April 18, 2020 – Click here to listen
I decided to do a special Saturday edition of Words for the Day in order to give you an update on my wife Teresa. Thank you for the huge outpouring of prayers and words of encouragement yesterday and last night for Teresa and for me. We feel your prayers and they help us in coping with this situation. The response has been overwhelming and helped lift both our spirits considerably to read them all.
The update for her diagnosis has changed yet again and now they are saying that she does have asthmatic bronchitis in addition to the two pulmonary embolisms. Her breathing has improved due to breathing treatments, steroids, and other medications. They are treating the embolisms with Heparin a blood thinner in order to reduce the size of the clots in her pulmonary artery.
They are concerned by the fact that this same situation has returned after having embolisms a few years back when she had breast cancer. They are worried that the cancer may have come back and will be testing her with a mammogram, colonoscopy, and other tests deemed appropriate by her oncologist. This will begin once her bronchitis problem is resolved. If it is not cancer, they believe it may be a side effect of the chemo pill she has been taking which causes blood clots in some people.
For those who continue to pray I ask first and foremost to pray that the embolisms dissolve with the blood thinner and the immediate danger to her life will subside. I also am praying that the asthmatic bronchitis will be cured. I pray that her cancer has not returned. And importantly I’m praying that she does not get Covid19 while in the hospital. It would almost certainly prove to be fatal for her in this condition.
One thing this ordeal has confirmed to me is the uncertainty of life and how powerless we are to do much of anything to control our destinies. Just a couple of days ago I was 100 miles out in the middle of a raging, angry ocean in high winds and monster waves. I was being tossed about in my boat like it was a small cork. As I glumly looked at the distance that I needed to go in order to reach safety and then the wild sea in front of me, I could only pray that we somehow got there. Just a day later Teresa was rushed to the hospital. They would not even allow me to go inside and be with her and I helplessly watched from my car as she had to stand outside the emergency entrance and wait while they got a room ready for her. I had to turn her over to their care and it was the most heart-wrenching thing I’ve ever done.
Jesus warned us not to worry. He said it was useless and accomplished nothing. Instead He tells us to put our burdens upon Him. Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
As with most sins worry has consequences which are detrimental to our health and well-being. I believe it is one of Satan’s most effective tools to put fear in our hearts. He does not want you to know that the Lord is right there with us and that he will strengthen, protect, and help us.
The beautiful thing about Jesus is He loves us with a love that is so powerful that our shallow fleshly intellects cannot even imagine it. If we are anxious and filled with fear and worry, isn’t it disrespectful of our Lord that He will not provide the proper outcome to our problems? Even if we do not agree with the outcome, we must trust in Him that He has a plan and it is a good one. My take on it is that I have done all I can personally do to care for Teresa. She is in God’s capable hands and I cannot think of anyone else with whom I would trust my wife of 49 years whom I deeply love.
We are told that in order to obtain peace in our hearts during perilous times that we should present our prayers and petitions to Him with thanksgiving. In short, recognize almighty God for who He is and turn it over to Him. That is what I did out on the ocean while being banged around in huge waves and that is what I’m doing with Teresa. I’m praying ceaselessly for her and asking God to deliver her back home to my care for many more years and I’m thanking Him for hearing my prayers and being the merciful, compassionate Father He is. He has removed the uncertainty of this short life and changed it to certainty of being safe and joyous with him forever. He loves us and every situation will ultimately be determined by His wonderful plan for our lives both here and eternally in heaven.
Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.