Sandy Henley (September 13, 1962 - December 26, 2012)

Today we held a Going Home Celebration here in Louisiana at my parents church. We were surprised and blessed by how many friends showed up on a New Years Day at 11:00am. My step mother, Sandy, didn't want a big memorial or anything so in respect to her wishes we had the Gospel preached. So their pastor preached in a good old Southern Baptist way and shared a bit about my step mom. Then we went over to eat and fellowship. The people here are so friendly and loving. There are some amazing people down here in the Deep South. There were around One hundred and six people that attended. That was not even family, it was just friends and on short notice. Almost all are friends made since they moved out here to Louisiana. I'm going to copy what was written in the pamphlet for Sandy's service today.

Biography

"Sandy Henley was born September 13, 1962, in Modesto, California, to Tom Madden (of Tahlequah, Oklahoma) and Loree Young (of Nail, Arkansas). She had two older siblings Sheila Smith and Duayne Madden.

Sandy and Don were married on September 19, 1996. At that time, Sandy had one son (Robert Madden) and two step-sons (Phillip Henley and David Henley). Later, they were blessed with the arrival of Thomas Henley.

They moved to Abbeville, Louisiana, in 2006, from their ranch in Big Oak Flat, California. Don, Sandy, and Thomas joined Temple Baptist Church in 2011.

Sandy was born again at the age of thirty at Greeley Hill Baptist Church. Sandy loved the Lord and was a joyful servant for her Lord. She went to be with her Lord on the afternoon of December 26, 2012."

"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." -John 14:1-6.

What Sandy wanted to share with you...

"Sandy loved to share the Gospel with others and wanted others to know that God loves them. She wanted to share these Scriptures and this good news with you today:

1. Recognize your condition. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:23). No one is good enough to go to Heaven on his own merit. No matter how much good we do, we still fall short.
2. Realize the penalty for sin. For the wages of sin is death; ...(Romans 6:23). Just as there are wages for good, there is punishment for wrong. The penalty for our sin is separation from God in a lake of fire.
3. Believe Christ died for you. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8). Christ's great love for us was shown when He died on the cross to pay our sin debt.
4. Trust Christ alone as your Savior. ...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23). For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Romans 10:13). Everlasting life is a gift purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ and offered freely to those who call upon Him by faith.

Let us help you word a prayer. (Realize it's not mere words that save but your faith in Jesus Christ.)

Dear Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. Please forgive my sins. Jesus, come into my heart and save my soul from the lake of fire. I'm trusting You and You alone to take me to Heaven when I die. Thank you for saving me, Jesus. Amen!"

Again, this was written in the pamphlet at her Going Home Celebration. She wanted the Gospel preached and I feel this pretty much sums up the life my step mom lived. She was out there witnessing to people, left and right, up until the end. Even in the hospitals. 

Thank you all for praying for Sandy and the rest of our family through all of this. We cherish it more than you know. 

-Love, Pip

Sandy Henley

Last e-mail from my Dad shortly after Sandy's passing. 

"Sandy Henley went home to be with our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ at 3.30 pm on 12/26/12. We have comfort in knowing that she is in a far better place, and we will soon see her again. I thank God for the blessing that he gave me to share time in her life. I want to thank all that has helped in her final days with prayers & kindness. I have to tell you that she charged right to the end with no hesitation. God Bless all of you and know that if you have not received Jesus in your heart and you are reading this, it's not to late!!!  - Don & Tom"

This is the last email I received on December 14, 2012. 

"Hey ya'll,
God is good!!! Having a great day. Thankful for so little sickness and pain so far. I know God will give grace for his will.I love being saves and trusting in the one who loves me so much!!1 I had to miss visitation yesterday (sad face) I hope to go on Sat. I am so greatful for all those who didn't give up on me. When I think of how lost I was I am amazed that saints saw hope!!!!Thank you so much.
Because Christ Lives,
Sandy Henley"

My family has to wait until after Christmas to see if the radiation blasts had any effect. I am currently trying to get a last minute deal to fly out there for a quick visit before my family have to go back to Texas for treatments. Next step is to see if they can do the gamma knives or straight to chemo. Just playing the waiting game. Thanks for all your prayers for my family.  

Eight

I just got the new email and things are getting crazy. This is the email I received from Mom and Dad today;

"To friends and family

 

I will do my best ,but you remember that I have a hard enough time with all my faculties, so with brain cancer you will have to have patience and understanding (HAHA)

First of all had lots of tests MRI and pet scan. We have not learned what the pet scan says, but the MRI has found 8 tumors insted of 3. the Dr's are not sure if the surgery a couple of weeks ago have sent a cell into overdrive causing many more legions, or if these leigions have always been there and have been too small to see in the original MRI.

We also have another appointment at M.D. Anderson on tue. For a consultation and to see how to proceed. Whatever they decide is best, all that Dr's have agreed that treatment will have to be soon, down and dirty, and to the point. We like it like this so this is a good thing.

Don and I are both doing great along with the boys and are trusting God.

We are trusting and desperately wanting his will and glory. Thankful for salvation and what time left he has given to shout his glory (that he so very much deserves)

A way to pray.God's will, Gods glory, and God find us worthy to be used. Simple

Love ya'll bunches,

God is good!!!!!

Don and Sandy"

Thanks for all your prayers!

-Pip

Wait....what?!

Sorry I haven't been on here for awhile. School keeps me busy. It seems a lot of people I know are going through rough times. People dying and getting horrible diseases, etc. Well, my immediate family is not safe from these things either. I have recently got a hard phone call from my Dad. He informed me of my Step-Mom (Sandy) passed out while walking the dog. It turned out that she had three tumors. They were able to get one but the other two are a bit harder to get and would require chemo among other things. I would like to share the email Sandy sent out to friends and family.

Sandy writes;

"Hey Friends and Family,

 

This should be the first of many emails. We are making an attempt to send blanket emails to all friends and family to keep all informed, as things are moving so fast that it makes it impossible to inform everyone individually. It would be a great help if you could pass emails or ask to be on our list or email us your email address so we can send you info.

Last week we went to M.D. Anderson where we were excepted and recieved a treatment plan for Gamma Knives treatment. We met with a brilliant Doctor Susan Mcgovern who will be in charge of the procedure. We shared with her that we would be in prayer for her and her team, at which she responded that she was very greatful for all prayers. Please it is so important that our Drs. and caregivers be held up in prayers. They are responsible for so many and have alot of responsibility. They desperately need guidance.

The first step is a new MRI. The Dr. assumes that everything will be the same after surgery but a new MRI is required to make sure. That is scheduled for Wed. Nov14th 8:30 pm. The next step is an appt on the 16th. for a pet scan.

Dr. McGovern want's us to meet witha melanoma Dr. to find out why I keep getting Melanoma and how to address that problem.

The gamma Knive procedure will take 3 days. 1st day prep for surgery blood work, IV, a general exam. 2nd day hooked up to a halo that attatches on my head in 4 places, that halo is then attatched with me onto a chair that moves all together to preform the procedure.

Dr McGoverrn says she will be doing brain surgery on me from another room on a computer and will not see me that day or even touch me (pretty amazing Huh?)

She says I will not know anything that is happening I will be asleep. I should wake up and it is expected not much side affects.

I will then be released they want me to stay in town just in case there is an emergency, but it is not expected there will be any.

Then the Drs. will determine how the procedure went and if any further treatment is neccessary. So 3 days is expected that from beginning to end the gamma knife procedure should be complete. Hopefully it will go quick and all will be done in the next week or two.

Now to the good part.

God has been so faithful. No sickness very little pain, a little foggy and dizzy, slower and forgetful, but the Dr. says this is all very normal for what I am going thru and should continue to get better. God draws me closer to him by the minute, and has used us for so many incredible opportunities to witness.Drs., nurses, neighbors, strangers every one we meet we are able to share how powerful and loving God is. We are blessed beyond messure. If I breath my last breath praising God I will be complete.

Don, Rob,Lisa Tom, Phil and David are all doing great and trusting in God, We are closer as a family and he has been faithful to us all.Please continue to uphold my beautiful family as this is all much harder on them than me.

Your prayers are a treasure to me I want you too know I am praying for all of you as well. God is so good to give me hours in the middle of the night to think about and pray for you all. These are times most precious with a closeseness to God that I have never experienced and a chance to lift up the ones that I love so much.

I am most thankful that so many years ago he showed me that I was a sinner.Romans3: 10 thru 12 and Romans 23. Then He showed me that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord Romans6:23. Next was Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.and finally Romans 10:9 and 10 That if thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in thy heart that God has raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness: and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

So simple

If this is the first time you have heard the simple truth of the gospel I would love to talk more with you about it.

So simple that a child can understand!!!

Don't let another second go by without the amazing gift of salvation

You are in my prayers, and appreciated so much for all the prayers you offer for me.

Love ya bunches

Sandy"

So I would like to ask all my followers to keep my family in prayer. Thanks.

-Pip

Spring Term is done!! A rough term for sure. This be me grades. Not too hot.

Writing & The Literary Arts = C-

From Caves to Cathedrals ( Art History) = D

Digital Layout & Design = W

Color Theory = A-

Um, yeah. Now I'm trying to shrug this term off and move forward thinking positive for Summer Term. This is just a short update on my grades. I will try and update soon.
-Pip

I have got some amazing news!!! Since my last post in this blog I have received an amazing gift! A dear friend of mine saw my blog post and had exactly what I needed!
My friend had a CS.5 program un opened sitting in his closet. On top of that he had a Mac Book Pro that he was willing to let go of for a friend! I am truly blessed!! He threw in a USB (with mega space) to help with storage. I don't know what to think or feel. I'm so excited to see how this will help in my studies!
The Lord hooked me up once again. He always knows what I need and when.
On top of this I received a call from a relative and we had a much needed update session. Little did I know that it would result in a gift card to H&M for me to buy some new trousers! Mine are getting pretty awful. And the she also dropped some cash in my account.
I'm still a long way from where I want to be but these recent events are a huge help to me. I pray that these people are blessed and rewarded for their generosity to me!
As far as Portland, it's been hot the last week. Everyone loves it and I kinda love it. But hot means I have no summer wear and I have to sweat. (haha). And this also means the pollen and other allergy related junk in the air are effecting me. So far it hasn't been as bad as the Central Valley back home but nonetheless it's not fun.
I just ended my 7th week (out of 11 weeks) of the Spring Term. Almost done for this term. I still have a lot of memorizing, reading & projects to get a decent grade. I fear, already, that I am not getting that 3.0 again. I will try again this coming Summer Term!!