This week has been very emotional for both John and myself. John’s doctor decided that it is best for him to go into the ICU to wait for his heart transplant. He is scheduled to go to Duke on Tuesday for a right heart catherization with the intent of being admitted from there.
While John is in the ICU he will have a balloon pump put into his leg. This will help his heart pump blood to the lower half of his body. John will be completely immobile with this pump making it the most difficult part of being in the ICU. There will be relaxation therapists, psychologists, and medications available to him as he deals with this state of complete permanence.
John’s status on the transplant list will be elevated, and a heart may become available as soon as a week but up to three months. The doctors will set an arbitrary date to reassess how John is doing emotionally and physically and from there decide if he needs to continue to wait for a heart in the ICU or if he should go ahead and have the LVAD heart pump inserted so that he can come home, gain strength, and gear up for his transplant when the time comes. We would like for him to avoid having the LVAD if possible because it is a major surgery with a 2-3 week recovery time in the hospital, and it is not ideal to have two major surgeries close to one another.
John and I both knows that this is best for him. If he does not go into the ICU, his organs may begin to fail. He grows weaker at home every day. However, as the events that we have anticipated move closer it becomes increasing difficult to maintain a positive attitude. We are relying on God to completely provide everything we need. “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).
Since we have felt the enemy’s attempts to divert our attention away from God’s goodness this past week, we continue to glorify and praise Him for these blessings with more deliberate intent.
We thank you, Lord, for providing for us these things this week:
1. The generosity, love, and support we have experienced in countless ways from our friends and family.
2. Our church family, small group, and new friends in NC who have embraced us in ways we never expected and who have made this “home” for us.
3. John’s opportunity for life through his heart transplant.
4. Sustaining John for this long – 6 years – and giving him the strength to work right up to the end.
5. For leading us to NC and ultimately Duke so that John can receive some of the best health care.
6. Our doctors, nurses, and the transplant team.
7. Our jobs, medical insurance, and benefits.
8. The compassion and support of our employers.
9. The hope God continues to bring us through His Word and the stories and experiences we hear from other people.
10. For answering John’s and my prayers for a spouse later in life and before John needed the transplant so that we can endure this together and help each other.
11. My summer off with uninterrupted time to take care of John.
12. John’s attitude and determination to persevere with God’s help to overcome this obstacle.
We pray for these things this week with the absolute faith that God hears them and will answer them. “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven” (James 5:15).
Lord, please hear these prayers and answer them in your perfect timing:
1. John’s spiritual and emotional health as he is waiting in the hospital. That God will protect his thoughts and his mind and give him “the peace that surpasses all understanding”. That John will find comfort in the most uncomfortable of situations.
2. John’s heart donor. I have begun to mourn for this person as time possibly draws closer, and I pray for his salvation. We pray for the opportunity to thank him in Heaven. We pray that’s there is peace between him and his family right now. We pray for his family. That God will give them love, comfort, support, and understanding. We pray that they are open to God’s comfort and love.
3. Wisdom and knowledge for John’s doctors, nurses, and the transplant team. That they will make decisions that are in John’s best interest always.
4. That there are no complications with John’s leg pump or any other procedure that is done in the hospital.
5. Patience as we wait for God’s perfect timing. That we will not become frantic and forget that God always knows what is best for us. That we will continue to feel His peace.
6. That God will lead us (and me in particular) in any decisions that we (I) have to make concerning John’s health care.
7. That God continues to work in our lives and draw us closer to Him through this experience. Others who hear John’s story will also grow closer to God. That lives will be changed.
8. For God to continue to be glorified through our reactions to all that we encounter. That He gets the credit and glory for everything He is doing in our lives.
9. That the heart God has chosen for John is perfect for him and his body. That it is strong and healthy. That it will give him many more years here on earth to serve Him.
10. That every step from here forward is smooth, and if it’s not that God will give us all we need to get through it.
11. John’s body does not reject his new heart. If there is rejection, that it is minimal and controlled quickly.
12. John recovers smoothly and quickly from his heart surgery.
13. That God will comfort me when I am away from John when he is in the hospital. That He will protect me as I drive back and forth.
14. That God gives me the words to say to John to encourage him and lift him up during this time. That He will equip me to be the wife He has called me to be for John.
15. For time-management as I go back to work in a month. That God will lead me and help me as John continues to be my priority over everything else.
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