Half a year with the Apple iPad in South Africa

I have had my Apple iPad 16 gig WiFi for almost 6 months now.  It has become an indispensable tool in my workflow and entertainment!

I thought I'd post a quick update on what I use it for (BTW, you can read my other iPad related posts, see some video of its use etc, here):

Most common daily uses:

Take a look at my iPad screen shot below to see my most used applications.

1.  Because of its size (small and thin) and battery life (at least 10 hours), I find that I hardly ever go anywhere without my iPad and my mifi portable 3G base station. I wish I had a 3G iPad (like some of my friends), but I'm pleased with what I have!

So, the iPad becomes my most used daily computer.  I use it for:

• My Bible - I use Olivetree for the English (NRSV, NIV) and Greek Texts, and YouVersion (Bible HD) for 'The Message' and other modern language translations.
• Reading and answering emails (even longer emails can be answered with ease).  I have 5 accounts and get about 200 mails a day.  So it is very handy to have this device to keep me on top of the most urgent mails.
• My contacts and Calendar.  The Calendar application on the iPad is truly superb! It gives a great overview of the day, the week or the month.
• The built in Notes application is indespensible!  I have hundreds of notes on the iPad - they are very ease to create, and can be synced or emailed to back them up.  Pressing the home button on the iPad allows you to search for keywords very easily.  So, I have a whole stack of information on hand at all times.
• Dropbox - this is an incredible FREE solution that works with the iPad, iPhone, Android, and even Mac and Windows PC's!  It is like having a 'flash disc' with you everywhere.  You get 2 Gigs of free storage if you sign up (please use my referral link, I get an extra 250MB). Any file that you drop into your drop box on your computer automatically shows up on all other computers, iPhones, iPads that are linked to your account!  So, if my secretary wants me to have a document on my iPad, or I want a presentation, spreadsheet or document on both my iPad and my Macbook, I simply drop it into Dropbox!  If I work on the document it automatically syncs the most up to date version to all the devices!
• Twitter and facebook (both personal and for the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization).  I use the free Twitter application for the various personal and Lausanne related feeds that I monitor and update. I use Friendly to stay up to date with my 1000 and some friends on facebook.
• Office applications - I often need to work with spreadsheets and MS Word documents (and even powerpoints) as part of my work.  So, Pages, Numbers and Keynote are indespensible tools.
• I do a great deal of public speaking, one of the three most valuable purchases for my iPad was the VGA dongle so that I can use it as a presentation device via a data projector.  I carry my most used Powerpoint presentations in Keynote, and the Videos that form part of those presentations.  It is SO handy to have this small, simple to use computer with a super long life battery on hand at all times!
• Skype - There is not yet a skype version for the iPad, but the iPhone version works perfectly! I have even made Skype calls while driving (some days are busier than others, and since I am working across various timezones, US, Hong Kong etc., it is a fantastic help to have this little skype client to run... Obviously it is ONLY skype voice, no camera for video).
• For fun, I do a lot of reading (most in the Kindle Application), while I prefer the layout and design of iBooks it is just easier to buy books on Kindle in South Africa, plus the Kindle App on my Macbook, iPhone and Blackberry are all always up to date with the location to which I have read in my various books.  
• I also love using Flipboard to get a visual overview of my twitter, facebook and other RSS streams.
• Lastly, I fairly frequently have to explain how certain functions of the brain work - the free application 3D Brain is a superb tool to navigate through the brain to help friends, family and students to get to grips with the workings of the old 'grey matter'.
• My kids love playing Plants versus Zombies and Angry Birds. A little hint with both of these games... Buy the iPhone versions at a fraction of the price!  They look almost as good and work exactly the same.  Hours of fun while driving, or to keep the kids entertained while mom and dad are watching TV.

I often get asked if the iPad can replace my computer.  No, it cannot.  I have to use my Macbook for many tasks (in particular anything that requires any level of skill in creation (longer or more complex documents, presentations etc.) - but, I find that my laptop is used a lot more like a desktop.  I seldom carry it to meetings, and even if travel to Johannesburg for a day I would only take my iPad with me.

2.  The three best add ons for my iPad:

• mifi 3G WiFi base station.  This keeps me connected to the internet!  Oh, how I wish I had a 3G iPad!
• The Apple VGA dongle. In my line of work the iPad becomes so much more useful when it can be used to share presentations and videos.
• The official Apple iPad case.  I know some don't like this cover, but it works so well for me.  It protects my iPad, it is small, thin, light and very versatile.  Plus, it makes the iPad look understated!  Very important for a minister!  I can carry the iPad into any meeting or gathering in this case and it looks just like a black cover notepad.

 I am so grateful for this great tool!  It makes my work and ministry so much easier.  Just this morning I used it when I spoke at the Camps Bay United Church - I had my powerpoint, Videos, sermon notes, and Bible all on one small, unobtrusive device.

iPad in South Africa - Vodacom and MTN 3G sim card conversion to microsim

UPDATE 4 January 2013 - If you are looking for the instructions for converting your regular sim, or micro sim, to a nano sim you can see my new post (with a very handy PDF for measuring and cutting) here.

Original Post

I am the very fortunate owner of an Apple iPad - unfortunately mine is not a 3G version.  You can read about my iPad here, and watch a video of how I use it here.

However, I do have a few friends who have bought 3G iPad's in America and Hong Kong.

The amazing thing is that the iPad is not carrier locked (unlike the early iPhones that were locked to AT&T - my iPhone 3GS is a US version that has been unlocked for use on MTN in South Africa).  But, back to the iPad 3G.  With the three iPad's that I have got working on 3G in South Africa it was a simple as putting in a 3G sim card.

But... There is one problem!  Micro-sim cards are quite rare in South Africa.  I have heard that Vodacom has some in stock (that one can purchase), and I'm sure that MTN must also have some now (since they have been advertising that they'll also be selling the iPhone 4 which uses this smaller sim card).

So, what to do if you want your 3G iPad to run on a South African Network?  Well, it's quite simple actually:

DISCLAIMER:  Do this at your own risk!  This is merely an outline of how I did it on a few iPads, your results may vary. 

1. Get a regular sim card (you can either purchase a prepaid sim card - which costs just R1 from Vodacom, and I would suggest Vodacom for pre-paid data since it is so easy to load data at a cheaper cost).

2. Resize the sim card to fit the iPad's microsim slot. I'll have a few photos to show you how to do this below.

3. Pop in your sim card and you're up and running!

Resizing your regular Vodacom (or MTN) sim card to fit your 3G iPad:

1.  Find the sim card slot in your iPad (it is on the bottom left of the iPad).  Open it with a paperclip.

2. Use a piece of paper to 'trace' the internal ridge of the micro-sim holder (I used a post-it note). Simply place the paper over the sim card holder and run your fingernail or some other hard surface over the internal ridge of the holder.  It will leave an imprint on the paper.

3. Next, cut your paper stencil to size.

4. Next, you'll need some 'Prestik' (not sure what it is called elsewhere in the world), the sticky stuff on the left of this picture.  Simply stick your stencil onto your sim card and get ready to cut!

5. Next, line up the contacts from your regular sized sim card underneath the microsim holder. NB, please note in my picture below the sim card should be moved about 2mm to the LEFT (to ling up the contacts). See the image below this one with more description.

 

5.a. Please see the image (from my friend Paul) of a microsim.  You'll notice on the microsim that the 'golden contacts' are more or less centrally located to fit into the sim card holder.  As long as you get the central 3 contacts lined into the centre of the holder you're fine.  When you put the card in, if it says 'No Sim' you know that the contacts have not lined up...

6.  Next, paste your stencil onto your sim card using the prestik, and cut carefully!  Don't worry about cutting through the outer gold contacts... As long as the three central contacts are in tact you're perfect!

7. Once you've done your first cut you may need to do some slight tweaking in order to fit the sim into the holder.

Here's a photo of the sim in the microsim holder.

8. Finally, slip your sim, in the microsim holder, into the iPad - within a few seconds you should see the 'signal indicator' on the top left hand corner of the iPad indicating either Vodacom 3G or the E (for Edge if your outside of a 3G area).

So, I hope this helps!  Feel free to drop me a comment or a mail if I you get stuck.  I'm not always able to respond right away (my day job does keep me rather busy!), but I'll respond as soon as I'm able.

Further to my instructions you can also watch this video http://allabouttheipad.tumblr.com/post/729237325/converting-a-sim-to-a-micro-sim-for-the-ipad

Update on Friday, January 4, 2013 at 6:03PM by Dr Dion Forster

If you are looking for the instructions for converting your regular sim, or micro sim, to a nano sim you can see my new post (with a very handy PDF for measuring and cutting) here.

The journey is drawing to a close! An update on Courtney 1 October 2010

We cannot thank and praise God sufficiently for His unending mercy and grace to Courtney and our whole family!  

We love our girl so very, very much!  Her life is an immeasurable gift to us, and we know that God has such a special plan for our princess.  He has carried her through this last tough month, offering her courage and wisdom well beyond her tender age. We are so proud of Courtney - she has faced her fears, endured pain and uncertainty with courage, and through it all been a shining example of a young Christian woman whose faith is in our God!

Today, on the 1st of October, Courtney's journey with cancer has come to an end!!

This morning we took her back to Dr Wessels at the Somerset West Mediclinic for a final checkup and to have the 24 staples removed from her neck and head.  While she will bear the physical scar from this month on her body for some years, we are praying that God will completely remove any emotional scars there may be!  We know that she will soon return to her vibrant love of life!  The signs are already there!

Courtney is such a brave little girl. Her courage has blessed and inspired me. 

Sure, she cried a little today as they removed the staples, but in the end she managed a great smile!  We're hoping that she will return to school next week (for part of the day to start with, and then ease her way back in).

She received some medication to deal with the last of the blood and tissue that is in her brain and spinal fluid (this is a bit like a mild meningitis).  But this will clear and soon there will be no more headaches, vomiting or nausea.

All glory to God who not only creates in magnificence, but also re-creates, sustains and perfects His creation!

You can read about Courtney's journey through this illness to the miracle of healing by clicking here (or on the tag 'miraclegirl').

You may recall that our journey began about a month ago when Courtney fell ill with a cold.  This quickly spread into a sinus infection and later she was hospitalised with a swollen face and eye. Because there was some concern about the damage to her optical nerve (and to see where the infection was) she went for an MRI.  At that point it was discovered that she had a 3cm tumor in the 4th cerebral ventricle.  She was treated for the infection to her eye and her surgery was scheduled for two weeks later.  The operation was a great success and the neurosurgeon was overjoyed that he had completely removed the tumour. There was no damage to her brain at all.  

Whilst the worst was feared about the histology of the tumor, the best results returned a few days later!  Courtney's tumor was benign - she had a very rare form of brain cancer called a Choroid Plexus Papilloma (accounting for between 0.4-0.6% of tumors in that area of the brain). Even the doctor assured us that this was an answer to prayer since the Medulloblastoma (which is a much more agressive cancer) is the more likely growth in that region.  God in His grace had healed her!

All in all we have experienced anew the wonder of God's loving grace and power, it has been emphasized through the wonderful care and love of the body of Christ.  As family, friends and colleagues - and even people we don't know - have prayed for Courtney, sent notes, cooked meals, sent messages and loved us on behalf of Christ!

I want to encourage you about the certainty of God's love in every situation (as Romans 8.28 says).  Moreover, God's mercy and compassion is a source of great power and strength in such trying times (please read Lamentations 3.21-26 and Psalm 33.18-22).  

If you come upon this post in the years after October 2010; and you find yourself struggling with the diagnosis of a loved one, perhaps a child or a spouse, then please be encouraged by what God has done in Courtney's life.  Feel free to drop us a line.  It would be our joy to pray with you and offer you encouragement and care.

This unfortunate event has renewed our faith in God's power.  It has also caused us to have to reconsider our priorities in life!  Our children truly are our most precious gifts from the Lord - nothing is more valuable.  Work, ambition, material advancement, personal fulfilment, all of these things must rightly take their place behind the priority of creating a loving home to safely nurture our children towards their great destiny.

As you know both Liam and Courtney have had their fair share of health challenges in life - we thank God for all He has done in them and for what God wants to do with Courtney and with Liam.

Courtney's whole life lies ahead of her - please pray for our princess and ask God to bless and protect her in the many years that lie ahead!  Please pray the same thing for little Liam! May he too come to grow into all that God has destined him to be!

With inexpressible gratitude for God's loving grace,

Dion, Megan, Courtney and Liam.

The predictable irrationality of ethics - why we find it more difficult to steal money

I read Dan Ariely's fascinating book 'Predictably Irrational' last month.  It gave me a great deal of insight into how we make irrational decisions, but more importantly how we can understand (and perhaps even predict) such blunders.

In chapters 11 and 12 of the book Ariely deals with the matter of ethics and morals.  He shows through a series of experiments how we make unethical decisions because of the way in which our brains value different things of the same value...  Perhaps you should read that sentence again?

Simply stated, let's say a Coke costs US$1, what is more valuable to us, the Coke or a US$1 bill?  Well, he conducted an experiment where he placed 6 Cokes in some University dormitory fridges, and a plate of 6 US$1 bills in other fridges.  After 72 hours he returned to see which of the items (the money or the cokes) were stolen more easily.

It is not surprising that he discovered that in almost all the cases the Cokes were gone, but the plate of money was untouched in almost every case.  

In short this experiment (and a few others that he uses to verify his assumption) shows that people are less likely to 'steal money' than 'steal coke' - why?  Well, there seems to be a far greater social stigma attached to taking cash than there is to taking objects.

Here's another example.  Let's say you're at work and your wife phones you and tells you that your child needs a pencil for school.  Would you feel OK -> Not too bad -> Too guilty to take a pencil home for her? Most people answered that they would feel OK to take a pencil home.

Now, let's say that there are no pencils at work, but there is a shop downstairs that sells pencils for 60cents.  The company's pettycash box is in your possession and no one is checking.  How would you feel about taking 60cents from the pettycash box to buy a pencil for your daughter (the value of the pencil you would have taken from your company is 60cents)?  

Most people indicated that it would be much more difficult to steal the money than it would be to steal the pencil from their employer... 

Why?  Well, we have been socialized to think that money is 'worth more' than goods or time!  People go to jail for stealing money, but we seldom hear about people going to jail for 'stealing a pencil', or 'stealing time', or 'stealing private phone calls' from work...

I was fascinated by this (predictably) irrational element to my own ethical decision making.  What do you think?  Is Ariely's interpretation of his findings correct?  Is the value of goods and time the same as the value of money?  

The problem of pornography - porn on the Internet, an infographic

Wow! This is shocking! Take a look at the infographic below to get an idea of the pervasiveness of Internet pornography.

This such a troubling issue - in my regular counselling as part of my ministry the matter of addiction to porn has become increasingly common. At least once or twice a month I have someone coming to see me about this matter. Frequently it is wives who have discovered that their husband or son is visiting porn sites on their computer or cell phone. At other times it is men who feel convicted by this issue.

If you look at the bottom of this image you'll see that the most common day on which porn is viewed is a Sunday!  My goodness - that is a concern!  Here's what I assume.

- Most men view pornography on their personal computers and cell phones.

- This is done at home (and not at work).

- People view porn when they are not engaged in other mentally stimulating or physically taxing activities (e.g., work, sport etc.)

We need to do something about this.  I am convinced that pornography destroys relationships and objectifies human persons!

Here's what I suggest:

1. Don't place yourself in a situation where you can be tempted! It is far more difficult to fight temptation than it is to avoid it altogether! So, don't ever use you computer in private (make sure your laptop or home computer is in a public space where anyone can walk past and see what you're surfing)

2. Speak openly and honestly to your wife and sons about the challenges and dangers of pornography.

3. Pray that God will keep your mind from this temptation. And, this may sound a bit crazy, but dedicate your computer and cell phone to Holy Purposes! Dan Ariely's great book on the neuroscience of choice ("Predictably irrational") shows that when we make a simple oath like this it is a powerful motivation to do the right thing! I, for example, prayed and offered my cell iPhone, iPad and laptop for Godly use. It makes a huge difference.

4. Get support and help. A simple thing that I have heard about is to get an accountability partner who you agree can check your browsing history and cookies at any time, and someone that you can phone and pray (and even meet) with if you face temptation.

So, do you think I am being puritanical by expecting men (and women) to not access pornography?

If you agree with my perspective do you have any suggestions for combatting temptation? I'd love to hear from you!

The infographic comes from Guy Kawasaki's site here: http://holykaw.alltop.com/the-stats-on-internet-porn-infographic

Please visit his site if you would like a larger copy of the image.

Could this be true? Study shows atheists know more about religion than professed believers.

Boing Boing is reporting the findings of an American study which shows that atheists have greater knowledge of some elements of religions than the followers of those faiths.  Boing Boing's report makes for interesting reading! However, what it fails to mention is that that while atheists may have far greater knowledge about certain elements of various faiths (by virtue of the fact that they would justify their stance by having reasons to support their lack of belief), surely they cannot have a better general, or overall, understanding of the subtleties of a particular religion?

For example, while many atheists may know some interesting facts about the creation narrative (I have even heard some atheist friends quoting words and portions of verses from the original Hebrew text to make a point), it is unlikely that they would have equitable 'technical' knowledge about others elements of a particular faith, e.g., the emphases of compassion, goodness, or love as expressed in those faith traditions.

Regardless, this is a an interesting article.  What do you think - is it true, do atheists know more about religion than professing believers?

A new Pew survey on religion in America finds that atheists and agnostics are more likely to be well-versed about different religions' beliefs and practices than people who profess a belief in those religions. For example, atheists and agnostics are more likely to know that during Communion (Catholicism's central rite), the wafer and wine are meant to transubstantiate into the literal flesh and blood of Christ -- they aren't merely symbolic, as 40% of Catholics believe. Atheists and agnostics are also more likely than Protestants to know that Martin Luther sparked the Protestant Reformation (the majority of Protestants could not identify him).

Interestingly, Mormons are, on average, better versed on the traditional New Testament Bible than evangelical Christians and mainstream Christians, many of whom consider Mormonism to be apostasy.

American atheists and agnostics tend to be people who grew up in a religious tradition and consciously gave it up, often after a great deal of reflection and study, said Alan Cooperman, associate director for research at the Pew Forum.

"These are people who thought a lot about religion," he said. "They're not indifferent. They care about it."

Atheists and agnostics also tend to be relatively well educated, and the survey found, not surprisingly, that the most knowledgeable people were also the best educated. However, it said that atheists and agnostics also outperformed believers who had a similar level of education.

The groups at the top of the U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey were followed, in order, by white evangelical Protestants, white Catholics, white mainline Protestants, people who were unaffiliated with any faith (but not atheist or agnostic), black Protestants and Latino Catholics.

The Bible and Christian Ethics - lectures at the University of Stellenbosch

This week I had the privelage of teaching at the University of Stellenbosch on two days.  The topic of the lectures was Scripture and Ethics.

The Bible is a critical source that informs our moral and ethical decision making processes, and helps us to justify why we have taken a particular course of action.  My lectures were based on two chapters that I have written.

“Reading the same Bible and reaching different ethical conclusions:  The Bible and Christian ethics" by Forster, D (2009:131-156) in What is a good life? An introduction to Christian Ethics in 21st century Africa. Kretzschmar, L; Bentley, W; van Niekerk, A (eds). Kempton Park, AcadSA Publishers.

And,

"Why you can't simply trust everything you read" by Forster, D (2008:25-46) in What are we thinking? Reflections on Church and Society from Southern African Methodists. Forster, D; Bentley, W (eds). Cape Town.  Methodist Publishing House.

When we need the Bible most... Complex ethical dilemmas and Christian scripture

Sadly, the Bible is often abused in moral and ethical decision-making processes.  I often hear people quoting a single verse to justify a stance on something (whether it be politics, sexual choices, wealth etc.)  An overly simplistic approach to ethics and an ignorant application of the scriptures can be extremely hurtful and damaging in complex ethical decisions.

In this set of lectures we began by examining the complexity of ethical decision-making.  We used a story that a student shared with me when I was still a lecturer in Ethics and Systematic Theology at the University of South Africa (UNISA) some years ago:

Moral problems tend to have straigthfoward answers (right or wrong), whereas ethical dilemmas seem to have a mix of both good and bad.  No matter what choice you make it will not be entirely good or entirely bad.  The complexity is to work out what decision is best under the circumstances.  This process of deciding is often complicated when one asks the question 'What would God want me to do in this situation?', or 'What does the Bible say I can and cannot do in this situation?'

The example used in class came from a student that I taught at UNISA.

Example:  Is it ever right for a son to have sexual intercourse with his mother?  What does the Bible say?  The answer is, no, it is not acceptable for a son to have sexual intercourse with his mother.  The Bible will not allow that.  This is a clear moral problem.  It is easy to resolve since the choices are either right or wrong, good or bad.

However, in this instances the young man was at home with his mother.  A gang of thugs burst into their home, stole various items and then held a gun to the young man’s mother’s head.  The told him that if he did not have sex with his mother they would kill her.  What should he do?  Does the Bible make some allowance for him to break a law on sexual purity because the value of his mother’s life is more important in Biblical terms?

This last point is an ethical dilemma.  There is a conflict of values – the value of sexual purity in conflict with the value for life.  Which is more important in Christian ethics?  How does one use the Bible to inform such an ethical decision making process and choice?

Well, here are the slides from the lectures.  You can download the original Microsoft Powerpoint slides from this link (5MB).  These slides have notes and references in them. 

However, if you simply want to click through the slides then please use the slideshare window below.

The bible and ethics st143

View more presentations from Dion Forster.

In order to illustrate the complexity of using the Bible in Christian ethics we used a very contentious subject, the Christian (Biblical) perspective on persons with a same sex orientation, and in particular persons in an active homosexual relationship, to consider an approach to ethical decision-making.

I would highly recomend that you read the chapters referenced above.  They give a detailed technical outline of both the content of the lecture, but also the Analyse, Ask, Evaluate and Act model that is presented here.

Thanksgiving prayer service for Courtney - 29 September 2010

Dear friends,

We continue to experience God's lavish grace and love as Courtney recovers from the surgery! She came home on Monday evening and is doing better and better each day!

She will for a checkup on Friday and also have the 'staples' removed from her neck and skull. She's a little nervous about that - but, we believe this will be the last of the discomfort.

We want to praise and thank our Lord for healing her, and for carrying us all through this challenging time.

Please join us in a time of prayer and thanksgiving for God's goodness!

If you're in Somerset West this evening our friend Greg Long has arranged a time of prayer at the Coronation ave Methodist Church. Please see the map embedded below for directions:

View Larger Map

If you're elsewhere in the country or the world please do offer a prayer of thanks with us! We would be truly grateful!!!  God is so good and we want to celebrate God's goodness with thanks!

God bless you, and once again thank you so much for all of the wonderful prayer, care and support!

Thank you for your prayer and support! Update on Courtney 27 September 2010

Dear friends,

We wanted to send out a brief update about Courtney today and express our thanks to everyone who has so faithfuly prayed and lovingly supported us!

Megan, Courtney, Liam and I want to thank you so much for your love, prayers and support over the last few weeks.  

We rejoice to tell you that Courtney’s surgery went extremely well, the tumor was removed entirely, and that the biopsy showed that the tumor is benign!  

There is no cancer and no further treatment is needed!  All praise to our wonderful Lord for His Grace and Power!

The surgeon said to us that this truly is an answer to prayer!

While he had anticipated something worse the histology came back with wonderful results.  If you’re interested you can see the following link which describes the kind of tumor they found:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choroid_plexus_papilloma

Courtney came out of ICU on Saturday afternoon and is currently recovering in the children’s ward.  She has been struggling with nausea and is still a little sore.  This morning the doctor came to see her and has said he will do a lumbar puncture to remove some pressure from her brain.  However, she is on a great recover path and will be home in the next day or two!

Praise God!  Thank you so much for sharing in our joy and bearing us up through the tough times (it seems like a distant memory!!)  God’s grace is truly so magnificent!

Our friend Greg Long has arranged a time of prayer and thanksgiving on Wednesday evening at 18.30 at the Coronation Ave Methodist Church. If you’re able to join us that would be great, if not please do offer God all praise and thanks from wherever you are.

May the Lord bless you and your families even more richly than He has blessed us – truly God is able to do so much more than we can think, hope or imagine (Eph 3.20).

With much love and blessing,

Dion, Megan, Courtney and Liam 

So please spread the word! God bless you.

Update on Courtney 25 September 2010 - Praise God! Histology results are back.

Our neurosurgeon phoned me a little while ago with great excitement! The histology results for Courtney's tumor came back and the tumor is benign! The operation removed the tumor and there is no evidence of further cancer! He was very pleased to share the news! And of course we are overjoyed to share it with you!

The histology showed that she had a 'Choroid plexus papiloma' - you can check this link for details. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choroid_plexus_papilloma

At first they feared it was a Medulloblastoma - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medulloblastoma - but praise God that it is not!

God is so good to us! We cannot thank you all enough for your prayers, care and love!

Please join us in thanking the Lord for His mercy and grace!

Courtney is out of ICU and in the pediatric ward. She is resting well and should be home within a few days!

Praise be to God!

An update on Courtney 25 September 2010 - we're getting there!

Courtney is still sleeping most of the time. But, when she does wake up she is much more responsive and alert. She is certainly on the mend - we can see a marked improvement each day. She is still a little nauseous, particularly after any movement, but that will pass.

This morning the Doctor allowed her to walk to the bathroom (naturally the nurse and I had to help her), but she walked just perfectly! A real milestone along the journey.

If she manages to eat something today and keep it down she'll be transferred to the children's ward.

We still don't have the results of the histology. But, that will come in due course.

In my quiet time this morning I read Psalm 33.18-22 which was a great encouragement and comfort. I am dreading the end of the weekend. But the normal rhythms of life are a necessary part of not being 'consumed' by a series of events such as this.

Thank you for your ongoing prayers, care and love. Courtney, Megan, Liam and I appreciate it a great deal!

The photo above shows her feeling much better! Not quite a beaming smile, but she's getting there!!

Update on Courtney 24 September 2010

First, thank you for your ongoing prayers for Courtney, Megan, Liam and I. We are truly experiencing God's grace and care as we go through this challenging time.

Courtney is recovering well after her surgery. She is still asleep most of the time - they are keeping her sedated to stem the nausea and also to control the swelling on the brain.

Our surgeon is putting us in touch with the paediatric oncologist at the Red Cross Children's hospital to chart the way forward in terms of the cancer. The results of the histology are not yet confirmed. However, the doctor has indicated what we may expect. Naturally. This is very difficult news - but we continue to pray and trust for God's healing and restoring power.

Above is a picture of Courts taken just over a week ago. We are blessed with such wonderful children!

Parents, cherish your little ones! They are a gift from God!

God bless,

Dion, Megan, Courtney and Liam

Dr. Dion Forster :: http://www.dionforster.com ::