Turning the Tide

A friend wrote comparing the battle for Joel's health to Israel's battle against the Amalekites in Exodus 17.  While Joshua and his hand-picked men fought, Moses planted himself on a nearby hill and held up his staff.  As long as it remained aloft, the Israelites had the advantage, but when Moses dropped his hands, the momentum shifted.  When Moses grew too tired, Aaron and Hur set him on a stone and propped up his arms from either side.  His hands stayed steady til sunset, and the Israelites prevailed.  Our friend suggested that we are all called to prop up Joel as his body fights this infection and the rest of its problems.  We must not grow weary, even if Joel does.  This goes along with our call to persevere in prayer like the widow with the unrighteous judge.in Luke 18.

The United States entered World War I in 1917, after almost three years of trench warfare had decimated the European troops and drained them of hope.  The "doughboys" arrived, fresh, young, and fat, to skepticism from the hardened, battle-worn, diseased and starving warriors.  The Americans surprised everyone with their fighting skill and their supplies, strategy and spirit helped turn the tide of the war.  Like Aaron and Hur, they held up the European armies and cemented the victory.

Last week we sent Christmas picture postcards to about 40 people we guessed didn't know about our situation.  Calls and cards immediately poured in, confirming our suspicion.  More friends joined us on Facebook and more visitors posted on Caring Bridge.  It reminded me of the doughboys; these friends are fresh and full of faith, not tired and worried like some of us.  Is it a coincidence that we got a good report within a week?  Maybe not!  May they encourage Joel and turn the tide, Lord Jesus.

Back Where We Started

We are back where we started, on the SICU floor at HCMC in downtown Minneapolis.  Joel came here by ambulance yesterday afternoon and had a surgical procedure done by the ENT team at about 11 pm.  Dr. H went through his mouth to access the abscess (sounds like a song, "OK, everybody, access the abscess with me!") , remove all infection, irrigate the cavity, and insert a drain tube through Joel's nose to hold the incision open until the air pocket underneath can heal from the bottom up.

Saturday, when Joel felt even worse than Friday, my heart sank.  It sank even lower when he spiked a fever that evening, and when the home health nurse recommended an ER trip.  At midnight as I lay down, I decided to take Pete's advice and put something edifying in my mind.  "EM Bounds on Prayer" caught my eye and I opened to the first chapter - "Prayer and Faith."    Tears filled my eyes as I read that we should not fret if the Lord delays His answer, because He has a greater work that needs to happen first.  "Jacob had to be changed before Esau could be."

On Sunday morning before Pete took him in, I read the passage to them and we all agreed it was what we needed to hear.  The sermon by visiting pastor B also spoke to my heart:  "If your situation has changed dramatically for the worse, like the exiles in Babylon - get on with your lives."

I cried when making the announcement in church, and got plenty of hugs afterwards.   At 3 Pete informed me that the ambulance left Willmar to head to HCMC.   Today we have heard from at least four different teams of doctors, and I am glad to be here where I'm confident they won't let Joel go until this problem is solved.  Lord, may we patiently wait for Your greater work to be completed.

One Day at a Time, part 3

Joel didn't come home - again.  On Monday, his 21st birthday, the doctors voiced their concern over two low-grade fever and an elevated white blood cell count and ordered two tests, one for an intestinal tract infection and a swallow study.  Since the swallow study was delayed until Tuesday afternoon, his discharge didn't happen.  The first test was negative - good news! - but the only good news about the swallow study was that it wasn't in vain.  It involves swallowing barium, which Joel regurgitates every time.  We were all sure that it would show nothing, but unfortunately, it did show some kind of connection between the esophagus and this abscess area.  That began a flurry of activity, leading to a CT-scan-guided mini-operation to place a drain tube through Joel's neck into the abscess, in the hope of avoiding further surgery.  We stayed another night to support him through the ordeal, which involved him holding his head back for the hour of the procedure, and the MRI Wednesday morning to look for bone infection.  Thankfully there was no sign of that, though they will continue to treat Joel with strong antibiotics just in case.

On Tuesday night after the procedure, Pete asked Joel, "Do you feel anxious?"

"Yes," he replied.

"What are you anxious about?"  Pete probed.  Joel hesitated, unable to articulate exactly what concerned him.  So I rushed in, "He's worried about having another surgery.  It hurt SO bad, and took SO long to recover and then he was SO weakened and set back by it, and...he can't BEAR another surgery!" I was bawling and Joel was crying and Pete cried too.

My head and neck and shoulders were sore, my stomach was tense, and I had a very slight headache (I never have headaches).   This continued all day Wednesday; Pete gave me a massage and I took a bath that evening, which helped.  I was fretting and worrying about the possibility of surgery.  "Lord, PLEASE no surgery."  "Lord, he can't handle another surgery."  Etc.

On Thursday morning, the Lord graciously brought to mind the thoughts, "What good does worrying over this chance do?  He hasn't had another surgery; he is coping with the nausea and feeling rotten.  You have already let your requests be made known to Me - constantly.   Can you trust Me to be good?"  Pete confirmed the message on Friday when he called from the hospital and reported that Joel was feeling much better.  "Let's agree not to worry, OK?"  OK.

We are not immune to the temptations of this trial.  We continue to face situations that arouse anxiety, and can choose to listen to the demons of doubt or to the Holy Spirit.  We appreciate those who pray for us, and trust that we will grow in faith, love and obedience to the will of God.

Goals, One Day at a Time

I'm home for the weekend, and I needed to be.  God used this time for Pete to see a breakthrough for Joel in terms of understanding what's going on.  Yesterday we asked for prayers for wisdom and discernment for Joel on when to "tough it out" and when to listen to his body saying, "That's enough."  Today his chest X-ray showed more clogged areas so the doctor put a PIC IV tube into his chest and started antibiotics.  This is a setback - another tube into his body instead of tubes being removed, as we had this week.

The doctor, nurse and respiratory therapist all agreed:  "If you don't do these breathing exercises, sit in the chair and generally move around more, you will keep getting pneumonia."  His lungs are more susceptible because he's had pneumonia recently.  I am praying that the antibiotics help him feel better immediately so he has more energy with which to tough it out.

I think I was getting comfortable in the hospital, with an idea of "I can do this" instead of the desperate crying out to the Lord which we need to continue until full recovery and wholeness returns to Joel and our family.  Now we will try "One Day at a Time" goal-setting; Pete did this with Joel today and he was motivated to reach the goals by accomplishing the tasks.

Thanks be to God for continued "Yes!" answers to prayers, and granting patience to wait through the "Not yet!" answers.

Ask and you shall receive...

The Lord has been reminding me of the truth of "Ask and you shall receive."  A week ago Tuesday, I realized that I hadn't been praying with Sarah for her softball team, games and season.  She had been somewhat negative about their winless season - some disappointments etc.  I asked if I could pray for her before she left for her last home game, she said, "Well, nothing else has worked!" and I asked the Lord to help her relax and enjoy herself and have a good perspective.  They lost again, but she had a good game with 3 solid hits, and felt God had answered our prayer.  On Thursday we prayed for team unity and perspective, and they did come together, enjoyed their game, and procured their first victory!  They were so excited!  On Friday,we prayed for Coach Banks to relax and enjoy herself, and for more teamwork, and they won again!  On Saturday, we prayed for teamwork, and they lost their first game so were out of the tournament.  Sarah and KJ had to sit there for hours while the boys' baseball team finished their tourney and then ride back with them.  But at least they were together.

On Thursday, Pete and I had to sing for a funeral and when we got there, Jon Barber informed us that the sound system wasn't working.  He and Pete tried several things while I played the prelude, and right before the funeral started Pete prayed with Jon and then sat down and informed me, "The system isn't working - do we need to do anything different?"  But when Pastor Mary started speaking, lo and behold - it worked!  Afterwards Pete asked Jon, "What did you do?"  "Nothing - I just turned it off and back on and this time it worked!  Must have been your prayer."  Must have been.

Thursday night was the first church softball games, and we prayed for a good spirit of encouragement and a good attitude.  I don't know what happened over at the Gold team (I wasn't there because I was driving Sarah back from her Rocori victory so she could play with the Bronze team), but we (Bronze) had a great crowd, great spirit and a great game with a victory.  Everybody had a good hit or two and a good defensive play or two.  Jerry was quite pleased, and the rest of us were thrilled.  Thank You, Lord, for answering prayer and for reminding us that You like to be asked.

Procrastination Pays

My friend Yvonne and I have been concerned about a young friend who recently had her first child. Jill's husband, Jack, has been insisting that Jill go back to work when John turns 3 months old, because otherwise they may have to sell their home. Jill was working at a day care which is understaffed, often resulting in cranky children; she didn't get that many hours; and she would have to pay for John to be at the day care with her. Yvonne and I were thinking that working probably wouldn't bring in that much money, and that Jill's family could probably benefit financially if she would learn to save money instead of earning it. We prayed together for Jill several times, and were wondering what we needed to say to her or to Jack. Yvonne's been learning from the Lord that she has this feeling, left over from her childhood, that if she doesn't do something it won't happen, and that He wants her to trust Him more in certain situations, instead of trying to do something. Sure enough, a few days ago Jill called Yvonne and asked if she could work at the church day care (with Yvonne!) a few hours per week. Jack had run the numbers and determined that the net income from Jill's job would be miniscule.

Whether the Lord prompted someone else to talk to Jack, or gave Jack the idea, Yvonne hadn't lifted a finger, I hadn't said a word, and the job was done. John will be better cared for by his own mother; Jill will be happier and healthier; and Jack will have just as much money for his family. Thanks, Lord - may we know when to procrastinate and when to act!

The Power of God through Prayer

Last week the Svea Silver slow-pitch softball team (our church has two teams, one in the Silver League and one in the Bronze League) suffered its first defeat of the season at the hands of the #5 seed in the playoffs. It was a shocker, to say the least. Our guys made many errors, couldn't hit the ball, and the other team ripped hit after hit to a few of the same spots the whole game and "ten-runned" us - the game, normally seven innings, was ended after five innings because they were ten runs ahead.

This loss dropped us down to the loser's bracket, giving us more games to play to eventually reach the championship game. Prior to last night's first game, against the last-seeded team, our team was confident of victory; we had "twenty-runned" this team in the first game of the playoffs. So when their players mentioned to some of ours that their pitcher was illegal (in order to play in the playoffs, you must be on the roster at the start of the season and play in two games during the regular season), our guys brushed it off and went ahead with the game. But it was another disaster. Lackluster hitting, error-filled defense and a general sluggish attitude contributed to a 13-10 loss for Svea. I was especially disgusted because I hadn't even wanted to come; I've had a bad toothache for a couple of days and drugged myself up with Advil so I could make it.

As the guys drifted off the field, a couple of the players talked to the umpire, who eventually confirmed that the other team had to forfeit because of an illegal player. Interestingly, the same thing happened to us last year. One of our players recruited a couple of "outsiders" in order to soundly defeat our cutthroat rivals; we had to forfeit, which led to our losing the league championship and remaining in this league another year. The recruiter publicly apologized to our entire team, and we learned a valuable lesson. Ironically, the "outsiders" didn't contribute to our victory last year, while the "outsider" pitcher last night was also a coach and probably made a difference in the game.

Perhaps you are imagining excitement and enthusiasm at receiving another chance to play. There wasn't any. The next game was already in progress and had to be stopped so our team could take the place of the forfeited team. Three or four of our players had already headed for home and had to be called back. No one felt good about getting to the next game that way. It was already 10:00 pm. And the mosquitoes were bad!

I went to move the car closer so Sarah could get away from the mosquitoes, and as I went I had a picture in my mind (I think the Lord put it there) of the teams praying together before the game. Pete had led a short devotions and prayer before most of our games this year, but he was gone with our twins and I was pretty sure he hadn't appointed anyone to take his place. As I drove back, I prayed, "OK, Lord, if I get back in time I will ask if I can pray." However, as I pulled into the parking lot, I saw the first batter for the other team take his first swing. It was a base hit, and they went on to score three runs on a few good hits, a missing outfielder and a couple of errors by our team. It was not looking good.

I had another picture of myself going over and praying with just our team before they batted. I walked over and as they came in off the field I asked, "Did you guys pray before the game?"

Someone answered, "No, that's the problem."

I pressed further, "I suppose you didn't pray before the other game either, did you?"

"No."

"Can I just pray for us now?"

"Sure!" And they gathered around as I quickly said something like, "Lord, You know we're frustrated and upset. But we trust You, and please help us do our best! Amen!" Everyone echoed, "Amen!" as the umpire called for the batter.

I am NOT saying that a prayer to God is a magical charm that results in instant success and glory for anyone who will say a few words. But it was a different team that batted around in the bottom of that first inning, scoring six or seven runs. And it was a different team that went on to win the game 16-7 and advance to the next round of playoff games, next week. I believe the Lord orchestrated that entire series of events to say to our team, "Just remember Me." And I pray that message will stick with some of those guys for the rest of their lives.

A Prayer for Unity

Our daughter, Michelle, and her friend, Saúl, think that God might be calling them to marriage, even though he is from Puebla, near Mexico City - an $800, 7-8-hour flight, a different culture, a different country requiring passports and visas to visit, a different primary language. There are many circumstances - both have studied and spoken the other's language extensively, both love Jesus and want others to know Him, both feel the other's strengths complement theirs - that make them believe this way. Pete, on the other hand, believes that it is unwise to minimize the support of a big, strong, Christian, loving family - which each of them has - unless there is a clear sign from God showing that He wants this - a sign we haven't received, or at least haven't recognized.

I'm ambivalent and can see each point of view, but am sure that to marry without your believing father's wholehearted blessing is a dangerous move. Saúl's parents are sad to think of him possibly leaving the country, but believe that as he is in prayer, the Lord will direct him and they will support whatever decision he makes.

Last weekend the four of us - Pete & I, Michelle & Saúl - had a two-hour meeting and concluded with a commitment to pray daily for unity, and not to make a Plan B. We are stepping out in faith, believing that the God who parted the Red Sea and "holds the heart of the king in His hand" will not find it too difficult to change the minds of one or more of His children who are sincerely seeking His will, and bring us all to complete agreement as to the best course of action. We also brainstormed a number of "next action" options, and will pray about them, remaining open to an opportunity the Lord brings that we haven't thought of.

So far, so good. What is surprising me is the almost-universal reaction - deep skepticism - from strong believers in (presumably) a faithful God active in this world through His Holy Spirit. Until today, when my good friend Maggie affirmed that "this is a bold, risky step of faith - but that's what steps of faith ARE," the most common question was, "What if it takes a long time?" Others told Michelle, "Unity doesn't mean uniformity with your parents," and still others told Pete, "You've got to put your foot down."

I'm convinced that when Paul pleaded with "Euodia and Syntyche to agree in the Lord" (Phil. 4:2), he wasn't hoping they would agree to disagree. And I'm quite sure that when our Lord Jesus prayed "that they may be one" in John 15, he didn't have in mind the kind of "nonconformity" we have in the Church today. I'm thanking God for giving us the faith to proceed thus far, trusting that He will bring us to real unity, planning to testify to His faithfulness after that, and hoping to find more folks who will come alongside us, believe and pray with us to that end.

P.S. Tonight at prayer meeting our pastor was very encouraging, and another pray-er was awed by the commitment to unity of the young adults in this situation.