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Dear Friends
Some time has passed since the last time I communicated with you on email. Last time I was not able to see much anymore and it took me hours to write the email because I was mistyping all the letters. I am typing again at my normal speed as I am able to see. Praise God!!
This is just one of many miracles that has happened over the last 2 ½ weeks. There are too many to mention in one email, but I might have to write a book or put on DVD the wonderful ways the Lord has blessed me and my family.
Just to give you a little bit of insight into the happenings…
A couple of days after the scans that highlighted the 7 cancer tumours in my body, I met with various doctors and specialists to discuss what options there were for treatment. Most of them were very hesitant to discuss the possible success of chemo and/or radiation, because there were just too many tumours. The cancer was too far spread and they didn’t know which one(s) to treat. Even with radiation, the doctors were very uncertain of any success, because they would have to choose one or two and treat those first, leaving the rest to grow. Another cancer specialist, when he heard of my situation he met with myself and Retha (my wife), and told me that without a biopsy he could not be sure of my prognosis (how long I had to live), but that I should basically go home and wait, because my skin already had the pale yellow death colour (he said so in so many words). This was to him an indication that I only had days or possibly weeks to live.
The doctors’ views were totally dismal, so I chose to prove them all wrong by going in exactly the opposite direction to their suggestions. I knew from the bottom of my heart that this sickness
is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. John 11:4, so I decided to rectify my cancer by natural means rather than by chemotherapy or radiation.
As a result of this decision, I travelled to Yzerfontein on the West Coast of South Africa to spend time with Gerhard and Marietjie Pienaar (G&M)
for treatment. They have studied how to adjust a person’s lifestyle in such a way that cancer has pretty
much no chance of existing.
Allow me to explain… It is well known that cancer starts in your body pretty much always due to lifestyle (and
environment) problems. In other words, cancer starts predominantly from an immune system that is run
down, from bad circulation and from having too much acid in the body. Cancer cannot live in an alkaline environment with good blood circulation, so I had obviously been doing some things wrong. These included not having enough
sleep, a dysfunctional travel and speaking program, ridiculous amounts of stress—all of which placed pressure on my relationships with my family. This caused my body
to become acidic and stressed out, and gave rise to a wonderful breeding ground for cancer.
Thankfully Retha and I had been convicted a while back to follow the health reform message and we changed our diet accordingly. As a result, I was leading a pretty healthy
life in most respects, and this was the reason why my body had the ability to fight the cancer and keep me upright and maintaining a high speed lifestyle. However, the amount of travel I was doing across the world, swinging my body clock around and the hours I was putting in drained my immune system and killed all the cancer soldiers, allowing the cancer to grow and spread throughout the body. Although I had been keeping a couple of the 8 laws of health, I had broken others which means I was sabotaging my own health. (By the way, the 8 laws of health are Nutrition, Exercise, Water, Sunlight, Temperance, Air (respiratory exercises), Rest, Trust in God—these are the true remedies to health concerns).
G&M put me on an anti cancer
diet based on the cancer regime of Prof Serfontein (retired from the university of Pretoria Medical Faculty). They also started to teach me how to turn my lifestyle around so cancer does not have the opportunity to grow. This releases the cancer soldiers and they go to war, causing the cancer to shrink. Some good news is that I am finally even gaining some weight.
By Wednesday 30 September, with the treatments I was receiving and the diet & lifestyle changes I had made, I started to have incredible headaches and started to experience nausea. We knew that the two tumors in the
brain were the most life threatening, and in discussion with various doctors, G & M realized that brain surgery was urgently needed to remove the tumors. As I do not have medical aid, this would be a problem because the costs are exorbitant. G & M and Retha started to discuss what options there were to have the tumors removed.
An Adventist neurosurgeon from Rustenburg who sympathized with our situation stated that he would be willing to operate on me for free. From his experience, he estimated that the amount of time I would be in hospital would be about a month. If nothing went wrong, I would spend a minimum of a week in Intensive Care (ICU), and if anything did go wrong, I would spend about 3 weeks in ICU. Believing that nothing would go wrong and bargaining on only one week in ICU, taking the surgeon’s fees out of the way, the hospital’s fees came to R700 000!! On top of this, an air ambulance had to be booked to fly me to Rustenburg. This was estimated at an additional R100 000. The flight had to be paid up front as well as R100 000 deposit had to be paid before they would consider
taking me in. At the time of booking in, a guarantee had to be given as to how the rest of the money was going to be paid.
We certainly don’t have access to this type of money, so the planning and costing took us through to Thursday morning by which time my condition was getting really serious. My parents had arrived at Yzerfontein by this time, and also joined in the discussions. Retha said there must be another way as she did not believe that we should or could spend almost R1million of the Lord’s money for a single operation. Over and above this, the earliest booking the surgeon could give was the followingTuesday
the 6th of October. Those around me could see my condition was deteriorating and realized that I was not going to make Tuesday.
During Thursday, very serious and urgent discussions were held to try to ascertain if there were any other available options. Flying was out of
the question by this stage, and by Thursday evening the decision was made to rush me to Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. I cannot remember any of this, but we arrived on Thursday night around 11pm. Retha sat with me right through the night while various surgeons and
doctors discussed how to tackle my situation.
By Friday morning, an urgent meeting was called at Groote Schuur and my case was put in front of a panel of
neurosurgeons. They looked at the scans and realized the tumors had pretty much joined and had grown into one mass of 6.5cm x 3.5cm. There was also lots of bleeding and I was very close to death. The decision was made immediately to move the surgery of all other patients later to make room for me and I was immediately wheeled into the theatre. The operation started.
The headaches and nausea were something we had expected, as the treatments, the diet and the lifestyle all build the immune system. When the cancer soldiers came back to life and loaded their guns, they looked around to see what they could attack. The cancer which had been happily hidden in the body was suddenly exposed and the war started. Naturally we did not know how the body would react to the immune system attacking the cancer, but headaches and nausea were a possibility. When the doctors opened the brain, they were amazed to see that the tumor had in fact separated itself and presented itself like an egg yolk which they could basically just scoop out. They did not have to cut the tumor out as they always have to do with other patients. The doctors didn’t know why the body would basically eliminate the tumors so dramatically and so quickly and make them available for removal, but knowing the background to the treatments etc, it is quite understandable. Basically,
the immune system had attacked the tumors in the brain and had isolated them. The headaches and the nausea was the body’s way of trying to communicate to us that the time had arrived to have the tumors removed. After an operation of about 2 hours I was wheeled to the Intensive Care Unit, and kept under sedation till Saturday morning when I woke up. I woke up literally with a bang. I realized I had tubes in my throat and was battling to breathe. The nurses immediately realized that I didn’t need the tubes and took them out leaving me to breathe on my own. Although a little tired, I was my old chirpy self, and started to tease the nurses and doctors. I did not know what day it was, and when asking the nurses, I realized it was Saturday and the last I could remember it was Wednesday. They shared with me that I had almost died, but they could see that I was nowhere near death now.
By the next day, Sunday, I was wheeled to the high care ward, a move which is unheard of in such a short time – the hospital needed the space for a new patient, and although I was the last patient into ICU, I was the healthiest and first to leave.
By Sunday afternoon, even though I was commanded to bed rest by the doctor, I was walking to the toilet and back, and getting to know the other patients on the way. It is difficult to explain in words the awful circumstances of the patients in the ward. People are so desperately sick with absolutely no hope and no option of health into the future. I so earnestly wish that our church had done what we had been asked to do and shared the health reform message with the world, it would save so many millions of people from suffering.
Next to me lay a Seventh Day Adventist brother who had surgery on the top of his head. He was still in ICU after 2 weeks, and had never heard of the health message of his own church. (We met again on Wednesday when I went to get my clips out, and he is now finally walking, but still battling
tremendously.) I prayed for each of the patients with me in the ward individually, and asked the Lord to open the way for them to also hear
the simple but magnificent truths that allowed me to be moved from ICU after one day after massive cranial surgery. (by the way, amongst
the pictures is an image showing the surgery and the clips so you can see
the size of the operation.
By Monday afternoon (the next day), when the doctors came to do their check up, the senior doctor stated that she is not sure what is going
on with me, but I am far too healthy to stay in the hospital and can be released immediately! Literally 80 hours after surgery to the brain in
order to remove a massive tumour with hemorrhaging, I was released to go home—3 ½ days later. Both the doctors and the nurses watched as
I left the ward. They had no words to explain what had happened. One male nurse even commented and said that
what normally takes 30 days for others took 3 days for me, he just could not understand it.
The truth is, it is very simple – it’s Biblical…
Dan 1:5-21 And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking
than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king. Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the prince of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink. Then let our countenances be looked upon before thee, and the countenance of the children that eat of the portion of the king's meat: and as thou seest, deal with thy servants. So he consented to them in this matter, and proved them ten days. And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer and fatter in flesh than all the children which did eat the portion of the king's meat. Thus Melzar took away the portion of their meat, and the wine that they should drink; and gave them pulse (vegetables). As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. Now at the end of the days that the king had said he should bring them in, then the prince of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: therefore stood they before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king enquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm. And Daniel continued even unto the first year of king Cyrus.
5 days after my operation I walked 4km after breakfast. Man!! If only we started our outreach campaigns and
crusades with Daniel 1 instead of Daniel 2 as we always do. How much less suffering would there be...?
The Neurosurgeons in the hospital all said that my sight would be permanently damaged and I would probably never regain what I had lost. Only the neurosurgeon from Rustenburg said that the brain is brilliantly constructed and will probably relearn and rebuild the neuro pathways that had been destroyed, but this could take up to 2 years.
Well, here I am 2 weeks after my operation. I already have basically 100% of my vision back … and I have 10 times better improvement rates than those who have never heard of the health reform message. All I can do is praise the Lord for His kindness, and ask Him to allow me to share this testimony with the world.
We are now focusing on the other 5 cancer tumours, and I just know that we, together with the help of the Almighty, will beat this in such a way that this message will flood the world and give hope to those who have none.For those of you who are interested in this process or if you know of someone who has cancer and is desperately wrestling with what to do, please before you do anything or start any treatment (Chemo, radiation or other),
Please call +27 (0)28 551 2384 or email dvd@edenlifeministries.co. za.
By the way… one last miracle I forgot to share with you is that the entire operation and the stay in hospital did not cost us a cent! Absolutely free. Isn’t the Lord kind!
So, as Friday evening approaches, my heart fills with joy as I think that 2 weeks ago I was almost dead, and now I am typing my friends and family an email to share this joy with them. Please share this email with friends and family who you feel would be
interested.
Please thank the Lord for His hand of guidance, the miracles and the new opportunities He has given.
Yours sincerely
Mark Woodman.
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. Joshua 1:9 |
