Lord, Give Me Experience

Van came home from the hospital today. They gave him only 2 pints of blood because the rest of his counts are starting to come up on their own. We are so excited! This means we should have a wonderful Spring Break with our children. General Conference is this next weekend (our favorite time of the year) and we are so excited to watch it together with our family. We are trying to figure out something we can do as a family each day of our break. It can’t be in a public place with crowds and germs. However, it can be outside if the wind isn’t blowing and all within an hour’s drive of the hospital. As limiting as this may seem, we are putting on our thinking caps in order to find something creative to do each day of the week that Van can participate in.


Friday, April 16th, we have a family conference with the head Doctor to discuss the details of the Stem Cell Transplant. This is where all the family members who will be Van’s care givers come to ask questions and learn what they can expect after transplant. Wednesday, April 21st, Van will be admitted to the LDS Hospital to start the pre-transplant regimen which includes 6 days of full body radiation, 48 hours of chemo and rabbits blood to prepare for a stem cell transplant on Friday, April 30th. The next day Olivia, our daughter will be baptized and confirmed. I’ll expand on this and who will baptize her, in the future.


Van speaking:  Some friends of ours visited today and brought to our attention this quote from Elder Neil A. Maxwell, which is so fitting. “One’s life . . . cannot be both faith-filled and stress-free. . . . Therefore, how can you and I really expect to glide naively through life, as if to say, ‘Lord, give me experience, but not grief, not sorrow, not pain, not opposition, not betrayal, and certainly not to be forsaken. Keep from me, Lord, all those experiences which made Thee what Thou art! Then let me come and dwell with Thee and fully share Thy joy!’ . . . Real faith . . . is required to endure this necessary but painful developmental process.”  

Even the Savior asked that the bitter cup be removed.  But we all know that God in his wisdom, did not remove that bitter cup.   You and I are extremely grateful that it wasn't removed.  I don't know of a single example in the scriptures where the Lord took away someones trials.  But I know of many, many instances where he strengthens individuals so they can better endure -- then through faith and patience they are eventually delivered.   It is my testimony that adversity is the great University of the Lord.  If we are serious about becoming like the Savior, then "BRING IT ON"!