Lessons learned from the ER

Well the last 2 days have been a blur to say the least.

It actually all started about 2 weeks ago when my wife was diagnosed with a sinus infection. she went to the doctor and was given a prescription to take care of that. She was supposed to take the prescription with food, but noticed a pain in her stomach every time she took the pill. We thought it was a reaction to the medication, so after 8 days of this we finally went back to the doctor.

Thinking it was a reaction to the medication, the doctor gave my wife a new prescription and was told that she should start feeling better in about a week. So back home we went to try this new medication.

She did begin to feel better after about 5 or 6 days, so she thought she would try eating more regularly, but quickly realized that this was not going to work. The pain not only came back, but intensified. She was in such pain Thursday night that she knew we would have to call the doctor the next morning.

The doctor suggested going to the ER to have a certain procedure done, so we went, only to realize after several hours of waiting that the procedure the doctor thought she needed could not be done in the ER. Needless to say I was getting quite frustrated with the whole thing. Why would a doctor send us to the ER knowing that they would not be able to do what she wanted them to do?

The ER doctor then ordered a CT scan. The waiting only continued. Finally the time came for the CT scan and the result appeared to be an internal intestinal hernia. The doctor was confident that with surgery this could be taken care of without any problem. So we wait again to be admitted and then we wait and wait again for the surgery to take place.

When she finally got into the OR it was discovered that the problem was very different then first diagnosed from the CT scan. The surgeon simply altered his plans and took care of the problem without missing a beat.

As I write this my wife is resting comfortable in the hospital bed beside me, something she has not done in over 2 weeks.

Even though this was not our plan. Nor was it our plan to celebrate our Saviors birth from a hospital room, we are praising God for his protection and His healing.

Several thoughts have gone through my mind in the last 48 hours. Why did we have to go through all this agony for 2 weeks only to have to wait hours in the ER before having surgery? Why could this not have been checked earlier? Why would a doctor send us the the ER for a procedure that could not be done in the ER?

The same answer keeps coming to my mind...

Isaiah 55:8 - “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.

As it turned out we had one of the best surgeons in the area to perform this surgery. Could it be that he would not have been available to do the surgery last week? Was this God's way of protecting my wife and allowing her to be seen by this surgeon?

Though I may never know the answer to these questions, I am content to know that God has a good plan for my life and for my wife and that He is always causing things to work together for my good.

Attempt the Impossible

What is a more common first reaction when you face an obstacle: making excuses or stepping out in faith?

Jesus said in Matthew 19:26 - "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (NASB)

In Matthew 14:13-21 all 12 of the disciples watched as Jesus feed thousands of people with just a little boys lunch. And sometimes I think that only Peter was paying attention and learned the lesson that Jesus can do the impossible.

Later in that same chapter we read that Peter and the other disciples were out in the boat when Jesus came walking towards them on the water. (Matthew 14:22-33)

When Peter saw he jumped out of the boat and began to walk on the water to Jesus. Now I realize that Peter is often criticized for taking his eyes off of Jesus and sinking, but the bigger failure that night was made by the other disciples who did nothing and staying in the boat.

The greatest failure is failure to try. We don't try, because we don't trust.

Ron Dunn, in his book Faith Crisis, wrote: "If we are spiritually impoverished, it is not because the hand of grace is tight-fisted; it is because the hand of faith is too weak."

What is God asking you to do that seems impossible?

Are you willing to get out of the boat and attempt the impossible with God or are you content to remain weak in your faith and stay in the boat?

You think about that.