Surgery for Isaac and Prayer Around the World

by ObtainingMercy, posted in How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, Thankful on Tuesday, What's Happening

Whew!  What a whirlwind 20 hours it has been!  Not even a full day – it's hard to believe.

Last night, Isaac would not go to sleep and we could tell that he was in pain.  Eventually we saw some swelling in his groin area.

We got him into the children's hospital as quickly as we could (around 1 a.m. this morning) and after sonagrams and x-rays, it was determined that Isaac had this condition.

They took him into surgery immediately.  Unfortunately, the condition had damaged the left side and it could not be saved.  Fortunately, the surgery was short and he had no complications.

We were sent home within 5 hours of his surgery.  He has been resting easy, with no complaining about pain or discomfort, since we arrived home.

I was so grateful for the many prayer warriors who stormed the throne of the Father on Isaac's behalf. 

  • It was amazing to have friends in the mid-west pick up the prayers as soon as we put it up on Facebook. 
  • They were soon joined by my west coast friends. 
  • It wasn't long after that before I heard from my friend in Japan who joined the prayer chain. 
  • Then my early rising east coast friends completed the circle, as they read and prayed for Isaac,
  • Followed quickly by another set of folks from the mid-west!

Isn't that just the most incredible thing?  We were amazed and awed to know that Isaac was being lifted in prayer all around the world.

We are – truly – so thankful for each of you who prayed for us!

Thank you!

Alesha

 

Who Needs Caffeine When You Have Adrenaline?

by ObtainingMercy, posted in How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, What's Happening

By way of review:

Isaac has this inserted into his abdomen. 

button

That little hole in the top goes down through the ballooned part, directly into his stomach, which is attached to the wall of his abdomen. 

Think of it as the earring hole in your ear.  The button fits through the hole.  (We call this hole a stoma.)  After the button is through, we use a syringe filled with distilled water to inflate the balloon.

We attach this tube into the top of the button.

Right angle feeding tube

We insert this syringe into the wide end of the tube (without the plunger),

Syringe

and pour his formula into his tummy. 

This morning, we found this laying at the foot of Isaac's bed!

button

He had pulled it out completely inflated!!!

Lest you think it was no big deal for us, let me tell you, this has NEVER happened before.  It has come out before, during feeding, but not inflated.  Usually, it is because the stomach acids have eroded the material and the water filling the balloon has leaked out, leaving nothing holding it in.  Since we were right there, we could replace it quickly.

If the stoma closes, and you can't get the button in, it mean emergency abdominal surgery.  We have no other way to get medication or nourishment to him.  If we try to give these things by mouth, he can choke or aspirate, leading to pneumonia.

So, you see, it was a true medical emergency.

God has created our bodies to be incredible healing machines.  Isaac's body knows that it isn't supposed to have a button in his stomach.  We have been told the stoma will immediately begin to close up when the button is removed.

We had NO idea how long it had been out. We had no idea how much the stoma had already closed.

We grabbed all of our supplies. (We keep the replacement kit right beside his bed.)  I cleaned off the area and could still see the top of the opening.

I said to Doug, "Pray!"  And he did!  Out loud! That was totally for my own personal benefit, let me tell you!

Praise be to God, that button slid right in…just a little resistence at the end…Isaac jumped, but didn't holler or cry.  I inflated the balloon and we were finished – just like that!

Whew!

And Thank You, Lord!!!

It all took about 2 minutes.

Afterwards, I thought "Who needs caffeine to wake up?  That jolt of adrenaline did just fine!!!"

 

Foto Friday

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Foto Friday

(alternate title)

"The Day I Found a Rainbow in My Mailbox"

Isaac has many friends. 

Mrs. Cheryl at Copperswife is one of them. 

She sent this fabulous rainbow of washcloths for him. 

Rainbow

Stripe

Aren't they lovely?

Wave

This one is my favorite…it might go "missing" from Isaac's stack and end up in mine!

Star

I just love this "star" one – it just screams "little boy washcloth" to me.

Thank you, Cheryl, for loving my boy.

🙂

~~~~~~~~~~

…And one more pic for Foto Friday.

This is the June picture on the calendar that hangs in our bathroom.

It makes me smile every time I see it.

June2

Of course, if you know Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you have EVERY reason in the world to be happy!

I Peter 1:8 – "Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory"

Wishing you a Happy Weekend!

Alesha

Grace in Pain

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Uncategorized

I do not like pain.

In fact, this moring, I found myself looking up words to describe my pain.  (You can read about my condition in this post.)


  • per·ni·cious [per-nish-uhs]

–adjective 1. causing harm or ruin; ruinous; injurious; hurtful.

  • in·sid·i·ous [in-sid-ee-uhs]

–adjective

1.intended to entrap or beguile: an insidious plan.
2.stealthily treacherous or deceitful
3.operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect.
  • per·fid·i·ous [per-fid-ee-uhs]
–adjective deliberately faithless; treacherous; deceitful

When you start looking up words like that, you realize it's time for some serious reflection!

I don't know about you, but when I am in pain – be it physical or emotional – it is rarely helpful for me to focus on that pain.

It is helpful, though, for me to busy my mind and my body, if at all possible, on other things, projects, studies, and people.

It is also so helpful to be reminded of how the Apostle Paul dealt with his pain.  Remember that his years as a missionary were not spent in ease.  He describes his life's experiences with the following words:

  • labors
  • stripes
  • prison
  • death
  • beaten
  • stoned
  • ship wrecked
  • journeyings
  • perils
  • weariness
  • painfulness
  • watchings
  • hunger
  • thirst
  • fastings
  • cold
  • nakedness

That's an incredible list, isn't it? 

And do you remember Paul's summation of his life of pain and suffering?  It's rather incredible, too!

 

II Corinthians 12:9-10 – And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Now I realize that my life in no way compares to that of the Apostle Paul.  My circle of influence is infinitely smaller than his, and I am no apostle, or preacher or missionary.

However, my role is still important.  I do touch many lives in my little circle. 

More importantly, though, is that the God of the Apostle Paul is my God too!

If God can use Paul's suffering to bring Himself glory, if Paul's weaknesses can highlight God's strengths, if God's grace was enough for Paul, then I know I can claim those promises for myself as well.

Today I will focus on God's strength, rather than my weakness.

I will look for His glory in the midst of my infirmities.

I will concentrate on His grace, rather than my pain.

Maybe you are hurting today, too.  I encourage you to try to deal with it Paul's way!  And let me know how it goes, ok? 🙂

Blessings,

Alesha

Thoughtful Thursday

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope, Thoughtful Thursday

I do not like pain.

In fact, this moring, I found myself looking up words to describe my pain.  (You can read about my condition in this post.)


  • per·ni·cious [per-nish-uhs]

–adjective 1. causing harm or ruin; ruinous; injurious; hurtful.

  • in·sid·i·ous [in-sid-ee-uhs]

–adjective

1.intended to entrap or beguile: an insidious plan.
2.stealthily treacherous or deceitful
3.operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect.
  • per·fid·i·ous [per-fid-ee-uhs]
–adjective deliberately faithless; treacherous; deceitful

When you start looking up words like that, you realize it's time for some serious reflection!

I don't know about you, but when I am in pain – be it physical or emotional – it is rarely helpful for me to focus on that pain.

It is helpful, though, for me to busy my mind and my body, if at all possible, on other things, projects, studies, and people.

It is also so helpful to be reminded of how the Apostle Paul dealt with his pain.  Remember that his years as a missionary were not spent in ease.  He describes his life's experiences with the following words:

  • labors
  • stripes
  • prison
  • death
  • beaten
  • stoned
  • ship wrecked
  • journeyings
  • perils
  • weariness
  • painfulness
  • watchings
  • hunger
  • thirst
  • fastings
  • cold
  • nakedness

That's an incredible list, isn't it? 

And do you remember Paul's summation of his life of pain and suffering?  It's rather incredible, too!

 

II Corinthians 12:9-10 – And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Now I realize that my life in no way compares to that of the Apostle Paul.  My circle of influence is infinitely smaller than his, and I am no apostle, or preacher or missionary.

However, my role is still important.  I do touch many lives in my little circle. 

More importantly, though, is that the God of the Apostle Paul is my God too!

If God can use Paul's suffering to bring Himself glory, if Paul's weaknesses can highlight God's strengths, if God's grace was enough for Paul, then I know I can claim those promises for myself as well.

Today I will focus on God's strength, rather than my weakness.

I will look for His glory in the midst of my infirmities.

I will concentrate on His grace, rather than my pain.

Maybe you are hurting today, too.  I encourage you to try to deal with it Paul's way!  And let me know how it goes, ok? 🙂

Blessings,

Alesha

Something to Think On

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Just My Thoughts

 

Considering that the following quote comes from a book written in 1901, I find it an amazing summation of the attitude of Christians today:

 

"We hear much about 'personal liberty' in these days, and, to hear some talk, one would think that personal liberty was a gift to be selfishly guarded rather than to be sacrificed for the good of others. But Paul, the apostle, sacrificed his liberty for the sake of others; so did Onesimus, the Christian slave. 

Surely those professing Christians who make 'personal liberty ' their plea for engaging in some form of worldly amusement…and those who are given to some filthy habit…have not studied the life of Jesus, or of Paul or of Onesimus. 

If there were no other reasons why these things should be renounced, that they injure our influence…would be sufficient…To say the least, they are 'weights', and must be laid aside."*


I purposely left out the author's list of "worldly amusement" and "filthy habits".  We must be engaged in a personal relationship with our Saviour to know what things He would have us cull from our lives so that we can be a profitable witness for Him.

What is the first "amusement" or "habit" that pops into your mind after reading the above quote?  My guess is that perhaps that is the very thing about which you need to be seeking God's guidance – Just as I will be! {smile}

Let Scripture be your teacher, and God's Holy Spirit your guide, as you seek to be a worthy vessel used by the Lord to win others to Him.

 

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us"

Hebrews 12:1

 

*The Art of Soul Winning by J.W. Mahood

A Holy Confidence

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Just My Thoughts

I have wondered at times about my reluctance to speak up for Christ in certain situations.  Do you ever feel the need to witness of Him, but feel embarrassed or timid or hesitant to do so?

I read this quote this morning in a free Kindle book I downloaded –The Art of Soul-Winning by J. W. Mahood.  He says,

"The witness of the Spirit will give a holy confidence to the soul-winner…

Much of the timidity and reluctance shown by Christians toward personal work may be traced to a refusal or neglect to live the surrendered life and have the clear assurance of acceptance with God."

Wow!  That is so true!

If I am living my life in an unGodly way, unsure of my own salvation due to sin I am harboring against my Saviour, I am not going to be willing to witness of Him.

Also, if I am indulging my flesh, refusing to submit my will to His in any area, I am going to be hesitant to speak of Him in loving, inviting words to someone who doesn't know Him. 

I feel embarrassed to be recommending a Christ Who I am not wholeheartedly following.

  • Do we want others to know our Christ?
  • Do we long for our loved ones to be saved?
  • Do we dream of being in Heaven with those we have lived with here on earth?

Just another compelling reason to live our lives in accordance with His Word and His precepts.

Our sin robs us of our confidence in witnessing of our Christ! 

May we be obedient to His leading so that we can, in turn, lead others to Him.