LivingSent Blog Archives

Today the first nurse to come into our room, a new one we had not met said, so this is the party room. Evidently the word got around the Hospice House staff that our room was a bit unusual. I started wondering what made it stand out. Was it the fact that every evening Dad’s room was full of people? He loved people. When we asked him if he wanted hospice at home or at the Hospice House where he could have more people, he didn’t hesitate one second. He wanted the people. Or maybe it was the fact that we had enough food to feed an army due to the generosity of our friends. Perhaps it was because we had more people staying overnight than any other room. But my guess is they named it that because we laughed so much.

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Sitting for hours in the middle of the night beside my Dad’s bed praying and feeling rather helpless to ease his suffering as he struggles to breathe is agony. It is also a great time to think. The world is dark, the activity is stilled and time seems to crawl. If you don’t contemplate the meaning of life, death, prayer and love then you are in big time avoidance. I’m learning during this time and I’ll be a better husband, father, Christ follower and pastor for it. I don’t know that I can organize my thoughts well at this moment but these are a few things I can share.

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Check out Belinda’s blog at www.belindakendall.typepad.com for a full account of how it went at the Hospice Home yesterday. She got some great pictures.

Today has been a quiet day. Dad isn’t communicating much but he is very peaceful. Occasionally he will open his eyes or speak. We’ve had time together to pray. We sang to him and he even joined us at the end of one of the songs for about three words. It was good to see his eyes sparkle. The doctor says we are in the last days but of course it could be sooner if his heart can’t take it.

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We got back from our Christmas vacation just after the New Year. My Dad went to the hospital while we were gone. By the time we returned the doctors were telling us to call the family together because his kidneys were in failure. So our Christmas decorations are still up. We’ve dedicated most of our time to being with my Dad at the hospital and now the Hospice Home. When we do go home it is only to pick up things and restock.

Every time I go in I see a darkened Christmas tree…

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Today I had the privilege of speaking at Indian Creek Olathe about a subject that you don’t often discuss in such a public setting as church. I want to attach the message here Its Just Sex[1].docx. Many thanks to Ben Stears and to Craig Groeschel for developing much of the content. We take turns as the teaching team writing messages and Ben did most of the heavy lifting which was a great help with my Dad in the hospital. We did tell our own stories as we always do.

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Today we were advised by the doctor to hold off moving to hospice until at least Monday. It is not that things have changed a lot but last night reversed a several day trend where the vitals grew worse each day. My Dad held his own and they want to see if this starts a new trend. We think it is all the prayers. Keep them coming because they are carrying us during these difficult days. Thank you.

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Today we made the decision to go to the Hospice House tomorrow at 11 a.m. We talked with the doctor and with the hospice nurse who did an assessment. Ultimately we talked to my Dad about his wishes. He took it all in and said, “Well we gotta do what we gotta do.” He’s never been one to step back from a challenge and when this one came he met it head-on.

We’ve had some great talks about life and death this week…

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Thanks for being the life giving community you are to me and to my family. I’m at the hospital today with my Dad and he is hanging in there. His kidney function is lower today so there are three options. Either his body will rally. Prayers will bring a miracle. Or if his function doesn’t improve then the waste will affect his other systems. The status right now is that he is holding steady so they are not going to do more or less for the next couple of days. We will stay at the hospital for now but plan to meet with Hospice after that or if anything changes.

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My dad, Paul Kendall, is back in the hospital. This has been a rollar coaster ride for him. We’ve had multiple problems over the last years but what we are facing now is “life threatening” the doctor told us today. He said we have some important choices to make regarding the next steps. His kidney function is down to 14% and there is nothing more they can do to improve it. We are at the place where either his body rallies, God intervenes or we plan for an honorable exit to eternity. We appreciate your prayers.

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Last night we hosted nearly 900 at Indian Creek for Amy Tyler’s memorial service. She touched our lives in a dynamic way in her 30 short years. Belinda and I had the privilege of offering the welcome and eulogy. It was a privilege to serve Amy’s precious family.

In my message I felt compelled to address the question of “why.” Someone asked me if I would post the message so people who wanted to digest it more slowly could do so. Here is the opening part of the question and then I posted a link where you can go to get the rest if you are interested. I’ve never before heard so many people say, it was “perfect.” If that is true it is a tribute to the Holy Spirit giving the right words at the right time to the right audience. Thanks to those praying for us.

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