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John was overcome with tears in private when he saw so many friends who came without his knowledge. He cried a lot while he was preparing his message, which was based on John 8:31-59. He was moved by Jesus who shared his life-giving truth with those who were accusing him of being demon-possessed when he exposed their spiritual poverty about being children of the devil. 

I learned that we sinners are so eager to believe in demons and their lies and deception rather than the promise of Jesus and  eternal life. Think about how we easily fall into anxiety and worries and become troubled! I learned that it is because we believe Satan's lies, not Jesus' promise of eternal life. 

I was so moved and thankful for Jesus who never failed to share and preach the truth of our true Father in heaven. He bore all our sins and stubbornness to the point of death on the cross. 

Many people comment on how good John looks. He's come a truly long way. When we talk and laugh, we feel like everything is back to normal, but when we put our heads down at night, we also shared that we both have sadness in our hearts because of his medical condition. VAD patients often say that even after "full" recovery, they feel they are 85% of what they used to be. While we pray for 100% recovery, I know that it is God's wisdom to draw us near to him. Quite honestly, we would never have held onto Him if it wasn't for John's illness. So I learned that it is God's wisdom to help us put our hope in the Kingdom of God. 

Thank you to all those who couldn't come but were with us in spirit.  It was a beautiful service and occasion, and thank you for praying for John and his message delivery. He was strong and graceful.

By Grace Doty