospital rooms, may Murphy experience the warm embrace of God’s love

God bless,

Dan

Positive signs of progress

I’ve shared previously about Psalm 23, and that is what again inspired this update today. In verse 4 of Psalm 23 it states that with God, we walk THROUGH the valley. However, I failed to share the importance of the remaining part of this sentence. Psalm 23:4b

“for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

This morning God revealed to me that His rod and staff can be seen through two lenses. With God on our side, His rod and staff COMFORT; conversely, God uses them to protect His sheep (us) and therefore when used to defend, they cause CHAOS for satan. This week we have seen evidence of God’s staff and rod at work in Murphy’s body to protect and heal our brave boy. Nat and Glenda were able to have a longer consult with the oncologist yesterday to understand the results of the progress scans that were done earlier in the week. We’ve seen a miracle in the reduction of the Primary Tumor – to all those who prayed , please let this stir your faith.

Here is a snapshot of the conversation:

Praise Reports:

1.      Impressive reduction in Murphy’s primary tumor (God, we thank you for your staff and rod that is fighting against this cancer!). This is a great outcome because some Neuroblastoma is not sensitive to chemotherapy, meaning for some patients, the doctor has to inform them that the chemo is ineffective. This is not the case for Murphy, praise God.

2.      Murphy’s joy despite challenges. Murphy’s energy, smiles and attitude has been remarkable amid great trials.

3.      Based on the most recent scan, the doctor’s treatment plan is still treating to cure!

Prayer points:

1.      This next cycle of chemo that Murphy has started is very effective in killing Neuroblastoma but has devastating side effects with extreme nausea and vomiting expected.

2.      Most children experience permanent hearing loss after this chemotherapy cycle. We are believing Murphy will be one of the few who don’t!

3.      There is a risk with this type of chemotherapy that at the end of this 18-month treatment for Neuroblastoma Murphy will be more susceptible to another types of cancer, we are again believing that this will not be the case! 

4.      Prayer also for the amazing oncology team managing Murphy’s case, for wisdom navigating the constant developments and treatment responses 

5.      Pray for Daniel and the other three children as they miss living with Murphy and mum! Ted, Hugo and Calista all have three more weeks left of school.

I was teaching our kids at home this week about a method of prayer, ACTS. Our family has been praying in this manner, always making sure we thank God for who He is, and what He has done:

Adoration – Thanking God for who He is

Confession – Confess sins

Thanks – Thanking God for what He has done, and is doing

Supplication – Presenting prayer requests before God

Within our family, and yours, I know God has heard our great praise for what He has done, as well as our prayer requests. Thank you for joining our family towards the miracle that is taking place in Murphy’s body.

My prayer is that God’s staff and rod comforts you too in whatever situation you’re in!

Harvest Week

Good days and not so good days.

When you think Murphy’s looking healthier and improving, you get hit with something new. Saturday night we were back into hospital with a fever, (Any infection for Murphy’s body will be too much for his body to fight). Therefore, any temperature reading that’s over 38 degrees gets Murphy a ticket straight into hospital! Murphy had gone to sleep well, after a day of playing, going for walks along the Brisbane River in his pram, and eating crackers and hummus, Murphy struck a high temperature. Within 20 minutes we were in the ED being seen by the doctor. After a whole blood and platelet transfusion, and a round of medication and antibiotics, his energy levels rose on Sunday. We are learning to ride the waves of the not so good days, along with the good days. It’s a pity some days the hard waves feel a LOT bigger and longer than the waves of the good days.

There are a multitude of encouraging passages of scripture which direct us to look to God through trials. Within the 7000 promises that the Bible give you and I, the one that stands out is that we CAN and WILL go through the valleys of life. My favorite word in Psalm 23 is ‘Through’. It doesn’t say ‘remain’, or ‘stay’, or ‘slow down’, it simply says that we walk THROUGH valleys! God, we praise You for guiding us THROUGH valleys (the tough days).

Here’s proof they’re not all bad! A good day last week was on Thursday when Murphy didn’t need sedation to have a dressing change on his central line! Murphy sat on Nat’s lap and let it happen without a huge battle; he’s been known to kick and scream when changing dressings! Moments such as this make Nat excited! Please God, may there be many more victories like this.

Update on Murphy’s procedure this week:

Either today or tomorrow (1/11) will see an extraction of Murphy’s stem cells for a bone marrow transplant, because he will need that bone marrow for when he has even higher doses of chemotherapy in phase two of treatment in 2023. The extraction can only take place when Murphy’s body is ready to handle it, and that requires a precise reading of several factors. Please pray that it is possible to undergo this procedure this week, because after this week, the doctor seems to think it is unlikely his bone marrow will be of any use to harvest following this current round of chemotherapy.

The harvesting procedure will take 4-5 hours, and Murphy is required to stay still for this procedure… yes, you read that correctly, Murphy must stay still! For those of you who know Murphy, know that this will be the hardest part of his treatment! It will be on this day, and during this procedure, where many parental promises are made, to bribe him (oh, and I forgot to mention he cannot be sedated for this procedure, hence my concern for Murphy remaining still!). Who knows what will be on the bribe list: food, Happy Meals, Tech Decks, Lego!

·       Pray that the procedure can happen. For the perfect levels of his blood and other related factors – we’re desperate for this procedure to take place this week – because we get one shot to harvest!

·       Pray for Murphy to be comfortable during the 5 hour procedure

Thank you for your ongoing love, care and support of Murphy and our family.

One tough cookie

Is there any better picture than a little one peacefully sleeping?

When I get the chance to witness Murphy sleeping, it brings a collision of peace and heartbreak to me at the same time. Each night, when Murphy falls into a deep sleep, my heart breaks for him, knowing the pain he endures when he wakes each day, but it brings great encouragement as I watch him sleeping, knowing how much courage he has demonstrated thus far in his first month of treatment. It was reported by the doctors this week that Murphy has shown signs of being one of the sickest patients going through chemotherapy that they have seen in a long time. Murphy, on the other hand, defies odds by smiling through it and eating a Happy Meal each day, or some Aussie Vegemite toast!

Murphy eating some Vegemite toast!

Praise God for Dr Ashley, her care and love for Murphy has been amazing. Dr Ashley shared with Nat that Murphy is so special to her, that he is one of only a handful of kids in this country with this current condition and treatment plan. This news reminded me of last week’s blog! Gideon needed only 300 for the battle!

Memo for future: Murphy, when you look back on this blog in years to come and are healthy and playing sport, know that God delivered you through this cancer when all odds were stacked against you. God had you, and still has you, in the palm of His large and loving hand. And Murphy, the same goes for all your family and friends, therefore keep telling them of His great power.

Murphy being a cheeky boy with mum and dad

Ok, now for an update on what is to come this week, as you need to know, so you can besiege heaven in prayer with us!

Tuesday marks the beginning of 5 days of pre harvesting preparation for Murphy’s stem cell harvesting next week, in preparation for a Bone Marrow Transplant in the future. This includes many procedures, and a treatment with a high degree of difficulty due to the blood levels needing to be at a precise point for the harvesting to take place next week. There cannot be any infection in his body, and Murphy needs to be healthy in the lead up to the procedure. Murphy will receive a port into the leg this week, which will allow the procedure to take place next week; however, the injections for the pre harvesting through this port are said to be extremely painful (Murphy’s needing that courage that I mentioned earlier). Pray for peace and comfort through these procedures, and for health in his body. The harvesting next week is critical, and the doctors believe there is one opportunity to do this, therefore we need to pray that everything works at the right time.

Murphy playing a game of Hedbanz

On a lighter note to end, this past weekend was full of smiles and ‘sibling therapy’. Praise God we can share some happy moments between treatments. Thank you for your prayers and support, our family is forever grateful for them.

More Firsts

Another week. And yet another week of firsts! First day out of the hospital for our little man, first night in a new house, first time ‘bathing’ (the term is used loosely!), first time trying some foods that were not Pringles 😊, but also a first time for Nat hearing some challenging news and Murphy experiencing some new side-effects of his treatment.

The highs of the week were that Murphy had a few days in our newly rented Brisbane home – for which we are extremely grateful to those who have donated! This home would not be possible without your generosity! Nat’s mum, and resident super grandma, Glenda, helped to get the house fit for Murphy’s first stay in it. Nat and Glenda set up Murphy’s new room, and the medicine cabinet, which is more like a hospital storeroom than a household medicine cabinet! Again, thank you to those who donated, as we have encountered some out-of-pocket expenses for these pharmaceuticals. To finish last week on a high, the joy Murphy has had in our new house has been amazing to see laughter, playing, relaxing and time with siblings.

Last week brought some challenging times, and it is within those times your support and prayer become poignant. The excitement of staying the first night out of hospital was evident last week but coupled with a truck load of information that Nat and Glenda had to learn in preparation for a safe stay. The countless medical professionals all had to give their handover notes to Nat before leaving the hospital, and therefore by the time Murphy finally went to bed on that first night at the new home, the whole house was exhausted. Furthermore, there were some difficult conversations had with Murphy’s oncologist. With the basis of this conversation the fact that results had come in that confirms the doctors suspicion. There is a ‘marker’ in Murpy’s bodily make-up that means his body tends to get confused in the making of cells. Meaning what we’re trying to eradicate through chemo will need to match, and surpass, what the body is doing when it keeps producing an exceptionally high number of cancer cells. (Rapid and aggressive are now a words I don’t like). The positive is this is that we know that no matter what the diagnosis, or report, or confirmed test shows, our God is greater. Gideon had 22,000 men, then only 10,000, then God gave him victory with a mere 300 men. May Murphy have the same story as Gideon!

This week, Calista, Hugo and Ted have had a special treat with a visit from their uncle Scott and Aunty Danielle, which has been a welcome distraction. And then they are in Gympie with their Nanna and Poppa before we go back on Friday to Brisbane. Our Gympie community, and support from church, has been beyond amazing! Our family has felt love and care from every direction we look! Thank you!

Last night after Murphy went to sleep, Nat’s parents, as well as Nat and I joined in prayer for some time, declaring healing in the name of Jesus. It was evident God’s presence was in the house, and after we finished, we felt a lightness, and our burdens were lifted. That is the power of prayer, it allowed us to see this situation how God sees this situation. Can I ask you to pray this prayer over Murphy this week.

Dear Heavenly Father, the healer, counsellor and great physician, I pray healing in the body of Murphy right now. I declare health in the Name of Jesus. I ask for Your Angel Army to surround and uplift Murphy, and may Murphy feel a sense of peace throughout his body this week. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

The week that was for Murphy!

Welcome to the first official post, journeying Murphy’s miracle! Nat and I are so thankful for the support we have received over the past 2 weeks. It has been an overwhelming situation for our boy, and our family, but the love and care that has surrounded us has been remarkable!

To begin, we must share the things for which we praise God for, the moments where we can see God’s hand. The highlight for my week is hearing the report from the head oncologist for NSW and QLD report that Murphy’s bloodwork numbers do not reflect his current condition. That one comment has something we’ve held onto, because it means Murphy should be lacking energy, flat, tired, depleted on all fronts, but in fact he is giggling, talking with medical staff and family, and being his cheeky self!

This weekend just been, the other kids and I were able to visit Nat and Murphy in hospital, and share two days with him. This was a special time as the family spent much time in the room, and simply sharing time with one another. Here are some pictures of the weekend.

Last week, Murphy could have gone home if everything went to plan, but that was quickly derailed with a temperature recorded on Wednesday and Thursday nights. This high temperature meant there could have been an infection, therefore protocol is that he needed to begin antibiotics straight away, and he needed to stay in the hospital for a little longer.

Red Kite, Starlight and allied health groups have assisted Murphy, and the family, have some moments of joy in these first few weeks. Murphy enjoyed his visit from the clowns and from ‘Captain Starlight’.

One final short story to leave you with: Nat decided to purchase a small toaster from Kmart last week for the patients and staff in the hospital. Currently in the family kitchenette there’s a sandwich press, and Nat felt that was a travesty because toasting one flat piece of bread was a joke. However, before she could even plug in her toaster Nat was stopped by hospital staff and informed it was not allowed because in years gone by there were too many fire alarms set off from toasters!

Murphy’s favourite foods at present, plain pringles and cheese toasties. Have one for Murphy this week. 😊

Keep praying for his recovery, and don’t forget to thank God for his high spirits in the midst of great pain in his body.

Dan