From Garth

Hi, I just want to update all of you.  

Today, Rachel and I had a meeting with the urologist who performed my biopsy.  He tried his best to explain all of the ways that they grade prostate cancer in regards to aggressiveness and advancement.  We were able to get a gist of what he was saying.  And then we started asking about treatment.  He said that if I lived in the area (based on the grades and scores) he wouldn't treat me right now.  He would just monitor me very closely.  However, since I would like to get back to Indonesia where the medical isn't as good, he suggested that I should investigate treatment at this time.  I've had some friends who've gone through this before and they have given me some good advice.  So, at this venture that's what we will be doing.  Thanks for your prayers and encouragement.  I will try to keep you informed along the way.

From Garth

Well, here we are at the end of a fantastic summer furlough.  We have spent so much great time with our whole family together experiencing some great things.  We've visited family in Wisconsin, attended a memorial service for my step mother in New York, spent a fun week at headquarters in Nampa, and visited some beautiful places in the Northwest as we ended up in Vancouver, WA soaking in the love from New Heights.  It's been a great summer.

But now we come to the end of the summer and have to deal with my medical issues.  Up until yesterday, I was so hopeful that my health issues wouldn't get in the way of our returning to our beloved perch on the hill above Sentani in the dorm.  But God has other plans apparently.  On Friday, August 3, I had a prostate biopsy done because of multiple heightened PSA numbers.  Yesterday, the doctor called me to let me know that the test revealed cancer.  I am confident that it is treatable, but it's going to take some time.  I have an appointment to meet with the doctors on the 20th to discuss what treatment plan would be best.

As you can imagine, we are somewhat reeling with the news.  What's going to happen at the dorm?  Should we start Sophie and Cale in public school here?  How long is this going to take?  What's going to happen to our dog Chester?  But we also know that our Father is big enough to handle all those issues and more.

 I know this email will bring up questions, and right now there are a lot of unknowns. As we get information we will be sure to let you know. As of now, just please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Garth for Rachel and the family

Update from Washington

Hey everybody! I hope you are enjoying your summer as much as I am. We have been connecting with family and friends in Wisconsin, New York, Idaho and now we are all together in the beautiful state of Washington. It has made my heart very happy to have all 6 of the Erickson's together again. God is so good! But, starting tomorrow things are going to change. Wyatt will leave to go back to Corban in Salem, Oregon. He is on the soccer team and needs to get back for pre-season.Emma is going to a college retreat from Aug.5-8 and then will leave for college on the 10th. She is going to go to John Brown in Siloam Springs, Arkansas and Garth is going to drive her the 2,000 miles to get her there. Sophie, Cale and I are supposed to leave Aug 13 to start the trip back to Indo and Garth will follow once Emma is settled. 

        

However, there is a chance that we will stay in the area longer. Garth has had a lot of medical work done during our time here. He found out that he has diabetes and is on medication for that. He found out that he has high blood pressure and is on meds for that. He has also seen a specialist about his Hepatitis C and is currently on a treatment plan to cure that. But the factor that is pressing on us today is his prostate. (Sorry. I know. TMI.) He is going in for a biopsy and will get the results of that on the 10th. That is cutting it close to our departure date. If the results come back and the doctors feel that they need to treat him then we would need to stay in this area longer. That would mean making a lot of decisions quickly. Where to stay, where to put the kids in school, how long to be here, what to do about a vehicle to drive etc.

So, we would appreciate your prayers in all of this. The kids and I are going to be packed up on the 10th just like we would be to leave on the 13th. Garth will be on the road with Emma. We will go from being all together, to being very split up. Pray for Sophie as she would really like to know where she is going to school. She has started making friends at youth group but doesn't want to invest too much in case she leaves in 10 days. I am feeling unsettled because of not knowing. Garth would like to be healthy and do what would be best to help make that happen. So, a lot going on. But God is in control, and we trust Him completely.

Over the nine years we have been with MAF, we have been short-term associates.  That means that MAF has been supplementing our support to the tune of about about $3,000 per month.  We have been so thankful for that.  Seriously, we wouldn't be ministering in Indonesia if it wasn't for MAF, and couldn't do it without you and your prayer and financial support. We are asking you to commit to praying about this need. If you are willing to begin partnering with our ministry or increase your financial support there is a link below. We have two years left in Indo unless God shows us otherwise. We really want to finish strong.

We're all in this together,

Rachel

www.maf.org/erickson