It’s the last week in July, and it’s starting to feel like a typical summer for the Demings. We are heading to South Carolina this week to visit Gina’s mom and her siblings, and we are excited about the start of the new school year. I have been able to jog 20 miles two of the last three weeks. I did not exercise as much two weeks ago because we took a birthday road trip to Charleston.
We were able to start traveling just a few weeks after I came home from Orlando. We borrowed a friend’s motor home and stayed at Long Point Park near Sebastian Inlet twice in June. This week’s trip to South Carolina is our third trip there in the past month.
I have been very excited to be back at church, and it is an exciting season there. I was flabbergasted by the rock star welcome I received on my first Sunday back in mid-June, but it was touching. I finished the last two weeks of the Patriarchs series we started in January (interrupted by a six-week Easter series from the end of Luke’s Gospel). I started and finished a four-week series titled “Psalms We Sing.” Last week I started a new series on the second half of Acts. We’ll track Paul’s missionary journeys in a series that will last until our Christmas series. We have announced thirteen new members in the past two weeks, and we are planning to baptize at least five at our beach party on the first Saturday in August.
Last week I learned my schedule for the new school year. It is a much easier schedule than I have worked in the past. For the last several years I have taught six classes, with two AP classes. This year I will have only four classes, with one AP class. It feels like I used to be a history power hitter, but this year I am a utility infielder trying to prove that I’m ready to bounce back after an injury. My four classes are in three different departments – Bible, English and social studies. I am excited that I get to teach two Bible classes this year.
My follow up medical appointments have all gone well. Each time, I ask if it is okay to drop some of my restrictions. At my last appointment, I received permission to add shaving, yogurt and bicycling back into my life. This Sunday is Day 100 since the bone marrow transplant. On Monday, July 31st, I will return to Florida Hospital for an MRI and a bone marrow biopsy. Please pray for good news then. I feel great, but the tests will tell a more reliable story about my recovery.