Thanksgiving & Update

It is time for a long overdue update-i do apologize. But first, I want to wish everyone a very wonderful and Blessed Thanksgiving. Give Thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!!!! Remember who to thank-Our God, our one and only Savior. I am thankful for so many things, but most importantly, I am thankful for the Lord giving me a second chance at life, and the opportunity to glorify him in all that I do. Although this road may be difficult, I know he is leading me into this ministry for a reason.

As a short update, I was in the hospital from November 9th through the 19, which started out as chest pain and nausea, and turned in to infection. Thankfully this stay was a tad bit shorter, and i did not miss too much of school. As usual, it will take me awhile to gain my energy and strength back. My school semester is nearing the end. I have some exams coming up in the next few weeks, then I will be officially entering my last semester of nursing school.

So many people have asked lately: How are you doing nursing school. And i've talked a little bit about this on my blog. But my 1st and foremost reason, is because this is the path I believe the Lord is leading me down. This is a ministry for me. I have such a huge passion for children, and a love for the lord, that I cant' wait to put that into practice. There may be difficult times down the road, but I truly believe the Lord will get me through them, because this is my way of serving the Lord. It's very hard now to see this, as i've had many trials through nursing school that question will I be healthy enough to work. Honestly, I've never thought about that in detail. I always assume I will be healthy enough. This year I have had some progression of chronic rejection. I have started back treatment, for the 3rd time as well for it. As I started to ponder, I actually got really scared about what was going to happen. Will I make it through 1 more semester? Will I live to work? What if type of questions. I never thought that the sentence in the newspaper about my transplant in 2004 would be true: "This transplant should give Katey another 5 years of life." (even though I am almost 8 yrs post transplant). Heck....I was actually pretty mad at that statement, because I had plans on living til I was 90 something years old. And I'm not saying that isn't possible. But the possibility that the chronic rejection could progress to the need for a 2nd transplant sooner than later, definitely worries me. I'm not scared of Death, but i just didn't think the possibility of it could come sooner than I thought.

But then after tonight's Thanksgiving service at my church, I realized that God's love endures forever....whether I continue to live on Earth, or not; whether I graduate with my BSN and work in pediatric nursing. Only God has those answers right now. I need to be thankful for God, and for the wonderful and amazing things he has given me and my family. I honestly need to go back to taking it one day at a time. When trouble comes, deal with it, then pick back up on my feet and keep running.

So this Thanksgiving, remember to thank God first and foremost. Be thankful you can breathe. Be thankful you are alive and well. The Lord's love endures forever, despite your pitfalls, failures, or even death. Be thankful for that this Thanksgiving.

Please say a special prayer for my friend, Amy Crews. She and I have a special bond, and she is currently waiting for her 2nd lung transplant. Please lift her up in your prayers over the holidays. Thank you!

Love to you all,