Pet Scan # 2 - Our God is an Awesome God

It's a great day when the doctor's report agrees with our (sometime wavering faith)....Pet Scan last Tuesday presented a few Below The Line moments! I must confess (tina that is) that I had to pray for my unbelief. God is faithful - Ron's scan was cancer free and clear. We apologize for not keeping up with our blog more regularly but September has been a very full month.

Keeping up the Konkins is just a little overwhelming these days. Mia's answer to her cousin's question: "What's new, Mia?"

She said:
1. uh, I moved (to Anaheim Hills)
2. I started a new school
3. I'm learning piano
4. and uh I have a new dog

So that was Mia's List - here's our update for Sept:

1. All the above
2. Sept. 11 - All day Learn, Love & Laugh seminar
3. Sept 16-19 New 4 day Couples Retreat at Ritz Carlton in Santa Monica. (Awesome Retreat)
4. Sept 23- 26 - Marriage BootCamp - wow, miracles never cease!
5. Tuesday, Sept 28 - Ron's Pet Scan! MIRACLE day!
6. Sept 30 - Our daughter Jenny's 28th bday here in Cali with us!

Canadian Thanksgiving. We are going back to Vancouver October 7-12th for Canadian Thanksgiving.

Challenge: Ron will also be taking a trip to Roatan, Honduras in October to visit a child that only knows us as his mom & dad. We have been supporting him since he was 12 and is now 22. His birth mom passed away when he was 13 and Haster has never known his dad. He has been on his own since he was 13 with only our long distance support and occasional visits. We have seen him through school and helped him graduate with a seaman certificate.

He has grown to be a fine, responsible young man. We are very proud of him. Two weeks ago he was in a very serious car accident and a mother and 4 year old child were instantly killed. Though it was an accident Haster (our adopted son) is very shook up and feels responsibility to the family for their loss. Ron is going to go visit him and see what he can do to help Haster and the family. Not sure yet if I will take the trip with Ron.

Thank you Leslie and Dan Klassen from Winnipeg, Canada who were here to hear the news of the tragedy to help us through it, as we felt very overwhelmed. I did go very much Below the Line for 2 days and litter ally was not functioning. The news of the accident hit us Monday Sept 20 - yes the day after Marriage Retreat and 3 days before Marriage BootCamp. Leslie thank you my friend and Margaret for totally taking over what needed to get done for the bootcamp. BIG THANK YOU to Dan & Leslie for donating to the victim's family to help them get through this loss financially.

So that was our Sweet September! Miracles & challenges in the Konkin household!

Upcoming BootCamps :
Marriage BootCamp:Irvine, Ca- Oct. 21-24, Nov. 18-21, Dec. 9-12
Marriage BootCamp: Vancouver, BC - Nov. 25-28

2nd time in California: 3 day intensive personal workshop
LifeLine (Life Reality) -Irvine, Ca- Oct. 22-24

Thank you for listening and please comment and let us know how you are all doing.

Check out the website for all dates: www.marriagehelpcenters.com

Keep helping us fill the classes. Call Margaret Aubin with your leads, she is able to convert the most hardened hearts. Help us continue to heal one family at a time.
Margaret Aubin 949-734-5433

God bless and thank you for your prayers!

Living Above the Line (Today),

Ron & Tina

Marriage Is Good! Orlando was good too...

We were in Orlando last week. Great conference, lots of contacts, spent some time with John Gray. His afternoon workshop was at the same time as the workshop Ron & I spoke at. President of Smart Marriages said our attendance would've been #1 - so there you go we were #2 - not bad considering he's the author of Mars & Venus!!!!lol

Ron's health is doing great - keep him in your prayers. We are in bootcamp this weekend. 16 couples here and we are seeing 32 miracles unfold!!!! Keep us in your thoughts and prayers!

Love you guys and thank you for your support!

Ron & Tina

WE NEED YOUR HELP - ron is more determined than ever to grow Marriage Help Centers

Oh man ------ what i'm learning about search engines is that WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!

Follow our Marriage Help Centers blog - it helps search engines find us....help us by clicking on "follow" and in turn help people find us on the web! Thanks - just hit the link bellow and then hit follow on the blog.....really need your help - just a couple of clicks can change a life, marriage, or family. One can make a difference!
http://marriagehelpcenters.blogspot.com

If you haven't seen our new website than take a look, it is getting better and better everyday..... www.marriagehelpcenters.com

Family update: Thank to our kids, Jenny & Josh for giving your dad the best father's day present!

They flew him home to Trail, BC (his hometown) where all 5 brothers and sisters have come together to see "ronnie"....he's golfing with his oldest brother Pat today and then all 5 of them will have lunch together in Salmo at Brother Tom's house! Ron's in his element, back on the farm! I'm sure Ron will be sending pics of that trip!

So that's our news update on family and business

So please follow our blog: http://marriagehelpcenters.blogspot.com/ - we'll be updating that regularly!

Day 1 Marriage BootCamp -

Dear Friends and family,

Trying really hard to simplify our lives so I'm trying to get everyone to follow on us on ONE BLOG, ONE FACEBOOK. one website etc etc

These people who are computer and online savvy are making me crazy. Everything is about keeping in touch and I'm losing touch with sanity.... they want me to use key words and drive up the SEO (search engine optimization) by creating groups, followers, RSS feeds - all i want to do is keep u updated on how we are doing and where we are going with our hyper speed passion and dreams.

So I put my foot down with everyone telling me what to do, it didn't work! Believe it or not they out argued me....
SO HELP ME: I am going to wean out my personal facebook and this blog will you PLEASE PLEASE FOLLOW ME ON
http://marriagehelpcenters.blogspot.com/

Also when i send you an invite for facebook from Marriage Help Centers become a fan.

Day 1- Graduates of MBC - Do you remember your first day! 8 couples here, most little or no hope of a future together. Pray and think of them often throughout the weekend. We are already seeing breakthroughs.

Couples are already seeing through different glasses, and that is a great thing.

I hope you are all doing well and think what it takes to stay above the line. Maybe today is a good day to call someone you love and say. "I just called to say, I love you." Don't worry if you can't sing - just say it!

Thank you for being part of our lives.

We'd like to report that Ron is feeling awesome and 90% of the time we are living above the line!

Tina

Post-Op!!!

Hey Everyone,

Well, dad is out of surgery and the surgeon said it went really well. He's in a bit of pain and is still quite groggy, but not to worry, they gave him the good drugs : )He's on his way home (in Vancouver, not California) which is great since he didn't have to stay in the hospital overnight.
Thank you for all your prayers, calls, emails, and messages. Please continue the prayers for a speedy recovery and that he remains COMPLETELY CANCER FREE.

Love the Konkins

Miracles Keep On Coming!!!!

God is so good we saw the surgeon today and if ron did not have a history of cancer they would not do this surgery.

It is precautionary cause the pet scan sees a small hot spot that is suspicious but not even certain it is cancer. The surgeon said being it is under 1 cm we don't believe it is cancer. They are only doing a lower dissection, he will be out of hospital same day.

Ron informed the doctor that he'd been juicing, doing all he could and was getting lots of prayer. The doctor picked up on that and said, there is not hard evidence that it works but if you believe than it does (referring to the juicing) but he then added with a smile, prayer works and keep those going! So don't stop praying as even doctors agree - it works! Now pray the surgery goes well and that healing is speedy so I can get him back to California!

Now let me share just a little bit about Ron's idea of taking advantage of his "C" card! He shared a dream he had of what a stellar day would look like for him! So in his words he explains that Saturday April 10 he was going to celebrate by making one of his all time dreams come true.
Tina!

So here it is:

Saturday was an amazing day for me. It has been a dream of mine for a long time to go skiing in the morning and then go golfing in the afternoon. Well Saturday was that day. It was awesome. My friend John Messinger and I went to Cypress Mt. and ripped up the hill, then I met Josh (my son) at 2:30 in my ski clothes, changed to some pants and golf shoes on at the course and played a decent round of golf. Tina and I were supposed to go to a movie when I got home, but SHE was too tired from doing nothing all day!! Anyway, it was a great way to celebrate the good report from the pet scan. Now that the pet scan has been interpreted by the surgeon that I really don't have any cancer, gotta think about how to celebrate that!

luv you all,

Ron

Pet Scan Results -

Friends and Family!

Today was a MIRACLE day!

Results of Pet Scan were beautiful! Ron's body is healthy and 99.9% cancer free. Our doctor was elated when only a small spec was found in one lymph node. 0.6 x 0.8 cm was detected in the groin area. We will go ahead with the surgery and get that sucker out! Then that is it! We will carry on in Konkin style! Healing the broken hearted is our mission. This laying around waiting is not our style!

Tina

Hey everyone, the last couple of days have been pretty crazy. Cat scan Tues, Pet scan Thurs From the start, many of you told us that this is just a "blip in our lives". An interesting blip, but a blip none the less. We are so grateful to everyone who write and send us notes, and calls us on the phone to encourage us. It really is a humbling experience for me.

Today I had a lot of mixed emotions. It's that fight to stay "above the line" in my faith that God has everything under control, and He knows what is best for me. Going to the doctor with the DVD in my hand with the results of the Pet scan was...lets say...challenging my faith just a little. On the one hand, I believe I am healed. On the other hand, I have to prepare myself for bad news and still believe God is in control, and it doesn't matter what the outcome is, I still believe and nothing is going to shake my faith!! Kind of like the three Hebrew children being thrown into the fire.

Anyway, when we got the results, I have to say, I was a little disappointed that there was still a little bit of cancer in my groin. (I'm just trying to be as honest as I can here). I really don't want this surgery. But then I had to give my head a big shake, kick myself in the butt, and go "oh my God, what a miracle I am!" Here I was with a Clarke 4 Melanoma (the worst kind), I should be dead within the year, and I only have a little spec of cancer that they can remove, and here I am complaining!! Am I insane? How ungrateful is that?!! I have friends that are still fighting for their lives with this disease, and here I am complaining. What a jerk.

So anyway, unless something else miraculous happens before the 15th, I will have the surgery, and will have to deal with some discomfort of swelling in my leg for about 4 to 5 years or NOT, but as far as we know, I will have no more cancer in my body. I think that is a pretty big MIRACLE!!

I love all of you and appreciate your friendship so much. God bless you.

Ron

ps. One more request. Can you all pray that the surgery does go well, and that there will be minimal or no long term swelling? Is that being too selfish?

pss - your help in filling the MAY 13-16 class of Marriage BootCamp is still needed. Help us heal the broken hearted and save families and rock some marriages!

Surgery Postponed to April 15

Dear Friends,

First of all a big thank you for all those of you that hit "follow" on the blog! Makes me feel like I'm loved. You guys all Rock!!

As most of you know I was scheduled to have surgery tomorrow, but after getting several opinions from different doctors and surgeons, everyone seems to agree I need to go for a Pet Scan before the surgery, so as of now the surgery is booked for the 15th.

We had a great trip back to Vancouver, with Mia very excited to see her family again. The whole family (tina's that is) came over last night and we had an old fashioned prayer meeting. Tina's mom being very Italian led us all in the prayer of faith for my clean bill of health. Of course the tears were there but the love and prayers felt amazing.

Today, I was spoiled by a very good friend John Messinger who took me snowmobiling in Whistler's fresh powder today. It was a WOW day! Absolutely amazing. It just dumped about 3ft of snow in the last few days, and today the sun was shining. Well, I am very sore, and tomorrow I know every every muscle is going to kill me. My son Josh was able to get the day off and join me today. What a day blasting through the deep powder with him.

Again, thanks you all for all your prayers and support. Will keep you posted.

With all our LOVE

Ron, Tina, Jen, Josh and Mia

.

BootCamp Day 2 - Canada Mar. 30 - Surgery Apr 1

Dear Friends and Family,

First of all - Ron was hurt the other day cause he thinks no one is reading the blog cause you haven't hit the "Follow" button! I told him many of you are reading it, just not "Following", so please hit the follow button and maybe just leave him a little note! Men are such babies! Now that's a TAPE! Mia is kissing his booboo!

So here we are in Day 2 of bootcamp with 4 couples. For the BootCamp graduates you know what happens this morning - u got it - I took them out - they showed up without doing their homework! Anyways they are all @ attention now!

We are flying home Tuesday March 30, going straight to the doctors from the airport for blood tests then from there hanging out with the family. Wednesday John a good friend of ours is taking Ron and our son Josh snow mobiling (right spelling, not sure) up in Whistler. Ron has a big smile on his face at the thought of the day. Personally I think he is using the "surgery" card to his advantage, he went skiing @ Big Bear last week here in Cali! What can I say - if you got it, use it! lol

Please pray for us as we embark on this unknown journey of health issues. We are believing that Ron's lymph nodes that they will again excise will be clean. Believe with us.

Right now we have really good days and trying days, making decisions about an unknown future makes our "living above the line" an even more real challenge. Our intention is to stay above the line no matter what challenges we face.

Thank you for your support and your love that we feel all around us!

Ron's surgery is Thurs. April 1 @ Burnaby General Hospital. He is expected to be there for a couple of days. We are hoping he will be out for Easter Sunday.

Make it a great Easter Holiday. I believe because of Easter Sunday we all have great hope!

Love you all,
Tina

He will never let go, Through Every high & Every low!

Dear friends and family,

It's been a long time since I have cried in church, not sure if that is good or bad! But this morning one song hit me pretty hard! I really embraced that God has never let go of me. The song said, "every high and every low He will never let go, thru every calm and every storm, God will never let go of ME"!
Be blessed today and listen to the truth of the song that touched me so deeply this morning!

So looking back at our week there have been some high and lows.

The high is that we have really been blessed with many people praying for us as a family and those prayers are being felt and very appreciated, don't stop. So many of you have blessed us with your words of faith! It helps when more than one person says the same thing! The message keeps coming back that Ron & I are not finished here yet!

Another high is that Ron has got a world renouned doctor taking him on as a patient. She told him straight up not too worry you've got at least another 20 yrs. or more! Not quite what the textbooks say but we'll take it. The news made it for an awesome week especially knowing that this doctor is not taking on anymore patients. So the power of prayer is awesome.

The low this week has been in a couple of practical areas:
1. The overwhelment of the regiment the doctor has Ron on - seemed so big. Thank God for people who practically take your hand and help you sort it all out. He is taking about 50 tablets a day and my responsibility is to get his alkaline levels way up.
2. Another low is that the class for March 25-28 is very low and with all of you talking and sharing we should have a waiting list. So continue to pray cause if we have ever needed this ministry to prosper, it is NOW...
3. Financially it is the toughest it has been in a long time yet we see God's faithfulness everyday.

What comes next:
- this week we wait to hear when Ron goes for his next surgery. It should be scheduled in the next couple of weeks. The surgeon will excise the rest of his lymph nodes in his groin and see if there is any further spread of the cancer.

Don't forget to enjoy the song:



So again thank you for all your support and prayers.

Definitely working at "Staying Above The Line",

Ron & Tina

From Jenny

First, I'd like to say thank you to everyone for all of your support and prayers, not only for my dad, but for our family. It has been amazing to see everyone rise up in prayer and send out love for us. It truly shows me how many people my dad has effected in his life. He has told me on many occasions how surprised and grateful he is for all the encouragement he has received and how much he appreciates the prayers for his FAMILY. To my close friends and family, thank you for every text, phone call, cuddle on the couch, and hug. You have made this SO much easier for me and I pray for you guys everyday.

I just wanted to give an update on how we are doing and share a bit about what is going on in our lives. This has obviously come as a shock to Josh, Mary, and I. You never expect your young, fun, active dad who doesn't smoke, drink, or even swear for goodness sakes, to get cancer. When we first found out, we immediately started to do research (my parents didn't pay for all that university for nothing ha ha) and the results were shocking and terrifying. I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. To be honest, I felt like I didn’t want to breathe. My entire world was crashing down around me.

People often ask questions in these situations like “Why do bad things happen to good people?” or “Why is this happening to us?” I didn’t. I know bad things happen to good people. I don’t question if God is punishing my family or if we’ve done something wrong. In fact, I see it as the opposite. When you are working for the Kingdom, Satan has to defend his. The devil wouldn’t attack my dad if he wasn’t making an impact for eternity. He would leave him alone and let him go about his boring, ineffective life and go attack the people who are making a difference in this world. We all know that my dad does NOT lead a boring and ineffective life. He chooses to live on purpose each and every day, knowing that this decision puts him in the line of spiritual fire. Mary and I are reading “Fearless” by Max Lucado in our Bible study right now (a book I highly recommend btw). In the first chapter he talks about the storm that comes up when the disciples are out on the boat with a sleeping Jesus. He clarifies:

“This story sends the not-so-subtle and not-too-popular reminder: getting on board with Christ can mean getting soaked with Christ. Disciples can expect rough seas and stout winds. “In the world you will [not ‘might,’ ‘may,’ or ‘could’] have tribulation” (John 16:33, brackets by Lucado). Christ-followers contract malaria, bury children, and battle addictions, and, as a result, face fears. It’s not the absence of storms that sets us apart. It’s whom we discover in the storm: an unstirred Christ.” (Lucado, Fearless, p. 7-8).


We may have been shocked by my dad’s diagnosis, but Christ wasn’t. He has planned every day of my dad’s life. He formed him in the womb. He knows how many hairs he has on his head (God got off easy on that one). God is not shaken or stirred by this. He is our rock. He has a plan. The plan may not be what we want, it may not be in our timing, and it most definitely is not in our understanding, but that’s where faith comes in. Believing that He is in control, will stick to His loving promises, and will be faithful to the end. He is taking us from faith to faith, glory to glory. We pray for more faith. We pray for wisdom. We pray for growth. Growth hurts. Last week, I was telling Mia how much she had grown since I last saw her. She told me “I KNOW! My legs were aching so much that I cried every night. I had a growth spurt.” Here we go, another growth spurt in our lives (be careful what you wish for eh? I’d better be a giant after this one, God!!!). I’m like Mia, I cry every night. Honestly, I cry every morning too. I cry sporadically throughout the day. It hurts. My heart aches and I’m human and I don’t want to go through this. But everyday (more like every hour) I choose to not live in fear, but to walk in faith.

Looking back on any difficult circumstance I have faced in the past, I never understood the reasons while I was going through it. Nobody does. Some of them, I still don’t understand the reason, and may never understand until I’m in heaven (believe me, I’ve written a looong LIST of questions for Jesus when I meet Him). But for many of them, it has now become very clear and I can see how He was directing my life, keeping me safe, moulding me. I can see the good that came out of it, and what could have happened if I didn’t go through it. God knew better. For us, hindsight is 20/20, for Him, it’s always 20/20.

According to medical reports, my dad won’t survive this cancer. However, according to the world, my parents shouldn’t have survived an affair, let alone gone on to help countless other couples survive in their marriages. According to the world, my little sister should have been taken by social services and become a statistic of Vancouver’s downtown East End. According to the world, I shouldn’t have come out of Uganda alive. According to the world, Josh should not have survived a home invader waking him up with a machete knife to his throat. According to the world, my family should have been torn apart many times by the trials we have faced, and yet God has helped us overcome. So according to God’s report, we will live in faith, and believe for a miracle. We will believe in his promises that He will not give us more than we can handle, that by His stripes we are healed, that we are worth more than many sparrows, and that His ways are higher than our ways. His Spirit is my comforter, His word; my teacher, and His hand; my strength. I KNOW my redeemer lives and by His grace we are saved.

My Montage 3/6/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

March 5 - The Doctors Report & The Faith Report

Mar 5th



Here I am sitting on a plane reflecting on the past week. Well, the “big” appointment is over. Tina, Jen and I made our way to the cancer clinic in Vancouver yesterday. Josh was called out of town to work on a project. (love you Son). It is hard to describe what one feels as you drive to these appointments that will determine your future as the doctors know it. It is like traveling into another world where you have absolutely no control except for how you react to their assessments. I said to Tina and Jen that it feels surreal and I am not really a part of this journey. But I am. I find myself fighting the demon that wants to take me into the future of fear instead of staying Faithful in the Present.



I am so blessed to have such an amazing wife and kids. The news was what I had expected to hear. Basically, this cancer is not treatable with any treatments presently out there. The only one that comes close is “interferon”. The problem with this treatment is the success rate is very low, and the agony I would have to go through is probably not worth it.



So here is the next move for me in this. I am going to have surgery to extract the rest of the lymph nodes from my left groin. This will determine if the melanoma has spread any further than that area. Here is where you all come in again. PRAY.



This is where our faith kicks in, and we walk in it. Many of you have said that my work here is not finished here yet with the Marriage Boot Camp. God sees the big picture and knows the timing for everything in my life and yours. There is no doubt there will be a miracle here.



We don’t have to beg God to heal me. He has already healed me because that is what the Bible says.


I want you to see my body already clean as I believe the Bible teaches me that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen. My faith has substance and though I have no evidence yet that my body is clean, I have great hope. Believe with me to move this mountain. I would say this is the biggest mountain of my life, but it is also another opportunity to see our God work.

Rock on, and make every day a Great Day!!



Ron

Feb 26

Hi everyone. Thanks for visiting our site. We want to keep everyone updated on our family and my journey through this craziness I/we are all going through. I know this doesn't just affect me. I feel really bad that that you are also carrying part of this weight that you have nothing to do with.

Pictured here is my gorgeous wife of 28 yrs. She looks as good now....no better that she looked when I married her. I have to tell you that Tina has really stepped into the lions den and is fighting this thing with everything she has. I thank God every day for her and how much she loves me. For those of you who have heard that Tina doesn't "nurture", she is the best nurse ever...and I get to sleep with her at night.

I know this is especially hard for Jen and Josh.(not me sleeping with their mom, the cancer) so please keep praying for them as well. I know we will get thru this season in our lives and look back and praise God for the miracles He has done. We should be doing that every day anyway!! There is a plan and I know He has a purpose. Let's not get into our FEAR, but walk in faith and in all things rejoice. I am truly amazed at how many people are praying and are genuinely concerned for Tina and I and the kids. It is very humbling and I really appreciate all of it. I have some more things to say about today, but I will post them later. Just one update for you all. I just received a call from the Vancouver Cancer Clinic, and my first appointment is Mar 4th @2:45. I will also be speaking to my surgeon on Monday.

God Bless.

Ron

Ron Konkin's Request for your prayers

To our family and friends,

It has become no accident that everywhere we go including grocery stores strangers are telling us to pray, think positive thoughts and see your body clean. The most amazing part to us has been that even doctors and people that are neutral when it comes to faith in God have said it is documented and scientifically proven that prayer, faith, meditation and visualizing yourself as having clean cells in your body produces healing in the body.

Before all these weird appearances of strangers and “so called” coincidence TV appearances on the above topics started happening, Ron had a very strong message in his spirit. The message was that when he prayed or thought about the cancer cells in his body he and anyone else praying or thinking about him would see his body as clean and free of any cells that did not belong or prosper his body!

So here is what we have set our minds on to keep us ‘ABOVE THE LINE’ in this our journey and reality:

Phil. 4:8} Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things {i} are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

4:8 Finally, brethren. As he concludes his letter, he sums up Christian duties into a single paragraph.

Whatsoever things are true. Truth in word, in action, and in thought, must be cherished. Christ is THE TRUTH. His followers must be truth itself.
Honest. The Greek is reverend. Whatever is worthy of reverence.

Just. Strict justice in all dealings; an upright life.

Pure. Chaste lives and clean hearts and thoughts.

Lovely. Such deeds as spring from love and inspired love in others.

Of good report. A life of which no evil thing can be truthfully said.

If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise. Lest he may have omitted some excellency he adds, If there be aught else which is virtuous or praiseworthy, let these all be the things to which you give your minds.

Thank you for thinking of all that is good and all we can be thankful for TODAY!