September 30, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Well we have collected 1.89 million as of today. I need 5 M so keep praying. I have 3 more days of collection so right on target. My prayers are with you all.
GO TWINS!!!!!!!!!!!
GO TWINS!!!!!!!!!!!
September 29, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Monday, September 29, 2008
My first day of collection is done. I had my total numbers for collection wrong. I only need 5 million cells according to today's numbers. Sorry about the bad information. I am a Norske from ND so maybe it had a play in all things! Uff da...
They collected about a 1 million cells today and the Nurse coordinator said it should be higher tomorrow. I am hoping we can get it done in 2-3 days. Pray for stem cells and lots of them. The stem cell team is great. I am grateful for being at Mayo and the care they have given me and my family.
I watched the on going deliberation and activity in the financial world as they collected my cells. As I watched it had a way making "worry and fear" become the words for the day. Maybe you are being overcome by worry or fear. It is very understandable. I had to remind myself that my hope is not in things but in Him as the stem cells piled up in the little bag by the machine. I prayed that peace and wisdom would come over our leaders and us as we go through these difficult days. No one knows what tomorrow brings. Our hope is in Him, our Rock and Salvation. In Him will I trust for today and tomorrow. No one has tomorrow.
As I face the uncertain future of my health I am driven to Jesus. No matter what happens to my "finacial future" I am certain of my future in Him. My prayers are with each of us as we face uncertain times on this earth in light of a sure and certain future in Christ.
They collected about a 1 million cells today and the Nurse coordinator said it should be higher tomorrow. I am hoping we can get it done in 2-3 days. Pray for stem cells and lots of them. The stem cell team is great. I am grateful for being at Mayo and the care they have given me and my family.
I watched the on going deliberation and activity in the financial world as they collected my cells. As I watched it had a way making "worry and fear" become the words for the day. Maybe you are being overcome by worry or fear. It is very understandable. I had to remind myself that my hope is not in things but in Him as the stem cells piled up in the little bag by the machine. I prayed that peace and wisdom would come over our leaders and us as we go through these difficult days. No one knows what tomorrow brings. Our hope is in Him, our Rock and Salvation. In Him will I trust for today and tomorrow. No one has tomorrow.
As I face the uncertain future of my health I am driven to Jesus. No matter what happens to my "finacial future" I am certain of my future in Him. My prayers are with each of us as we face uncertain times on this earth in light of a sure and certain future in Christ.
September 28, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Sunday, September 28, 2008
Well it has been a busy 3 days. I had a Palindrome catheter (central line) place on Friday AM. I have had several dressing changes due to continued bleeding but all is well. I have been receiving growth factor injections for 4 days. At 7 AM this morning I had blood work to determine if I had achieved the >10 million stem cell goal to begin collecting stem cells. My report as of 5 PM today indicates that I have a blood level of 19 million stem cells in blood!! We will begin at 7 AM tomorrow collecting stem cells in preparation for the future transplant. Praise God! This is huge. We are right on schedule for the treatments as planned. Pray for continued strength and stem cells. Ole Hallesby in his book on Prayer
reminds each of us that "to pray is to let Jesus come into our hearts." My prayer is that Jesus, the Healer of our every ill, would abide in me more and more each day. In the midst of the press of the testing and waiting I find I need to pray that prayer frequently each day. Jesus has given me peace and strength in this season of healing.
We are rejoicing that my sister and husband arrived safely from North Carolina to be with me for the next month at Mayo. I blessed to have a wonderfully supportive family and church family. God is so good. Bless you all.
reminds each of us that "to pray is to let Jesus come into our hearts." My prayer is that Jesus, the Healer of our every ill, would abide in me more and more each day. In the midst of the press of the testing and waiting I find I need to pray that prayer frequently each day. Jesus has given me peace and strength in this season of healing.
We are rejoicing that my sister and husband arrived safely from North Carolina to be with me for the next month at Mayo. I blessed to have a wonderfully supportive family and church family. God is so good. Bless you all.
September 24, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Wednesday, September 24, 2008
It was a full day of consultations and education. My final appointment was with my stem cell physician. He wasn't able to meet with us do to illness however his wife who is also a stem cell transplant physician reviewed the results from my pretesting with Lois and me. My PET scan, CT scan and bone marrow biopsy were all free of any signs of mantle cells. Wow, Surprise me God! It means I am in great shape for the stem cell transplant process to begin tomorrow. I will have my first growth hormone injection to start the stimulation of stem cells in my bone marrow tomorrow. Pray for 10 million stem cells or greater in my blood by Monday the 29th. If we reach this level the collection process begins. I feel good and am ready for the process to begin.
Thank you for all your prayers. God has answered our prayers for remission and readiness for stem cell transplant.
May this answer to prayer be to Your good and purpose Gracious God. Thank you Jesus.
Thank you for all your prayers. God has answered our prayers for remission and readiness for stem cell transplant.
May this answer to prayer be to Your good and purpose Gracious God. Thank you Jesus.
September 23, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Tuesday, September 23, 2008
I am finished with more than half of my pre-testing for stem cell collection and transplant. Praise God. I am a little sore from a bone marrow biopsy but otherwise doing well. Thanks again for all the prayers and words of encouragement. We have a wonderful church family that has held us all the way.
My dear friend Dick passed away last week. He was a lawyer and District Judge. His funeral is this afternoon in Crookston, MN. I wish I could have been there today. Dick was a wonderful friend and neighbor. He and his wife, Mary Jane, were some of the first folks we met when we moved to Crookston. Dick was the first one I knew that had a "weber kettle cooker"! I was so impressed (this was back in the days of charcoal and lighter fluid only). He taught me how to use it to cook all kinds of stuff. Oh for those days of backyard BBQ's in the neighborhood with all the kids running around. Dick fought a long and valient battle with cancer. He encouraged me when I was diagnosed on how to live life to the fullest inspite of your circumstances. I will miss his sweet smile and gentle disposition. Many will miss our friend and brother in Christ. It is a bitter sweet day.
My dear friend Dick passed away last week. He was a lawyer and District Judge. His funeral is this afternoon in Crookston, MN. I wish I could have been there today. Dick was a wonderful friend and neighbor. He and his wife, Mary Jane, were some of the first folks we met when we moved to Crookston. Dick was the first one I knew that had a "weber kettle cooker"! I was so impressed (this was back in the days of charcoal and lighter fluid only). He taught me how to use it to cook all kinds of stuff. Oh for those days of backyard BBQ's in the neighborhood with all the kids running around. Dick fought a long and valient battle with cancer. He encouraged me when I was diagnosed on how to live life to the fullest inspite of your circumstances. I will miss his sweet smile and gentle disposition. Many will miss our friend and brother in Christ. It is a bitter sweet day.
September 18, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Thursday, September 18, 2008
We had a staff "retirement party" for Mary tonight. There was good food, laughter and some tears. It is hard to say good bye to someone who has worked side-by-side of you for 4 years. Good byes are inevitable and yet we still dread them. But we didn't want to just say good bye tonight. We wanted to say thank you. Thanks for all the hard work, long hours, difficult calls, faithful ministry and deep caring for our church family and for us as a staff.
We grieve and give thanks tonight. We are losing a partner in ministry who God put alongside us to do God's work with us. We thank God for this time together in ministry with Mary and pray God's blessing upon her as she enters a new season of her life. God loves you Mary and so do we.
We grieve and give thanks tonight. We are losing a partner in ministry who God put alongside us to do God's work with us. We thank God for this time together in ministry with Mary and pray God's blessing upon her as she enters a new season of her life. God loves you Mary and so do we.
September 14, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Sunday, September 14, 2008
It's been a good day by all measures. Luke is ordained. Awesome! Katie had a great day for Children's Ministry I have been told. We are blessed to be serving at Prince of Peace at such a time as this. Thank you to all who helped make Luke's Ordination Day a special event for all who could participate. Rumor has it that the food/reception was great. Luke and food...kinda go together like "love and marriage"/"horse and carriage"...you know what I mean?
I wish I could have been with our church family today. I agonized over not being there. I guess I just felt cheated. It is a huge thing in a church family to have an ordination and I am sidelined for 36 hours plus in an isolation hospital room. I went in with a fever on Saturday morning at 3:30 A.M. They cultured my blood after doing the blood work that indicated my neutraphils and white blood cells were extremely low...go figure...what else is new. They isolated me in room with reverse ventilation to protect me from the other "sick" patients on the floor and in the building. I had IV antibiotics every 8 hrs and the fever came down. I am doing fine and now have one more med to take along with all the others. I was home again about 4:30 P.M. this afternoon. I am glad to be home.
Some things don't make sense, yet in the midst of these moments God is still at work building His Kingdom. It takes times like these to remind us that it is God's work we are doing on God's time frame with the players that God has set apart for such a time as this. God is faithful to continue raising up God's Church in this world. We just have a moment or two where we have the privilege of experiencing God's incredible grace and power in our midst. I continue to praise and thank God for Prince of Peace and the gift it is in my life at this time. Bless you!
I wish I could have been with our church family today. I agonized over not being there. I guess I just felt cheated. It is a huge thing in a church family to have an ordination and I am sidelined for 36 hours plus in an isolation hospital room. I went in with a fever on Saturday morning at 3:30 A.M. They cultured my blood after doing the blood work that indicated my neutraphils and white blood cells were extremely low...go figure...what else is new. They isolated me in room with reverse ventilation to protect me from the other "sick" patients on the floor and in the building. I had IV antibiotics every 8 hrs and the fever came down. I am doing fine and now have one more med to take along with all the others. I was home again about 4:30 P.M. this afternoon. I am glad to be home.
Some things don't make sense, yet in the midst of these moments God is still at work building His Kingdom. It takes times like these to remind us that it is God's work we are doing on God's time frame with the players that God has set apart for such a time as this. God is faithful to continue raising up God's Church in this world. We just have a moment or two where we have the privilege of experiencing God's incredible grace and power in our midst. I continue to praise and thank God for Prince of Peace and the gift it is in my life at this time. Bless you!
September 7, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Sunday, September 07, 2008
In April of this year I was diagnosed with Mantle Cell Lymphoma. This was the beginning of a 3 Phase Journey of Healing. Phase I was the removal of a 6# spleen full of lymphoma. Phase II was a series of 6 chemo treatments which I have completed this past week. I can’t tell you how glad I am that Phase II is complete.
I am looking forward to the next few weeks at Prince of Peace for several reasons. First, next Sunday the 14th we ordain Luke Schmidt. Secondly on the 21st we will install Luke as our Pastor of Community Life. Finally on Monday Sept 22 I will begin my final Phase III. I will be heading for Rochester to the Mayo Clinic’s Stem Cell Transplant Center for 5-8 weeks where I will be receiving a Stem Cell Transplant. It is necessary that I be within 20 minutes of the transplant center at all times during this period of treatment.
The first week will be filled with testing and preparation for the stem cell collection.
The second week will be the collection of my stem cells from my blood.
The third week I will receive large doses of chemotherapy to eliminate my immune system and then they will reintroduce my collected stem cells to rebuild my new immune system.
The fourth and fifth week will be rebuilding and recovery. If all goes as planned after 5 weeks I will be discharged to return to the cities. If necessary I may need an additional 1-3 weeks recovery near the center before discharge.
I will continue to work closely with Scott Lien and Pastor Hal during this time.
I want to thank you for your loving, kind and gracious spirit during this difficult time. It has been difficult for me personally. I know that it has been difficult for the leadership of our church, it has been difficult for our staff and it has been difficult for you as a church family.
God has been working in me these past months to bring healing and I am grateful for all the prayer that has been poured out on my behalf. I believe God has been at work in you as a church family too. As I have poured out my prayers for you, God has kept His hand upon our church family in a powerful way.
Again I want to thank you for your gracious spirit you have shown to Lois, my family and me. I look forward to the day when I will have the privilege to serve along side you fully and completely as your Senior Pastor in the near future.
God bless you all.
I am looking forward to the next few weeks at Prince of Peace for several reasons. First, next Sunday the 14th we ordain Luke Schmidt. Secondly on the 21st we will install Luke as our Pastor of Community Life. Finally on Monday Sept 22 I will begin my final Phase III. I will be heading for Rochester to the Mayo Clinic’s Stem Cell Transplant Center for 5-8 weeks where I will be receiving a Stem Cell Transplant. It is necessary that I be within 20 minutes of the transplant center at all times during this period of treatment.
The first week will be filled with testing and preparation for the stem cell collection.
The second week will be the collection of my stem cells from my blood.
The third week I will receive large doses of chemotherapy to eliminate my immune system and then they will reintroduce my collected stem cells to rebuild my new immune system.
The fourth and fifth week will be rebuilding and recovery. If all goes as planned after 5 weeks I will be discharged to return to the cities. If necessary I may need an additional 1-3 weeks recovery near the center before discharge.
I will continue to work closely with Scott Lien and Pastor Hal during this time.
I want to thank you for your loving, kind and gracious spirit during this difficult time. It has been difficult for me personally. I know that it has been difficult for the leadership of our church, it has been difficult for our staff and it has been difficult for you as a church family.
God has been working in me these past months to bring healing and I am grateful for all the prayer that has been poured out on my behalf. I believe God has been at work in you as a church family too. As I have poured out my prayers for you, God has kept His hand upon our church family in a powerful way.
Again I want to thank you for your gracious spirit you have shown to Lois, my family and me. I look forward to the day when I will have the privilege to serve along side you fully and completely as your Senior Pastor in the near future.
God bless you all.
September 3, 2008
Tedd Ostrem - Wednesday, September 03, 2008
As I headed for bed last night I had one thought on my mind. I had wiped out my web page and blog! I was trying to upload a picture of my grandson, Haakon, but instead ended up deleting my web page. I put out an urgent email to Kristy Catt and Mary Shoemaker labeled "trouble"...I mess up!
As I was plugged into my chemo IV today I received a message that they had somehow recovered, rescued, restored what I had messed up and had uploaded Haakon's pictures. Thank you to two talented and gifted women who serve our church family. What gifts they are! In less than 10 hours after I messed up they had it restored. There are many of you out there who are doing similar acts of kindness and giving of yourselves selflessly. You many times go unnoticed and receive little or no recognition. Tonight I thank you for you, your heart for God and others.
Way to Go! I give praise and thanks to God for you and how you are making a difference in this world for Jesus.
Jesus has taken our messes we have created and on a cross recovered, rescued and restored what we have messed up with our sinful hearts and lives. He has given us a real hope and a real possibility to live "new and different" lives as we follow and serve Him. All we need to do is to offer up a prayer like "trouble"...I mess up! God is waiting and wanting to help us and hold us in these times. The desire of God's heart is to help, heal, hold and hurl us into a new and wonderful way of life. I praise God for the gift of new life that only Jesus can bring to us and all people as we live out our lives for Him in this world. He has given us a way, a truth and a life that is His and His alone.
I surrender my life and all that I am to Him again this night in gratitude for the gracious love and mercy He has poured out on and into my life. Like Thomas, the disciple, who looked into Jesus eyes and professed, "My Lord and my God", I am compelled to pray that prayer tonight and daily as I seek His presence in all aspects of my life.
Praise and honor be to You, Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God!
As I was plugged into my chemo IV today I received a message that they had somehow recovered, rescued, restored what I had messed up and had uploaded Haakon's pictures. Thank you to two talented and gifted women who serve our church family. What gifts they are! In less than 10 hours after I messed up they had it restored. There are many of you out there who are doing similar acts of kindness and giving of yourselves selflessly. You many times go unnoticed and receive little or no recognition. Tonight I thank you for you, your heart for God and others.
Way to Go! I give praise and thanks to God for you and how you are making a difference in this world for Jesus.
Jesus has taken our messes we have created and on a cross recovered, rescued and restored what we have messed up with our sinful hearts and lives. He has given us a real hope and a real possibility to live "new and different" lives as we follow and serve Him. All we need to do is to offer up a prayer like "trouble"...I mess up! God is waiting and wanting to help us and hold us in these times. The desire of God's heart is to help, heal, hold and hurl us into a new and wonderful way of life. I praise God for the gift of new life that only Jesus can bring to us and all people as we live out our lives for Him in this world. He has given us a way, a truth and a life that is His and His alone.
I surrender my life and all that I am to Him again this night in gratitude for the gracious love and mercy He has poured out on and into my life. Like Thomas, the disciple, who looked into Jesus eyes and professed, "My Lord and my God", I am compelled to pray that prayer tonight and daily as I seek His presence in all aspects of my life.
Praise and honor be to You, Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God!
Comments
Post has no comments.