Prayers

Andrew has another week and a half before we get his labs. We will be checking his medication dose to see if he can start going off another medication. And, we will be checking his liver levels. He will also have his thyroid checked to see if he is finally on the right dose - after months of being off. Please pray that all is well and that this new plan will help him. The medication he is taking now was stopped in the 6th grade when he developed undetermined liver disease. If it was auto-immune hepatitis, it disappeared and never came back. Sometimes not knowing something can be a blessing, but I am praying hard that his seizure meds were not the cause after all. And if three doctors have agreed (one is the gastroenterologist) that it's okay to try them again, then that in itself is positive (and really unheard of) to me. I know God worked all of that out.


In my April 4th entry in my Beth Moore devotional (tomorrow is Grandmother's 88th birthday!), I highlighted what she said. "Faith is God's invitation to make the impossible possible. He is glorified when we are enabled to do what we're unable to do." I know that I do not know enough to take care of Andrew (I am unable) - yet God has sent us to some wonderful places with help. And we have had to leave seemingly good places that did not help him and find others. He has worked all of this out. I "ran" the disease category on Jeopardy last night. I only missed one question but actually had the correct word in my answer. I am not a medical person, so knowing Andrew has gone to places with such wonderful doctors is totally God's thing. And it is easier to look back now and see it. And I cannot ever forget that He will not stop now - even if things get muddled and confusing again. He is in control.

And talking about being unable. Pete and I can both say that we never saw leaving the hospital with Sam. I remember him calling me to tell me he had given him a shot for the first time. I asked him how it was. One of my dear friends stopped by to check on Sam when I had to check his blood sugar for the first time. Sam and I both cried, and she cried with us. But it all got better, and we got to take him home in record time. And most newly diagnosed diabetics that sick are shipped to Charlotte or Baptist, but we were able to stay here and got the best education we could in the time we were at Watauga. God had just the right nurses, from the ultra conservative in ICU to the funny male nurse in pediatrics, to help us on the start of that journey. Now all of the boys check Sam and figure up and give him shots. While I need more back up people than just Laura and my sister, I am grateful for the people at school who take care of him when he is there. They were willing to learn and do. One woman said she just worried that when Sam left HP that he would remember her as the person who always gave him shots in his bottom. I told her not to worry - we all have to do that! He would remember her as one of his helpers.

Peter just decided on a school! It's great to be a Mountaineer! He is going to walk on at Appalachian since he cannot run until probably July. He is excited, and we are so excited for him!

Will is Will and is going through a little rough patch in one area right now. While he is too old for me to share details, he could use prayer in getting some stuff straightened out. He is such a good boy and has so many gifts. We all get off track sometimes and seem to struggle instead of to thrive in certain areas. But I am thankful that in the ones that count the most that he is great. He is very thoughtful and helpful at critical times. I am praying to get some things worked out for him that will make his life better.

Pete leaves next week for another 10 day trip. I am excited for him and dreading it a little for me! That is a long time for him to be gone! But we have done it before, and everything has worked out. I thought I would worry about him being in danger while he was gone, but really I never had time to go beyond the first thoughts. And when we did have the chopping the thumb incident and the seizure, we had people to step up and help.

Thanks for all of your prayers. Thanks for your encouragement and help. Thanks for being part of God making the impossible possible. We can look around and see SO many blessings. Sometimes they are so clear and so abundant that it is truly overwhelming.

I have so many on my heart with sickness and financial problems and family problems - so much heartache and hurting. If you are one of those, I am praying for you individually. And if you think I don't know, be assured I pray collectively. I know people pray for me without knowing what is going on. They answer that "nudge" to pray. Having that hope that only comes in Christ Jesus makes ALL the difference no matter what we go through in this world, our temporary home.

Happy Spring! Even though Easter is gone, we can still celebrate it all year!

Thanks again!