To the moon and back.

Today I received a beautiful gift in the mail from a dear friend from college. It sent my heart to the moon and back -- with love, encouragement and hope. She made me a prayer quilt with the help of friends all over the world.  In her own words, "God... when I think of Chelsa and what she faced and is facing, I don't know what to say. This quilt is my prayer for you Chelsa... it says what I can't always." It is meant to send special prayers to God every time I snuggle up in it. Every time I see it, I will feel encouraged and reminded that God is with me. 

Some of you may know that I have dabbled in quilt making...and pretty much suck at it. So this gift is even more dear to my heart, I KNOW how much work and how time consuming it is to take on a project like this. 

Anywho, I just wanted to share how beautiful a gift this is and say a big, giant THANK YOU to Tracey and the sneaky bloggy friends who made this happen. I am encouraged. And I will praise God every time I see or snuggle up in this quilt. What a blessing.

The latest with me is that I start my last round of chemo (for awhile) on Monday and have been feeling great. Hopefully I will get a nice long break after that! 

My vaccine that Health & Wellness and Dana Farber are collaborating on is in the works as well. We have over $10K of the needed $16K raised. Thank you for being SO generous. It really blows us away. I am very excited about this vaccine and feel like we are very close to a possible cure for this nasty disease. We are thankful for the work that is being done by Dana Farber and the doctors at Health and Wellness on my behalf. 

I also got prayed for by a pastor at church and anointed with oil last Sunday. They read James 5:13-18 which says, "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit."

I am super encouraged, hopeful and trusting in God. Some days are really hard and I feel like all that is ahead of me is pain and suffering. And then there are days like today, when a friend sends a beautiful gift and I am reminded of God's unfailing love and faithfulness.