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We have had so many beautiful responses from all of you in answer to the last health update. Michelle and I treasure EVERY one. If I haven't personally responded to yours, please know that I am joyfully working through to yours, and I should be caught up in the next day or two :-) It is truly a labor of love, both to read and respond. I want to give a HUGE SHOUT of PRAISE, because your prayers are WORKING, indeed! During a 48 hour period, the cyclosprine (immune suppresant drug) levels in my blood shot to over 1,000. That is twice what is considered to be a toxic level :-( The potential nuerological and organ damage that the doctors expected NEVER happened. I was supposed to have been shaking uncontrollably, blood pressure through the ceiling, with organs being damaged... And yet, aside from joint pain and some increased naseua... I WAS FINE! It really tripped them out :-) Of course, you know we loved that! We got to share about all the prayer going up! IT SUSTAINED ME MIRACULOUSLY... Now THAT is cool! Being held up by God's hands, the precious hands of HIS Body, is both humbling and wonderously exhilirating. God bless each of you for the sacrifice of time and energy spent on our behalf. I know that all of you have many PRESSING needs... And yet you have chosen to include us as part of your prayer burden. We do not take your sacrifice for granted! Here's to the JOY that only HE can give!!!!!!! In love with Jesus, Lance
2 Corinthians 1:7&11 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort....as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many. I am back in treatment again at the VA. I am being treated like an inpatient, but they are allowing me to actually stay in The Village At Vanderbilt, in a 2 bedroom apartment, which is only moments away from the VA Transplant unit. I report to the hospital 7 days a week at about 7:30 am. This is when they draw blood, take vitals, go over med logs, check on "input" and "output", take any needed xrays, and give any IV meds that are necessary, etc. Last Thursday, we did a donor stem cell transplant (bone marrow transplant) to whip this cancer once and for all (the last 2 transplants were my own purified stem cells). Just a little clarification... These treatments have nothing to do with embryonic stem cells. It is all done using my own and my sister's cells :-) I praise God that my sister, Melody, is a match. She was so gracious to fly out here with my niece, Becky. She went through a lot of misery to donate, and I am forever GRATEFUL!!!!! Concerning my recoup time, without MAJOR divine intervention, it is pretty long. Serious immune suppresion for 3-6 months and then a gradual testing of how the two different DNA co-habitate in my body. The procedure can take up to 2 years... However, we are BELIEVING GOD for a record-breaking, MIRACULOUS recovery! Without God's healing power intervening it can be very risky... AND it is just plain weird. My bone marrow, blood, and various other organs will be 100% my sister's DNA by next year or possibly sooner. In a DNA test of those things, they will show that I am a 36 year old woman... pretty freaky and disturbing... I might like shopping better, lol. They have assured me that I will still be a man hormonally, etc.. Michelle was VERY grateful for that news... phew! The hope is that Melody's immune system will kill the cancer once and for all! I know with God this is possible! The whole treatment can be pretty rough. For anyone interested in more info on this treatment (it is still in clinical trials), you can click this link. ANY faith filled prayers are SOOO VERY APPRECIATED! We are believing God for my sister's DNA to TOTALLY wipe out the cancer in my body, and for our two DNAs to "play nicely together" inside me. A couple of days ago, the head nurse sat with us and outlined the 3 main points that she felt should receive extra prayer support (Wendy is an AWESOME believer). They are: 1. Pray that the CMV virus is supernaturally romoved from my body! This nasty little virus that lies dormant in most of the population (and is currently in my body), has wrought havoc on transplant patients, because the immune system is so supressed. It has been responsible for a lot of the mortalities in the past. 2. Pray that there is only minimal graft-v-host disease! Enough to cause an immune response against the cancer (graft-v-myeloma), but not enough to damage any part of my body. 3. Pray against any opportunistic viruses and bacterias! These guys really like immune supression :-( AND I would add a fourth... 4. Pray that the doctors and nurses will have the mind of Christ about all the cases that are before them daily. My doctors are Dr. Stacey Goodman and Dr. Wichai Chin. The main nurse who is responsible for me is NP Wendy Knuckles. I AM BELIEVING GOD FOR HIS HEALING VIRTUE TO TOUCH EVERY PATIENT TREATED HERE! God's ways are so far above our ways :-) Michelle, the kids, and I have been blessed beyond words by all of the love and support of all of you! AND I am hard at work in my little "mini" studio - mix room here in the apartment... The ministry and music must go ON! Get READY to hear some fresh worship! In love with Jesus, Lance
"JOY UNSPEAKABLE", the first single from my new album,
"Re-Construction", is now #16 on the Christian Country charts (Power
Source).
We broke the top 20!
YAY!!!!!!
I want to thank all of YOU for helping to make this possible!
We have some great radio promotion going through this month and we
will see how high this debut single will go!
Here is to a 2007 filled with wonder,
Lance Christopher
On Monday, January 29th, as a result of a perfect 5 star rating, my song "AUTOBIOGRAPHY (It's Love)" will be the featured song on the Country music genre page of Garageband!
I am VERY grateful for all the reviewers who have scored this song so well!
balladboy from Lake Oswego, Oregon wrote in his signature review,
Love Comin' On Strong
Contemporary gospel at it's best. An interesting melody, unusual in the genre. Chorus is as strong as any secular tune and the production here is smooth using natural instruments and good mics. Harmony reminds me of Alison Krauss' music. Vocal is soft and forceful and totally convincing. one would hope that this is where the genre is going. Good work.
God bless!
Lance
***GarageBand.com uses collaborative filtering to let ordinary people identify the best songs. Recognized by TIME Magazine as one of the "50 Best Websites," GarageBand's mission is to empower musicians and redefine how music is discovered and promoted.***
RE-CONSTRUCTION, my new album, is now on iTunes! If you are an iTunes user, go check it out and let me know what you think of their layout. Also, any reviews are sincerely appreciated! There is more distribution in the pipeline and I will keep everyone updated as we go :) Your fan, Lance Christopher
...Been thinking a lot about "heavy" stuff lately. Over the holidays, I had some time down in Florida to hang by the ocean. (God bless Bryant, Bob G., and my biz partners, Dennis, and Bob for making it possible) Physically and emotionally, I was pretty wasted on treatments. High dose dexamethasone can make one feel pretty wimpy, and having my platelete count below 25 didn't help... Ugh! After everyone would go to bed, I would sit outside, listen to the surf, and prayerfully meditate. No real agenda other than to connect with my God and sort out things like living, dying, His will, healing, treatments, destiny, callings and purposes for my wife and children, suffering, joy, the music business, ministry... Stuff like that. Conclusions? I am not really living unless there is something for which I am willing to die. (I'm sure I am quoting someone, but I'm not sure who) I fight to live, because to do so is to honor the One who gave me life... It values the gift He gave. To predict the future based on present circumstances is FOLLY. Almost every major life shift, at least for me, has been a genuine surprise. I think God likes it that way. God REALLY does rule supreme in the affairs of men, and my help is significant in as much as I submit to what HE wants. God still is in the healing business, and His TRUTH trumps mere facts... That is to say that faith in God's word makes the facts come in line with the truth. Faith pleases God... He sincerely likes it. Pleasing God is good :) I want to please Him! He has blessed me with GREAT doctors. I LOVE music ministry :) AND Yeah, way more than I can fit in this blog entry LOL. I do believe that 2007 is the year that I am cured of cancer. I PRAISE GOD FOR EACH OF YOU WHO HAVE AGREED WITH ME IN THIS! I am unbelievably grateful for YOUR gift of faith! I pray that 2007 is a year of miracles for you! I praise God that we are in this thing called "life" TOGETHER! In Him, Lance Also, I have to say that on the drive down to Florida I was HUGELY blessed by the old Sonic Praise album by Sonicflood, the one from when Jeff Deyo was the lead singer. That album was/is brilliant! Then on the drive back up, Michelle, Bob Gale, and I sang all the old hymns, and old vacation Bible school songs we could remember... That was a blast LOL!
It has been a BUSY month since the last news update.
A couple of highlights are...
1) My song, "Joy Unspeakable", is now #21 on the Christian Country charts with over 130 stations spinning it!
"Joy Unspeakable" is my first duet with the UNBELIEVABLY-ever-COOL Scat Springs!
We are praying it will break the top 10...
SO, please call your local country station AND your local Christian station and request "Joy Unspeakable by Lance Christopher"!
That's one way to put a little faith into action  2) AND My sophmore album, RE-CONSTRUCTION, is available for download at...
http://www.mysongstore.com/cart/browse.php?so_store_id=315
I will let you know when it is officially available at your local record store... We are shooting for the end of January!
3) UNIVERSAL/PRIMORIS debut recording artist Woody Bradshaw recorded my song "Saved by a Woman". It is my first "major label" song cut ... Thank You Lord! Woody and I wrote the song together about how God can show His love through a spouse, and I am blessed beyond words that he and the label agreed to include it!
Blessings
&
Merry Christmas!
 Lance Christopher
Last night, my producer Ernie Petrangelo, Michelle, the kids, and I all converged on The Tennessee Meema's house for a great evening of "HAWAII"! Between tests at the hospital, work, and all the "catch up"... An evening at Meema's was just what the doctor ordered! We barbecued ribs (terriyaki style), and "talked story". As you might recall, Ernie met Michelle and I in Honolulu for our pit stop on our way to Japan. He was going to celebrate his 50th birthday Island style! Did he ever :) He was already tanned and fit from his beach gig on Block Island (off the coast of Rhode Island) and he fit right in. Actually, a Japanese tourist on Waikiki stopped to inform him, "You look like summer!" LOL! Beach bummin', snorkling, sight seeing, eating Pho Mihn, Korean Barbecue, sushi, and lots of tropical fruit, hangin' with my high school buddies Chris and John, AND taking his first SURFING LESSONS, he lived LARGE! CLICK HERE TO SEE FOR YOURSELF http://daville.com/surfing.htm Yeah, buddy (Braddah)! So, anyway, last night he brought some cool pictures and video he took from the trip, and a surfing movie for all of us to watch. At the end of the evening, Meema and the kids VERY seriously informed Ernie, Michelle, and me that next time... We were NOT leaving them behind!!! ALOHA! :) Me
Michelle and I got home last week from ministry in Japan and Hawaii, tried to get a good night's sleep, and then hit the ground running!
It is going to prove to be a VERY busy fall... Wouldn't want it any other way :)
In Japan and Hawaii, we were able to enjoy renewing old friendships, and we made MANY new friends as well!!!
It was an ACTION packed 3 weeks to put it mildly.
Stay tuned for the highlights, nitty gritty, and all kinds of interesting stuff!
In the next week or so, I will be diving back into blogging, sharing concert footage from Japan, and just plain reminiscing!
AND do I ever have some GREAT stories to share ;)
My producer, Ernie Petrangelo, taking his first surfing lessons on Waikiki to celebrate turning 50... I hope I look that good at 50... WOW! AND YES THERE IS VIDEO!
Playing a concert, and having the mayor of Shisui come check it out and love it!
Reuniting with my high school brothers, Chris and John... Chris and his dad, Gary, and dear Rose opened their home to us and Chris gave us a VERY cool, 4X4 truck to cruise Oahu in... Yeah Brah!
Getting to say a HUGE "Thank You!" to one of my heroes in the Faith, Pastor Mike Palompo. He REALLY impacted my life during my teen years while I was a student "knucklehead" at Radford High school :)
Hanging out with a wild-and-passionate-for-Christ bunch of YWAMers in Japan!
AND a whole bunch of DIVINE appointments that are begging to be shared!
We love y'all!
Your fan,
Lance
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