November 10, 2014

I've always loved Proverbs 3:5-6. Never really focused on verse 8 until this weekend. How awesome is this!!

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones. (Proverbs 3:5-8 NLT)

November 8, 2014 - Preparing for Battle

Today has been a wonderful day. I saw lots of friends, will be seeing more friends tonight, and I am getting a kitten!!  Very excited about that. :)

We have fun things planned between now and Wednesday when I have surgery. It's like I can plan until then - and we have no idea what life looks like on the other side of Wednesday. I know it will be different than what it is today - best case is that I am recovering from major surgery and on tamoxifen for several years. I don't know what other scenarios look like and I am doing my best not to speculate. 

The Bible has given us such comfort on this journey, and that's where we are looking for guidance and direction.  When I checked out the website for our plastic surgeon for the first time, he had Proverbs 3:5-6 on his page. That was a huge comfort and encouragement to me, and so many times in the past few weeks, our friends have shared the verses with us.  So even though I don't know what things look like past Wednesday, I wanted you to know our battle plan:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT)

Thank you for your prayers and posts and encouragement!  Mindy or Kelli or Tony will be updating while we are at the hospital. 

November 7, 2014 - Thank you for your prayers!

I was diagnosed with breast cancer on October 16, 2014. It started out as a normal day - I felt great but was going for a check up, like I have done for the last 7 years. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in her 40's and so my doctor had me on a high risk protocol that included regular mammograms, ultrasounds, MRI's and biopsies as needed. This visit seemed the same.

At 3am that morning, I woke up feeling worried about a big event happening at our church. I picked up my phone, looking for verses dealing with feeling overwhelmed.  This is what I read:

"When we look continually in faith to Jesus, not at our circumstances, we will find a tranquility within, no matter what is happening around us."

You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. (Isaiah 26:3 NKJV)

How perfect!  I posted it to my Facebook page and went back to sleep.

Fast forward to 9am. Sitting at the doctor's office, I received a text from my friend, Ashley:

"Good morning Kathy. I just wanted to let you know that I'm praying for you. You are covered by God's righteous right hand. I'm praying that you be refreshed and renewed emotionally physically mentally. That the Holy Spirit would breath life and energy into you like nothing on this earth can."

I thought that was so nice - Ashley and I text often but she doesn't text me things like that every day. I told her thanks and waited for the doctor.

Two hours later, my doctor (who is not a worst-case scenario person) told me, "we need to do a biopsy today, and I would not be surprised if this is cancer."  Time stood still - I felt sad and calm and peaceful, all at the same time. Immediately I remembered what I had read at 3am, and what Ashley had sent me at 9am, and I KNEW that God was preparing me. The God of the universe, who had created all things, knew where I was and what was happening, and wanted me to know that He was with me. The next day, the diagnoses was confirmed and the journey began.

On October 23, Tony and I met with the doctor and found out that I had infiltrating ductal carcinoma, and it was a high grade, aggressive tumor. After some consultations and testing over the next few days, and prayer and conversations with my family, we decided to go ahead with surgery. I will have a double mastectomy with reconstruction on November 12th. The surgery will determine whether there is lymph node involvement, the cancer stage, and from there we will begin to formulate the treatment plan.

That is the clinical side. I wanted to create a caring bridge site to keep everyone up to date with us from a medical perspective.

More importantly, my hope is that as our friends and family stop by the site, that you will be encouraged by the real story - how God is going to use this for His Glory.  Over and over, He is showing His power as He gives us a verse to meditate on, a song to sing, an encouraging word or prayer from a friend, or a devotional that keeps us focused on the fact that He is with us and we are not alone. I want to share with you the things that He is doing in and through us, and we want you to know how much we appreciate each prayer and kind word.

Please be praying for Tony, Mindy and Kelli, and for our extended family and our amazing friends as we take this journey!

October 17, 2014 - A Cancer Diagnosis

Kathy Conklin Boyd October 17 at 8:18pm ·

Just wanted to let everybody know what's going on with us. I was diagnosed with breast cancer today. We don't have any details; we will be meeting with my doctor next Thursday to find out our plan of action. There's a lot that we don't know, but there's a lot that we DO know:

1) This is not a surprise to God; He has my days already planned and he will be glorified through this journey.

2) Tony Boyd and I are blessed with the most incredible friends and family, and we know they will be with us!

3) I am so thankful for our girls, and that God made sure that Kelli was in the United States when we received this news!

4) We are excited to see how God works out each detail as we prepare to launch LF West - He knew what this week would bring, and He has plans for good and not evil!!

Thank you for praying for us! And it's okay if you want to hug me when you see me. Hugs will be allowed for a limited time!!

Thoughts from my girls:

Mindy 
October 17 

We found out today that my mom has breast cancer, and I was able to see once again, her faith in action. She immediately saw this as an opportunity for God to use her story, to redeem what could appear life-shattering, to grow us all in our total trust in Him. Thankful for her example! Thank you for praying with us for her complete healing. God is good and faithful!
"GOD makes his people strong. GOD gives his people peace." (Psalm 29:11 MSG)


Kelli 
October 17

Had quite an emotional day!

This morning we received our official appointment as Fully-appointed Missionaries with the Assemblies of God!! (Before, we were associates, so this transition means we're in it for the long haul, not just a year or two.) We plan on returning to Happy Horizons in one year, to expand and enhance the incredible ministry there. So thankful for the opportunity to serve at HHCR, and to be a part of AGWM!! #AGMD

This afternoon my mom, Kathy, was diagnosed with breast cancer. The doctor still needs to do more testing to determine the stage and treatment, but our world has been rocked.

God is with us, through the mountains AND the valleys. He is sovereign, and He never leaves us for one moment. I can't imagine facing this news without the knowledge that we have an all-powerful God, who sees us and loves us. So thankful for the HOPE that He brings!


I love you, Mom. It's all going to work out just the way it's supposed to. 

Thinking out loud...

Tonight, I had the privilege of sharing with the Growth Track, a four-week class that we have at Life Fellowship Church.  We were talking about habits in our lives that can help us grow in our walk with God.  Those habits are prayer and Bible study, fellowshipping with other believers, giving of our time, money and talents, and living a spirit-led life; each of them are vital to our spiritual growth.  

My “section” to share about was living a spirit-led life, and how the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us, if we will let Him.  I talked about Tucker, our grandson, and how the Holy Spirit had comforted me in such specific ways through Tucker’s diagnosis of a congenital heart defect.  When I talked about what I learned during this time, I cried (as I often do - not a shock to anyone who knows me!).  

But I don’t want to let my emotions get in the way of what I’m trying to communicate, and I don’t want people to think that I’m crying because the story is sad.  On the contrary, I cry because I am in awe to think that the God of the universe knows me, and is willing and able to teach me so much about His love for me!  What an incredible mystery - that in the midst of difficult times in my life, God is able to replace fear and sadness with comfort and peace.  

Even more amazing - that this omnipotent God is able to do the same thing for every one of us.  What Satan may intend for evil and destruction in our lives, God can redeem for His Glory!  I am so incredibly thankful for the peace that passes understanding, for the hope that God gives us in ANY situation - if we are willing to be still, to know that He is God, that nothing is a surprise to Him.  

The lessons that God is teaching me about letting the Spirit lead and about trusting in His goodness have been life-changing.   There is nothing in this world to fear - not an earthquake experienced this week by our daughter and her family on the other side of the world; not sickness; not the economy; not the uncertainty of life.  If we are Christ-followers, we have the “blessed assurance” of knowing that He is with us.  

Someone needs to hear that right now.  

A Change of Pace

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted - not for a lack of things going on, but because life is happening so quickly!   Funny - the last time I posted was two days after GO RUN  (our 5k in April), and today it is one day before GO RUN - the 15k.  Life definitely is full of surprises - if you'd told me last year that I would coordinate two races in 2011, I wouldn't have believed it. You never know what's around the corner in life!  :)

After several years of being a full-time staff member at Life Fellowship, I have the opportunity to step back and focus on some people and passions that are near and dear to me.  Tony’s career is moving in a new direction with Corky’s BBQ, and the changes mean that he will be traveling on a more extended basis - and I am going to travel with him!  We are so excited to have the opportunity to spend more time together at this season in our lives.  During November, we will be spending time in the Nashville and Pensacola areas, and will cap off the month with a trip to the Philippines to see Kelli, John, Clara and Lincoln!  It has been almost a year since they boarded the plane for Cebu City.  Skype is awesome, but we are counting the days until we get to see them face-to-face and in person!  One priority as we move to this new adventure was that I get to spend Thursdays with Tucker, so we are scheduling our travel time to accommodate that very important date each week!  :)  

We will be home every weekend, and look forward to “doing life” with our Life Fellowship family!  Tony and I will continue to be involved with the Growth Track, Guest Services Teams and lifeGROUPS, and I will be working on the HR side of things at the church.  We are blessed to have been a part of what God is doing since the day that Life Fellowship was born, and we look forward to what He has for each of us in the future!  We are so grateful to Pastor Patrick and Treasa Conrad for their friendship and leadership, and for the incredible life change that we personally have experienced at Life Fellowship. 

The last few years have been full of so many experiences and emotions - becoming empty nesters, then grandparents; dealing with health issues of family members; and amazing moments as Life Fellowship has grown from a “baby” church to a multi-site movement with five services each weekend in two locations.  God has taught us so many things over the past few years; if I were to sum it up into one thought, it would be to treasure and relish each moment, confident in the knowledge that God is in control and has a perfect plan.   

Angela Thomas is one of my favorite writers, and I love a couple of quotes from her:

"For me, trusting is learning to breathe during the fall. Trusting is believing with my whole life that God will catch me. He promises to keep His promises. He is able. He is strong. His heart towards me is good. He wants even more for me than I can dream." 

“I believe that God meant for life to take our breath away, sometimes because of the sheer joy of it all and sometimes because of the severe pain.”  

It’s so easy to embrace the “sheer joy” moments, but the severe pain?   We would rather skip those seasons, but we will have both, there’s no escaping it.  It all comes down to trusting God and in His goodness.  God uses both places to shape us, to help us to empathize with the people that He puts into our lives, and if we will let Him, to find incredible comfort in Him.  I choose to trust Him!

I plan to post on a much more frequent basis in the future - as “Life in the Grammy Lane” hits the road!  

The Beauty of Suffering

Tony and I have had a lot of discussions lately focusing on what sets apart the people who have a faith that is contagious.  We are privileged to have so many “role models” in our lives, people of all ages who have been a huge influence on us, and who have caused our faith to become stronger. 

There are definitely tools that God uses to help us build our faith - the Holy Spirit, who guides us; the Bible, God’s living word; and the people He puts in our lives to hold us accountable, to encourage us, to challenge us to be everything that we can be.  But one thing is certain - we will be tested.

Tony and I came to the conclusion that the common factor we have observed in watching people grow from christians to CHRISTIANS - to giants in their faith - is how they react to suffering when it comes into their lives.  Suffering comes in many forms - it may be relational, physical, financial.  And suffering is different from pain - because suffering is for a season, not for a minute.  In my experience, and as I watch people around me, I know that we have a choice.  We can choose to let suffering destroy our faith, or we can allow God to use that suffering to take our faith to a completely new level in our relationship with Him.  

I read an excerpt from Mark Batterson’s book, “Primal”, which articulates so clearly exactly what we have been thinking about:

Many Christians settle for simplicity on the near side of complexity.  Their faith is only mind deep.  They know what they believe, but they don’t know why they believe what they believe.  Their faith is fragile because it has never been tested intellectually or experientially.  Near-side Christians have never been in the catacombs of doubt or suffering, so when they encounter questions they cannot answer or experiences they cannot explain, it causes a crisis of faith.  

For far-side Christians, those who have done their time in the catacombs of doubt or suffering, unanswerable questions and unexplainable experiences actually result in a heightened appreciation for the mystery and majesty of a God who does not fit within the logical constraints of the left brain.  

We don't enjoy the time of suffering, but the rewards that come from it - the reliance in God that we would never learn any other way - is worth the suffering.  I am thankful for, and praying for, the “heroes of the faith” in my life who continue to live on the far-side, and who demonstrate their faith in the midst of suffering!

In closing - some great lyrics from "Blessings" by Laura Story - 

We pray for blessings

We pray for peace

Comfort for family, protection while we sleep

We pray for healing, for prosperity

We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering

All the while, You hear each spoken need

Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights 

Are what it takes to know You’re near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise