In the Centre of God's Plan {One Thing Our Marriages Desperately Need Today ~~ A Husband's Heartfelt Words as His Wife's Heart was Weak #HeartMonth.}

{To read Part 1, the beginning of the series:

"A Husband's Heartfelt Words as His Wife's Heart Was Weak"

click here first.}

Following my tracheostomy and being taken off all antipsychotics and sleeping medications (which are commonly prescribed following open-heart surgery and in the ICU) my mind finally began to clear. I struggled with sleeping at first, but gradually eased into better sleep patterns and the CO2 in my blood started to level out.

The day after the tracheostomy I was in the care of one of the worst nurses and the day after that, one of the most compassionate nurses I had met. The first nurse spent more time booking her vacation days than looking after the needs of her patient and the other did everything she could—plus much more—to see that her patient was well taken care of. The night in between the extreme difference of care from these nurses, I wrestled all night without any sleep, weeping and seeking God and His promises.

Shadows of that long night slunk back as the first blush of a new day ushered in bright hope and the caring and compassionate nurse, Lorne, entered my room as the sun breaks through the darkest night and declared that it was a good day to give thanks. I wholeheartedly agreed and thanked God for her.

God is a God who see and hears and answers when we call out to Him.

Lorne deduced from my medical records that my birthday was near and went beyond her duty to see that I looked and felt as well as I possibly could in those circumstances for when my children would come to celebrate with me.

Jon and I were blessed to be able to share life with her and many times of prayer and heart-to-heart conversations.

Lorne touched Jon's and my life in a remarkable way and, I am sure, many others.

When we care for others, we have the power to make a huge difference. Both nurses were doing their "job", but one genuinely cared for the whole person and the other could hardly wait to complete her shift and move on.

We are all intersecting into the lives and stories of many others. We have the opportunity to make a profound positive or negative impact as we interact with people—keeping in mind that all of it takes place in the providential hand of a sovereign God as He writes the stories of our lives within the overarching story of His ultimate plan for His glory and our good. 

D.A. Carson writes on reflecting on the story and words of Joseph to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done…":

"God is sovereign, and invariably good; we are morally responsible, and frequently evil."

Trusting in our sovereign God and seeing His hand in my life, Jon shared these thoughts and praise and requests on the day before my birthday:

It's not the kind of place anyone would desire to be for a day of celebration but tomorrow, the 25th, is Rebekah's birthday and yes, we will be here. But it's not about the place anyways, it's about being together to celebrate life and the goodness of God over this last year. She will turn 38 tomorrow. Online statistics would indicate the average lifespan of long-term paediatric cancer survivors to be about 37.2 years of age.

But just as we don't come into this world by accident or chance—nor do we live it or go out from it that way either. We are all fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139) and the ultimate plan and purpose for our lives is already orchestrated and established in the mind of God before we even start to form. He knows the plans He has for each of us and whatever it looks like—the best place to be is right in the centre of that plan. 

Yes, Rebekah has beaten an online statistic and she has received treatment to extend her life but I believe that God has brought her through this medically life and death surgery to continue writing this powerful story of His greatness—through her weakness. God will decide as He does for all of us, when the last earthly chapter is to be written and the book closed. Until then, we live, and He is glorified in it all.

Rebekah is gaining each day. Some of the gains are small and some are slow. 

A specialist team came in to look at diaphragm muscles today to determine effectiveness in relation to breathing. In the Operating Room her body was chilled down and as a result, [the phrenic] nerve that triggers the left diaphragm to move in sequence with the chest—when we breathe—was frozen. Probably not actually frozen, but that's the term they use. This is apparently common in long surgeries. The tough thing is that this can take weeks to repair. The good news is that it should repair itself and come back into sequence with time. 

All of these things extend our stay here but we need to be patient and allow time. This can be a prayer focus over the next few days. Her lung is strengthening and she is being weened down slowly from vent support to more of her own lung capacity taking over. She is more determined to walk again each day now and I see a rising "will power" in her to push through this that is so encouraging.

Thank you all for continued practical and powerful prayer support!! 

- Jon

~.~.~.~.~.

This is part 12 of the series:

One Thing Our Marriages Desperately Need Today ~~ A Husband's Heartfelt Words as His Wife's Heart was Weak

{for #HeartMonth.}

You can read Part 1, the beginning of the series here.

Read Part 13 here.

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