God is good!

Thanks to all of you for your prayers for Dustin and for the rest of our family! We received more good news...the 2nd pathology report came back as benign!! As of now, they are not planning on Dustin enduring any radiation or chemotherapy for the other "spots" that they had previously detected. They are going to closely monitor them in hopes that by removing the large tumor, that there "source" has been cut off and that they will be rendered ineffective. His neurosurgeon, Dr. Jackson, told him that he will probably be released as a surgical patient within the next day or so. They are still somewhat baffled at the outcome of the pathology report because the symptoms don't match up with diagnosis which doesn't match up to what was actually found in his body...but we are grateful and are receiving it as a miracle!! We do believe that God revealed Himself to us in His mercies to spare Dustin cancer...it's a miracle!!
Dustin has now been in the Rehabilitation wing of the hospital for 2 days...they are working him HARD!! He has physical and occupational therapy for 5-6 hours a day. The doctor that heads up this department had indicated that he expects Dustin to be there for 2 weeks. Then of course, there will be some outpatient therapy for a while once he is able to go home. It's pretty humbling to see my big brother have to relearn some of the basic life skills that we all take for granted...tying his shoes, buckling his belt, feeding himself, brushing his teeth...etc. A couple of days ago, I was feeding him a baked potato and he looked at me and said "you hate doing this, don't you?". I quickly explained to him that of course that I wish that I didn't HAVE to do it, never before had I dreamed that I would be feeding my 36 year old brother!! But I told him that I was grateful that he was a much cleaner eater than any of his boys!
We are confident that he will be restored 100% physically... Kyle and my dad have actually told Dustin that they need to use this time to their advantage and try to get a head start on their running so that they might actually be able to beat him for once!! (Dustin is a phenomenal runner...a very natural athlete, the kind that makes the rest of us sick with envy!!) They better hurry up...he's going to be running with extra incentive in a couple of months!!

Please continue to pray for his spirits to be lifted. That he will not lose perspective in the midst of the trials he is currently enduring...

For thanksgiving to the Lord to flow freely for the mercies that He has shown us!

For his wife, Kristy, and their boys, Hunter, Evan and Jacob as they continue on in the regular details of life without him at home. (By the way, Happy 3rd Birthday, Jacob!! We love you!!)

Thanks to each of you for your committment to praying on his behalf...