Surprise Phone Calls

This post is #183 in a year-long series ... Through this series of posts I plan to share our family's experiences during our 17-year-old daughter's year-long battle with brain cancer, which began in February of 2008. My desire is to process through the events of that year from the perspective that a decade of time has brought ... for myself, really. But if you'd like to follow along, you're welcome to join me.

February 22, 2009

There's really not much I can add to my email from ten years ago today.  Here's my description of the events that took place on this very special day ...

Hannah seems to have moved a little bit closer to Heaven today. She has slept all day today, and just ate a few bites of cereal about 8:00 tonight and drank just a little bit of water. She has spoken very little, and it is becoming more and more difficult to understand what she is saying. She may be starting to get her days and nights mixed up a little bit, as she was awake quite a bit during the night, but has slept all day.

We did have an exciting afternoon, as Hannah received not one, but two, surprise phone calls. The first call came from Mark Hall, the lead singer of Casting Crowns, the group that sings the song "Praise You in the Storm". He received word of Hannah's story and her prayer for a storm from church members in Atlanta. He encouraged us all and commented about how her testimony was already touching lives and he believes there will be more lives touched in the future. We were able to let him know how much that song has meant to us and how God has touched our lives through their music.

The second call was from the winner of American Idol two years ago, Jordin Sparks. Some wonderful friends (who we have actually never met) arranged for this to happen because they have been following Hannah's story through these emails and knew she was a big fan of American Idol. Although Hannah was unable to talk to Jordin, it was clear that she was able to hear her and understood what was being said. Jordin was wonderfully gracious and even sang a little of Hannah's favorite song, "No Air."  Brad shared with Jordin that Hannah always noticed Jordin's witness for Christ and her stand for purity. It was truly a blessing and a memory we will always treasure.

God clearly orchestrated the circumstances surrounding these two calls, and we are grateful. He is good, all the time!

Jill and Brad

"Soon you will read in the newspaper that I am dead. Don't believe it for a moment. I will be more alive than ever before."--D. L. Moody