PPB Families of Faith

Over the past year, since the last PPB Family weekend, I have had the privilege to get to know many wonderful families and kids with PPB. Quick Catch up: PPB=Pleuropulmonaryblastoma
This is the type of cancer I had, Adam had, and Peter and David almost had... Yeah. That's a whole other blog.
Anyway, many of these families have been keeping us updated through Caringbridge and I have grown very close to all of them. I am SO excited to see them all at the PPB weekend on 8-8-08!
Recently, one of our dearest little guys has gone home to Jesus! David Michael Plattner passed away on 1-6-08 from PPB. He fought hard and gave his all! Plattner family, we want you to know that we are here for you, we pray for you, and you will forever be in our prayers and in our hearts!!
One thing we all must realize when death happens in a family: Never forget them! And never let them be forgotten!! Within the family, that is always the case - we never forget them and try hard to never let them be forgotten. But in many cases, when we try to talk about our loved ones that have passed, many people get uncomfortable and we tend to not talk about them as much. My brother, Adam, passed away 20 years ago and I love to talk about him, but the second I mention that he died, people turn the conversation and it ends within a couple of seconds. I know death is perceived to be sad and negative, but the life of that person should be celebrated! A friend of mine once said, at his daughter's funeral, "I am jealous that I cannot spend time with my Nicole, here on Earth, but my princess has gone home to her King!" Yes, we would love to grow old with our loved ones, but that may not be God's plan. His purpose for our lives may be shorter or longer, hard or easy, fast or slow... Whatever God's plan is for us, we need to accept His will for our lives and be gracious for all that we are blessed with. Easier said than done, but if we live by what we speak and what we know in our hearts, then God will provide the strength and endurance for us to get through it. Many of the PPB moms, as they have grown to be known as, have really shown me the true meaning of Faith and grace in God. They have endured some of life's most horrible battles, watched their children go through some of life's biggest challenges, and yet they still have faith in God and know that His will be done and that His purpose for us will shine-maybe not in front of us, but maybe His purpose is for our struggles and heartaches to bring others to know Him as their Personal Lord and Savior. I guess because God is so much bigger than us, we may never know. But having Faith in God will allow Him to do as He pleases and to bring others to know His love!