"Light The Night" walk for Lymphoma/Leukemia

Greetings All! (Dave and Barb on Jet Ski) It's time for the Lymphoma/Leukemia walk again at Sahuaro
Ranch Park in Glendale on Friday night, October 12th. (The Tempe walk is on
October 20th but we will only be doing the Glendale walk) So many of you
have helped us the past two years with the Light the Night event to help
raise money for research for Lymphoma and Leukemia. And it's time to do it
again !

ON A VERY PERSONAL NOTE, Dave and I cannot thank you enough.

If it weren't for organizations like this, the chemotherapy that has helped keep Dave in remission for the past year and a half, would not have been there for him.
So, ANY donation you can make will be appreciated and never forgotten. You can donate directly from this page by clicking on the link/title above (rest your mouse on the title above).

You can also join in with us on the 12th if you live here in Phoenix and
walk with us. WE WOULD LOVE THAT !! It's always fun and we all get
together..there's fun for the kids and for all....but it's also very "real"
and you will see firsthand what this walk does to help raise funds for
Lymphoma/Leukemia and lift the spirits of these precious ones stricken with
this disease..so Please help us and if you want to walk with us just click
on the link above and click on "Register to Walk"..Our team name is "It is
What it is"..and our team captain is my sister, Gail Skeens. Please forward
this onto anyone you think may be interested..Our goal this year, in FAITH,
is $2,000.00!! I believe we will make it !

Again..thank you for whatever you can do...whether it's a donation or walk
with us or both and your prayers !! We love you all and hope to see you at
the walk ! You can email me directly to find out anymore info regarding the
walk on October 12th..It begins at 7:00pm.

With love and appreciation from the bottom of our hearts...

Dave and Barb Stallings

The rumors of my death have been 'greatly' exaggerated!" Mark Twain

This is an article I wrote in May 2006 and felt it was worth bringing to the surface again. Such a blessing needs to be shared more than one time:

Tonight I wanted to take a moment to share a very interesting and "heartwarming" discussion I had last night with my 10 year-old Granddaughter. Her and I were on our way to Wal-Mart to pick up some late-night snacks when she said to me "Papa, can I talk to you a little bit about your cancer?" I said, "Certainly, dear. What do you want to know?" She said she didn't really understand all that had been said but knew that cancer was very serious and wanted to know if I was going to die anytime soon. I tried my best to explain this process to a 10 year-old little girl by explaining that the death of a person is very much a part of life and that if the Lord tarries, all of us will, at some point experience death. I told her not to be worried about it, because I felt that it would not be anytime soon and that I was, based on my faith in God, very prepared and ready to go to be with Jesus, whenever it was His will. I helped her understand that I would be up in heaven at that point, and mostly I would be helping Jesus, as we prepared our place for each of my loved ones as they came home to be with the Lord.

My granddaughter is very intelligent and a born-again believer in Jesus Christ as her Lord. So it didn't seem unnatural to have this discussion with her and, it seemed to be a very short discussion. Seems she just wanted to hear about my comfort in my own words. What a precious little child. "Out of the mouth of babes, right?" Anyway, as we brought the discussion to a close she was sure to tell me, "Papa, no matter what happens in the future, you will always be, right here in my heart," as she patted herself on the chest. Trying desperately to hold back the tears of joy, I said simply, "And, sweetheart, you will always be in my heart, too!"

Just one more reason to believe that I am, indeed, the luckiest and MOST BLESSED person to walk the face of the earth. God is so good, and it seems that sometimes, His angels even have "flesh & bone." What a blessing...Dave

Boy Do I Feel Exhausted

It has been quite a wild ride these last couple of years. Back surgeries, Bone Marrow biopsies, Pancreatic difficulties, problems with the Liver, Oh, and don't let me forget that dreaded Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma too. I've spent more days in the hospital this last couple of years than some doctors have. So why doesn't my bank account show it (ha!)? Yet today I feel so confident, I could swear the "incurable" cancer is completely gone! So why do my emotions feel so "limp"?

Is it possible to stand too tall for too long? I have always felt that I had been given these trials for a reason and so I have worn them with the utmost respect and faith in God but tonight I feel really down and "out of sorts" so to speak. Cannot put my finger on what the problem is unless I am just really tired. I even feel bad expressing my feelings because I know that "My God shall supply all your (MY) needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil 4:19). In fact, I'm not sure that I have the right to feel this way, considering how well My God has cared for me.

Just yesterday, I had been asked to submit some of my devotional materials to "The Rest Ministries" for possible publication and tonight I feel somewhat defeated. So knowing what I need, let me ask you for your prayer support once again. I really DO feel that the Lymphoma is gone, even though they keep telling me that it is just "sleeping". So please pray for me, if you will, and for my wife, Barb. Times like these take their toll on ANYONE, weak or strong.

Thanks for your faithfulness.