"With man this is impossible, but with God all things
are possible." (Matthew 19:26).
During
my spine surgery in May, something happened. I don’t know exactly what because,
with all the trauma around the operation, I can’t remember the details. I just
know that my kidneys failed at the time of the procedure. I can still hear the
nephrologist who came into my hospital room later that evening as he leaned in
close to my bed.
“You do know that God can heal, don’t you?”
He asked. A gold cross hung from his neck.
“Yes,” was all I could say through the fog
of pain and lingering anesthetic. Inside, I not only knew that God can heal the
broken in body, mind and spirt, I had experienced His healing in the past.
“Pray, and God will heal your kidney,” he
added before he left.
I smiled and agreed, but didn’t know what
he was talking about. The surgery had been on my spine, not my kidneys. The
surgeon had fused my spine along the lumbar area, inserted rods and a metal
plate. When the kidney doctor left, I was too dazed to grasp what he meant by a
problem with my kidney.
My own, nonverbal silent prayers, buried
beneath the blur of anesthetic, pain and total kidney failure were for the
rapid and complete healing of my back. The collapse of my lower spine was why I
walked into the hospital early that morning, not something else.
In spite of the bag after bag of fluid
they dripped into my veins every day for eight days, the creatinine level in my
blood had risen dangerously high. My husband and two daughters didn’t tell me
that my square, swollen face made me look like Sponge Bob. Later, I suggested
Sponge Bobette, square capris was more appropriate. But right then, I only knew
the retained fluid and swelling in my legs was painful. After the ninth day,
the nephrologist made it clear that I would have to undergo a dialysis treatment
the next day if the creatinine level in my blood was not starting down.
I realized that family and friends from
Texas, to Colorado, Ohio to Florida, and Michigan to the north were praying for
my speedy post-op recovery. If I could have concentrated, I too would have
prayed. Deep inside, I could feel the presence of a spirit that prayed on my
behalf. I knew I could not find the words, but the words were there
none-the-less.
On the tenth day, my creatinine number
began to fall. I transferred from the hospital to a wonderful in-patient rehabilitation
unit near our home. That first evening, the treating physician for the rehab facility
stopped in to see me. Dr. Mathew, a Christian man, assured me, in spite of all
I had been through, I would heal.
Two weeks after my admittance to rehab I
had a follow-up appointment with the nephrologist. He reported that my kidneys
were fine. I hadn’t had a problem before the surgery and he didn’t expect me to
have another one. He smiled broadly and dismissed me as a patient.
Over
the weeks in in-patient therapy, I received many get-well cards, words of
encouragement, visits from friends and family and reports of prayers going up
all over the country for a complete healing of my back. My physical therapy was
a little slow at first since I had to regain energy from the kidney failure.
Finally, I was able to get to my feet, walk in the halls and sit on the living
room side of my hospital suite!
While there, I still struggled with words.
Even after I began to regain verbal expression, written words were not there.
It was weeks before I even picked up my laptop again. This, from the woman who
had written six novels in the last three years! I wanted to write this blog
post weeks ago. At first, I’d type a sentence and then lay it all aside. And,
that was okay. It was the same with my own prayers. If I couldn’t express a
prayer for the healing of my spine, I knew there were hundreds of others
praying for me. I had not lost my belief in prayer. I had temporarily lost the
ability to express the words of prayer.
Isn’t it wonderful how God provides a
whole company of prayer warriors to intercede for us when we need them? Each
day my therapist could see improvement and it continues in out-patient therapy.
Just weeks ago, I had nearly died and now I can walk, climb three or four steps
and I have started the third and final book in the Length of Days trilogy:
Length of Days – Freedom Re-born. The words are flowing, with an anticipated
completion date by the end of the year, ready for a 2016 launch! The Lord
restored my voice, verbal and written, and is healing my back – Praise His holy
name!
The evening before dismissal from the
Heritage of Huntington, Dr. Mathew came in to see me. His eyes were bright with
joy and praise. “Your kidney has healed!” His voice was full of excitement.
“Yes,” I agreed with enthusiasm. “And, the
nephrologist said he doesn’t expect it to happen again.”
“No,” he protested with the Holy energy of
a found blessing, “your kidney has healed!”
It wasn’t until the next day that I grasped
the meaning of what he said and realized the miracle I had nearly missed. I had
been praying that my back would be healed and the all-knowing Lord healed my
kidney first at the request of the prayers of all those who bowed before him on
my behalf. I had put in an order. “One healed spine please” and didn’t even see
the miracle of a healed kidney.
We miss many of the blessings given to us
when we believe we know our needs better than God and look only for evidence of
“wishes fulfilled.” Every time our children awaken in the morning and greet us
with a hug and kiss, we have witnessed a miracle. When we bury our head in our cell phone,
waiting for a specific answer, we fail to notice the blessings of Love. Don’t
miss the awesome miracle of what he has already given us, while hoping to
receive our own dreams and desires. Let us pray:
“Dear
Father God, Holy is your name and hallowed are each of your blessings. May your
kingdom come to live in my life that I may dwell with you. For this day, may I
lay my requests aside and rely on you, the wisdom of the ages, to know what is
best for me. I even found a four-leafed clover at my feet as I got in the car
to go for my follow-up appointment with my surgeon, and acknowledged it as “the
Luck of the Irish” and not a promise-sign from you of your presence in my life.
While I waited with impatience for the long healing of my back, I over-looked
the complete healing of my kidney. How very foolish I can be. Forgive me for
failing to see your hand in my life. May I look for you, so that I may see your
miracles. In the name of your son Jesus, the great healer and my savior, I pray.
Amen”
Doris
"God gives us stories that testify to His love. Let me tell you
mine.”
Copyright 2015 Doris Gaines Rapp
[PLEASE SHARE]
CATCH
UP to Christiana and Jason and their adventures in the year 2112. You'll be ready before the launch of Book 3, Length
of Days – Freedom Re-born which is at the end of this year. Subscribers
to Kindle e-books can read Book 1, Length of Days – The Age of Silence,
free. Non-subscribers can read for $0.99. Book 2, Length of Days – Beyond the
Valley of the Keepers eBook is available on Amazon for $3.99.
An e-Reader
is not necessary. Download a free app to read the books on your computer or
smart phone.
Paperback
copies of both are also on Amazon.
Profits will go to a greatly
needed shower for the first floor of our home, due to my recent spine surgery. (Doris Gaines Rapp)
