Archive for the ‘Prayer and Praise!’ Category

I’ve thought of posting this story before, as it both an important part of my life and testimony, and also because of the insights I gained on grief and loss. But somehow I never really “got around to it”, and it didn’t seem something that should be forced. But now, it must be time!

I was not raised in a Christian home, and neither of my parents was saved.

When I came into relationship with Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, naturally I wanted to tell everyone about it – especially them. I was met with what you might expect – a little skeptical, a little patronizing… Both my parents and my sister are highly intelligent, college-educated persons of the world – who do not believe that they need a savior, above and beyond the question of Jesus’ divinity or anything else.

I was closest to my dad, and tried a few more times to raise the subject with him. His brush off response was gentle, but absolute. He felt that it was a great thing, that brought comfort to many people… It sounded to me like the way you’d talk to a child about the magic fairy that chases away the monsters under the bed.

Shortly thereafter, after my father had the surgery that would effectively mark “the beginning of the end,” he was not “coming out” from the anesthetic, and I prayed over him fervently, for hours on end – “not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance.” At one point he opened his eyes and looked at me as though startled, and asked what I was doing.

“Praying for you,” I told him, “is that okay?”

He nodded slightly and closed his eyes. It was another couple of hours, but he stayed with us.

Naturally, people will be inclined to say it was simply the natural recovery process occurring, and it would have happened that way whether I had been there or not. But I don’t think so.

As he continued to decline, Dad lost more and more of his keen intellect to a never-to-be-diagnosed puzzle of brain damage from a car accident, a series of small strokes, and probably alzheimers and/or dementia.

During the hours I spent with him at the nursing home during this time (thanking God for my homeschooling life that allowed me to do so!), he began asking me to read to him about Padre Peo (he had been to the Catholic Church for a while as a youth), and we sang children’s songs like “Jesus Loves Me.”

I prayed over him while he slept, and prayed for him constantly over those agonizing months.

He never made a profession of faith that I knew of, and the time came when I wasn’t sure that he would be able to rationally make such a choice – much less communicate it.

What agony for me! How could I not know? Would my beloved father be consigned to hell and damnation for eternity?

Dad left us on the day after his birthday, in 2003.

Although I grieved the loss, I felt a sense of peace about his soul.

And then I had a… well… dream? Vision? I’ve never experienced anything like it, before or since. And I haven’t told many people about it, because I figure you’ll all just think I’m crazy. Ah, well.

My father was in the wheelchair, being wheeled back to his room from the shower by an attendant. His head leaned down as though he had fallen asleep.

Standing just down the hallway from him was a radiant Jesus, holding out his arms in welcome.

Dad stood up from the wheelchair, leaving the tired husk behind, and walked to the Lord. (Dad hadn’t stood or walked in weeks)

Their embrace was glorious…

I believe my mother and my sister had a much harder time dealing with losing Dad, because to them it’s simply all over.

Certainly I have shed plenty of tears, and miss him. I wish he could have met my hero, Wolf, and known our children…

But I know – I know that I know that I know that I know that I know – that we will be reunited with him in Heaven.

(Photo at the top is Dad with Nick and my sister, Teresa, about 2000)

Photo from Gentle Hearts Ministries (a website I know nothing else about)

Since I’m up before the family gets up (I guess that’s another side benefit of not having Santa Claus issues!), I wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Without Jesus in the manger, there would be no Jesus on the cross.

Thank you, Lord, for this unspeakably precious gift!

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
~ Isa 9:6

Praises!

Mom had her cancer surgery yesterday. She’s now recovering in the hospital, and all went well!

Her doctor is very confident that they got everything, and the laproscopic procedure was uncomplicated. She’ll go home in a day or two to finish healing.

Final lab results will be back next week, but not a concern.

Praise the Lord for healing and mercy!

Ponderings…

After a lot of trouble getting connected, I finally went over to the mobile health clinic run by the pastor of our sister church, Kendall Brazilian. This was just a screening appointment, and I filled out an application to be sent to the County to qualify for free services.

Since I have been suffering, the doctor was kind enough to write me a prescription for my migraine medicine, to hold me over until I can actually be seen.

So I quickly headed over to my local pharmacy to fill it. Let me walk you through the result:

Fill: New (Self-explanatory, I hope)
Insurance: AMPLN (This is my AmeriPlan discount card, not insurance. It saved me $36.71!)
Quantity: 6 (Yeah, only 6. It’s 1 or 2 per headache, and they are closely guarded)
Status: Picked Up, Date Filled: 5/25 (Yeah…)

And… Did you catch that…

OUCH!

At $27.38 per pill, the stress of taking one is enough to give me a migraine!

It’s a non-formulary drug, so even when I’ve had various insurance overthe last two decades it wasn’t covered at all, or they paid a small percentage.

But it’s the only thing that works…

A lot of time and appeals for “medical necessity” have sometimes yielded fruit.

Hmmmm… What do you think my odds are of getting the military insurance to pay for it when Wolf is full-time active during his training?

Today my mother will undergo surgery for her recently-diagnosed cancer. (12:30 pm California time, to be exact).

They’ll be doing a complete ovo-hysterectomy, as well as removing the cervix.

She’ll stay overnight in the hospital and go home Wednesday. Hard to believe she doesn’t stay longer, but with the laproscopic methods they use now they can throw you out sooner… Good for the bill, but I’m not sure it’s best for people’s healing.

Her doctor is very confident that they will get everything and she’ll be “clean” when this is over. A pathologist in the room will confirm clear edges before they finish the procedure.

The hopsital is discounting her cost 75%, and the surgeon 30%. The total bill will “only” be about $50K, and she’ll only have to be off work 1-2 weeks.

Whew!!

I’m encouraging her to take at least a week off, then do another week of phone sessions. She’s anxious to get back (for her clients, and her income!), but I’m nervous she’ll push too hard and not let her body heal.

My sister is taking off work for at least a week to be with her.

Sure wish I wasn’t on the other side of the country with little kids!

Please pray with me for the outcome of the surgery, for financial blessings, and for my mother and sister to be drawn to the Lord through this trial.

My mother was just diagnosed with uterine and cervical cancer. There’s also a mass, which they have yet to identify (benign fibroid, or scary tumor).

In addition to the obvious, this means putting off a hip replacement surgery to have a hysterectomy immediately (she can hadly walk from the hip pain), *and* she’s self employed (so the time off work means no income) and has no insurance.

She’s in California, so it’s not likely I”ll be able to go see her, and certainly nothing practical I can do to help. My sister lives nearby, but has her own physical and emotional challenges going on. Neither of them knows the Lord.

I would be grateful for your prayers for my mom, Susan, and also for my sister, Teresa.

Thank you!!