A
Numbers’ Game
When
Madison was first diagnosed and really throughout her treatment it has
been, in my mind most often, a numbers’ game.
Chances of contracting the illness, percentage of survival
rate, blood counts, white cell counts, temperature and pulse and
centimeter measurements of tumors.
But the measurement…the number I am most interested in is
“lives touched.” Unfortunately
there is not blood test that can tell this…no amount of poking or
prodding will determine the number…no litmus paper to dip into
liquid and determine how many lives Madison has and continues to
touch. Can it be
measured…the people who began to pray?
Can it be measured those who returned to their Faith?
Can it be measured…lives changed, blessings counted, moments
when selfish lives turned selfless and Christ’s command to “love
thy neighbor” was put into practice?
No
one will ever know the exact number…but I can be confident that it
is higher than any devastating number concerning her illness. The rippling effect of the lives she touches continues to fan
out, going further and growing faster than any disease.
It truly is a “good infection.”
I hazard a guess that it will someday reach a million hearts.
And
surely those results are not black numbers on white paper
readouts…being scanned over in cold fluorescent-lit rooms.
No, the results of this test will be read in brilliant
sunlight, God’s light and not recorded on paper but on the faces and
hearts of all who have been touched by her spirit.
I
look forward to watching Madison grow-up…body and spirit… and
continue to inspire for years and years and years and years to come.
Written by:
Kathy Wollensak
Dear Friend of the Farhat-Tomaszewski Family
Dear
Madison and Mr. and Mrs. FT,
November 19, 2000
Hi.
This is Danielle Russ and I am writing to you because in Bible
class, we are learning about standing stones.
Standing stones are monuments that people in ancient Israel
used to commemorate an important event.
People would put them out in places where others could see them
and then, everyone who saw them would want to know what happened.
Our assignment was to write a letter to someone who was a
standing stone in our life. In
other words, someone who, when we see them we are reminded of God’s
work in our lives. And I immediately thought of you.
Whenever
I see or think of you, Madison, I am reminded of God’s miracles.
You are truly one of His precious miracles.
He showed me His awesome power through you and your family.
So many people were praying for you when you were going through
everything and God answered those prayers.
You are such an inspiration and I admire you and your
family’s courage to keep on fighting.
God gave you the strength to overcome all of your obstacles
because you and many other people had faith in Him and knew that He
would make everything all right. If there is ever a time that I think God can’t get me
through something or heal someone, I am reminded of what He has done
in your lives. You all are so brave and courageous and I admire your
strong faith in God.
Faith
is based on memories of great things that God has done in people’s
lives and I think that Madison is a great example of what having faith
can achieve. Thank you
for being a standing stone in my life and helping me to have a
stronger faith in God’s master plan.
With love –
Dear Family and Friends: November 8, 2000
We
thank our heavenly Father for giving us this miracle.
He has revealed to us His glory and power through the healing of precious
Madison. Many of you have faithfully prayed for 15 months… God has once again, heard and answered us. We
also thank Him for providing our entire family with the grace to endure our
trial. As promised in His word, it
was in direct proportion to our need.
We
rejoice with you and give God -
our ultimate Healer – the glory for our MIRACLE!
We thank Him, the giver of all good gifts for placing an incredible
medical team in our path and providing them with wisdom and discernment… for
producing the technology, for guiding the surgeon’s hands and for creating the
protocol for hepatoblastoma. All of
these are gifts from God. We ask
Him to bless abundantly – all those who, in some fashion, touched Madison’s
life in a positive way… the doctors, nurses and thousands of family members
and friends from around the globe who were faithful to us in prayer.
We
sincerely thank all who have contributed to Madison’s recovery. We ask that you please continue as His word instructs, to
pray without ceasing… We must continue to lift Madison up in prayer… for her
continued good health.
With
love and gratitude,
Steve,
Kathy,