Walk with us 30 feet below the surface of the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

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A Small Piece of Bethlehem, a Big Lesson in Giving

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  While walking the ancient streets of Bethlehem , I picked up something most people would pass right by—a small, simple piece of olive-wood. No polish. No promise. Just a humble remnant from the Holy Land.   From the moment I held it, Elizabeth said, “I know exactly who this is  for.”   Back home, we gifted that small piece of Bethlehem olive wood to James Johnson, the son of Zach and Casey Johnson. James is a young craftsman—one of those rare souls who can look at raw wood and already see the finished form inside it. Bowls, turnings, carvings—his crafts tell a story of patience, skill, and respect for the material.   We intended the gift simply as a souvenir. A tangible connection to the Holy Land. Something meaningful he could keep.   What I didn’t expect was what happened next.   To my surprise, Zach later handed me a beautifully crafted writing pen—made by James himself, turned from olive wood. Smooth. Balanced. Thoughtfully finished. T...
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The fog lifted this morning.

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First off, I appreciate the way so many of you have reached out to Lewis thru Elizabeth & me. This morning at 7 AM, the nurses came to pick Lewis up to take him down 8 flights to the operating room. He was so thirsty, all the whole time brave. They cut his water intake off at 10 the previous night. The OR prep team explained the procedure and Lewis said, “lets get this done”. Both his grandmothers, Liz and I waited as we watched the monitor identifying “prepping, in “surgery” and “recovering”. As all people waiting for a love ones to get out of surgery, we anxiously waited for the OR waiting room phone to ring. I hurried over to answer and they ask for someone in the Swicegood family; I said “speaking” . The nurse said "the surgery went well, and his first words were I want my mom”. Only one person could go back. Twenty four years old or 10, a boy wants his mom when he's in a pickle. The doctor said that he accomplished his goal by cleaning the infection surrounding ...
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Update on Dad (Jerry Swicegood)

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February it turns out was not much better than end of the year for dad. To recap, we took dad to  the hospital the week after Thanksgiving. He stayed there until January 1. He spent 20 days of January in rehab. After leaving rehab 21 days later, he made in back home. For two weeks or so, he enjoyed his living room where he has spent quality time since building the house in 1978. However, on a Monday morning towards the end of January, I received a call from Mom. "Kyle, can you come to the house". After rushing over, it was obvious we needed to call 911.  Dad has been at Novant/Forsyth since then. Tomorrow(2/26/19),  Lord willing,  Dad will be leaving the Hospital and going back to rehab. While he still has a ways to go, we are all optimistic considering where he has been. As the doctors have said more than once, "he's a very sick man". Elizabeth said the other day, "God has the ability to use this for His glory." With that in mind, I have been ab...
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