Monday, September 10, 2012

Update

Though the fig tree does not blossom
and there is no fruit on the vines,
though the product of the olive fails
and the fields yield no food,
though the flock is cut off from the fold
and there are no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will exult in the victorious God of my salvation!
The Lord God is my strength,
my personal bravery,
and my invincible army.
He makes my feet like hinds' feet
and will make me to walk --
not stand still in terror, but to walk --
and make spiritual progress
upon my high places of
trouble,
suffering,
or responsibility.

Habakkuk 3:17-19
(Amplified)

Awhile back I listened to a few tapes by Beth Moore about overcoming fear.  The whole deal was based on these verses.  I loved what she had to say

It's all Him.  Strength, bravery, the army.  He is victorious no matter what.  And on top of everything that He is, He empowers me.  He makes me to walk, NOT stand still in terror, but to walk and make spiritual progress on my high places of difficulty.  Trouble. Suffering. Responsibility.  Whatever is overwhelming me.  All things that are overwhelming me.

So my devotional book, "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young, said the same thing about a month ago, right in the middle of one of the most difficult times I can remember, and He says this:

"When things seem to be going all wrong, stop and affirm your trust in Me.
Calmly bring these matters to Me, and leave them in My capable hands.
Then, simply do the next thing.
Stay in touch with Me through thankful, trusting prayers,
resting in My sovereign control.
Rejoice in Me -- exult in the God of your salvation!
As you trust in Me, I make your feet like the feet of a deer.
I enable you to walk and make progress upon your high places of
trouble, suffering, or responsibility."

I love how He affirms things He's taught me in the past.  Kind of a refresher course.

Back in June, we discovered that there was a possibility of mycotoxin poisoning as an underlying cause for all the stuff that is wrong with me.  I went through a bunch of tests again, and in the end result, they are simply not conclusive.  None of my autoimmune markers are showing any problems, all of the hormone tests come back normal (now that one is a mystery!), etc., etc., etc.  I have been on a mycotoxin treatment protocol for about two months, but there is no real difference.  I'm still cycling with good days followed by bouts of flu-ish nausea with no rhyme or reason or pattern involved.  My doctor is puzzled.  I'm beyond puzzled.  We don't really know where to go from here.  

The only possibilities that we haven't explored are testing for SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) and testing for mold in our house.  After reading about SIBO, I really don't exhibit the symptoms and there is no lab around here that does the test.

As far as testing the house for mold, we are seeking the Lord as to what He would have us do about that.  It's expensive and we don't really know if it will be conclusive either.  So many things haven't been.  But it could be and might answer the question of whether I may be experiencing re-infection over and over again, and therefore the human mold treatment protocol isn't really making any progress.  So many unknowns, still.

So, our prayer request at this time is for wisdom about testing for environmental mold or other contaminants.

Thank you so much for your prayers.  As I've said before, I can't imagine where we'd be without you.