E
ericpaul
Guest
This is a testimony I shared a couple of years ago with some others.
Daniel 3:17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Three of the greatest words of faith we can ever speak were spoken by the three Hebrew children, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, as they stood before King Nebuchadnezzar. Those words are "BUT IF NOT". It is very easy to have faith in GOD that all things will work out, but in our mind we are usually thinking...."work out the way I want it to". It is hard for us to grasp on to the idea of trusting in GOD when things don't go the way we think they should. We begin to question why, and how, and GOD are you even listening? When we grasp onto the power of FAITH we will trust GOD when HE answers our prayers, but also when He doesn't seem to.
In the Spring of 2008 we learned that our daughter Kayla was going to have a baby, and we were going to be grandparents. I was turning 40 that summer and told my wife that turning 40 was one thing, but being a grandpa in the same year was a lot for a guy to get used to, but it didn't take us long to become excited about the idea of having a grandchild around. Early into the pregnancy, Kayla had a routine ultrasound that didn't look quite right to the doctors. They said it looked like there was a problem with the legs and possibly one of the arms. Of course we became concerned and wondered what was going to take place. The doctor recommended that she go to Norton's Hospital and get a high definition ultrasound and make certain there wasn't a mistake with this ultrasound. The appointment was scheduled and we waited for the day to come. During this time we prayed and told a few close friends the situation and asked for their prayers also.
The day came for the ultra sound and all were filled with feelings of anxiety, and concern. I anointed a prayer cloth for Kayla and my wife Patty to take with them. They left for the appointment and I was waiting at home for the guy that I work with to arrive. While I was waiting I began to pray. Often when the Lord really gets to dealing with me, or I am really praying hard, I pace the floor. This morning I was pacing around the kitchen, living room, and dining room praying for the appointment to go well and all to be ok. As I was praying, the verse from Daniel 3:17-18 came to mind........... our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.18 But if not, ................. Those words burnt into my mind that morning and I began to pray......."God, you are my God, and you can fix this, and you will take care of everything.....BUT IF NOT.....you are still my GOD and I will still trust in you. From that point on, I knew that everything would work out fine. I finally got home from work that evening and Patty met us in the driveway. She told us that the ultrasound didn't go so well, and that the hand seemed to look strange also. I had told GOD that morning that I would trust Him even if things didn't work out like I had hoped, and now it was time to show that I meant what I had said. I believed all along that everything would work out fine, and all according to GOD's plan.
The day finally came that Faith was born. We all gathered at the hospital and waited for the arrival of baby Faith. She is the first grandchild on both sides of the family, so there was plenty of excitement and anticipation all over the hospital waiting room. Myself, Patty, and Noah were in the room when Faith was born. The moment we had all been waiting for was here at last, and there she was. She was born just as we had been told she would be, with missing limbs, but cute as any baby we had ever seen. The doctors all wanted to run extra tests for various reasons, so they were busy with her most of the day. Later that day they came and told us that Faith had "Severe joint displacement" in her hips and shoulder. They told us that this was common in children born with limb loss. They said it may require surgery to correct this problem, and that when she was picked up, it caused her severe pain. Of course this was a blow that we were not anticipating. We all decided that we would not hold her except for Kayla and Noah, to try and not cause any more pain than necessary.
Faith spent several days in the Pediatric ICU, "so that she could have privacy due to her condition". Kayla was released from the Hospital on Monday, and of course was not going to leave until Faith came home. They switched off between Noah and Patty on who would stay with Kayla and Faith. Faith was born on Saturday, and we had been told that the orthopedic surgeon would be there Monday to check out the condition of her joints, and determine the course of action. We were told that she may have to stay in the hospital and have surgery before she even came home. Monday came and no doctor, but he said he would be there Tuesday. Tuesday came and no doctor, so the nurse tried to get into contact with him, but he would not return her calls or her pages. Tuesday night I went home and left Patty there with Kayla. I later talked to Patty and she said that Kayla started crying and said "He isn't coming again is he?". The nurses were so irritated with the actions of the doctor that they had him written up. I know that myself, I was about at the end of my rope, and I prayed and said.."Lord you know that I cannot stand the thought of Kayla upset, and Faith being in pain, Please take care of this situation." I know there were a lot of prayers from a lot of different people reaching into heaven for Kayla and Faith, and I know that it wasn't just one person responsible for the prayers.
The next morning I went to work and finally called Patty at the Hospital to find out what was going on. The doctor finally showed up and was going to get in and out in a hurry, but Patty and Kayla wasn't going to let that happen. He examined Faith and said...."who said her joints were dislocated?" He examined her and said that it must have been a faulty MRI or some other mistake, and she was fine. The doctors can claim mistake, or misdiagnosis, but we know the truth. You see she was on pain medication, and she did cry when she was handled, and the MRI said she had joint dislocations, but we know GOD intervened. Many people would say that made no sense, why would he heal that part and not heal her limb loss. I always tell them that GOD has a plan for Faith, and we don't know what that is, and we may never know on this earth what the purpose of her condition is, but we have faith that GOD knows. I believe he healed her of her joint dislocation to tell us,....."I am here, I am in control, and I still care, just have faith".
She has been home now for over a year and a half, and brought more Joy to this house than anyone could ever imagine. Yes we at times wish she had arms and legs, but what kind of blessings would she miss that GOD has for her and others if she had arms and legs. We just got back from having her castings made for her first prosthetic legs, and everyone is excited about that. Kayla got to go buy Faith her first pair of shoes. We have watched her hop around on her little stubs to get from one place to another, and we are looking forward to walking with Faith, running with Faith, and jumping with Faith. It has been an amazing time watching her progress, but all the while I can see that we are the ones learning to take the steps of Faith.
Daniel 3:17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Three of the greatest words of faith we can ever speak were spoken by the three Hebrew children, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, as they stood before King Nebuchadnezzar. Those words are "BUT IF NOT". It is very easy to have faith in GOD that all things will work out, but in our mind we are usually thinking...."work out the way I want it to". It is hard for us to grasp on to the idea of trusting in GOD when things don't go the way we think they should. We begin to question why, and how, and GOD are you even listening? When we grasp onto the power of FAITH we will trust GOD when HE answers our prayers, but also when He doesn't seem to.
In the Spring of 2008 we learned that our daughter Kayla was going to have a baby, and we were going to be grandparents. I was turning 40 that summer and told my wife that turning 40 was one thing, but being a grandpa in the same year was a lot for a guy to get used to, but it didn't take us long to become excited about the idea of having a grandchild around. Early into the pregnancy, Kayla had a routine ultrasound that didn't look quite right to the doctors. They said it looked like there was a problem with the legs and possibly one of the arms. Of course we became concerned and wondered what was going to take place. The doctor recommended that she go to Norton's Hospital and get a high definition ultrasound and make certain there wasn't a mistake with this ultrasound. The appointment was scheduled and we waited for the day to come. During this time we prayed and told a few close friends the situation and asked for their prayers also.
The day came for the ultra sound and all were filled with feelings of anxiety, and concern. I anointed a prayer cloth for Kayla and my wife Patty to take with them. They left for the appointment and I was waiting at home for the guy that I work with to arrive. While I was waiting I began to pray. Often when the Lord really gets to dealing with me, or I am really praying hard, I pace the floor. This morning I was pacing around the kitchen, living room, and dining room praying for the appointment to go well and all to be ok. As I was praying, the verse from Daniel 3:17-18 came to mind........... our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.18 But if not, ................. Those words burnt into my mind that morning and I began to pray......."God, you are my God, and you can fix this, and you will take care of everything.....BUT IF NOT.....you are still my GOD and I will still trust in you. From that point on, I knew that everything would work out fine. I finally got home from work that evening and Patty met us in the driveway. She told us that the ultrasound didn't go so well, and that the hand seemed to look strange also. I had told GOD that morning that I would trust Him even if things didn't work out like I had hoped, and now it was time to show that I meant what I had said. I believed all along that everything would work out fine, and all according to GOD's plan.
The day finally came that Faith was born. We all gathered at the hospital and waited for the arrival of baby Faith. She is the first grandchild on both sides of the family, so there was plenty of excitement and anticipation all over the hospital waiting room. Myself, Patty, and Noah were in the room when Faith was born. The moment we had all been waiting for was here at last, and there she was. She was born just as we had been told she would be, with missing limbs, but cute as any baby we had ever seen. The doctors all wanted to run extra tests for various reasons, so they were busy with her most of the day. Later that day they came and told us that Faith had "Severe joint displacement" in her hips and shoulder. They told us that this was common in children born with limb loss. They said it may require surgery to correct this problem, and that when she was picked up, it caused her severe pain. Of course this was a blow that we were not anticipating. We all decided that we would not hold her except for Kayla and Noah, to try and not cause any more pain than necessary.
Faith spent several days in the Pediatric ICU, "so that she could have privacy due to her condition". Kayla was released from the Hospital on Monday, and of course was not going to leave until Faith came home. They switched off between Noah and Patty on who would stay with Kayla and Faith. Faith was born on Saturday, and we had been told that the orthopedic surgeon would be there Monday to check out the condition of her joints, and determine the course of action. We were told that she may have to stay in the hospital and have surgery before she even came home. Monday came and no doctor, but he said he would be there Tuesday. Tuesday came and no doctor, so the nurse tried to get into contact with him, but he would not return her calls or her pages. Tuesday night I went home and left Patty there with Kayla. I later talked to Patty and she said that Kayla started crying and said "He isn't coming again is he?". The nurses were so irritated with the actions of the doctor that they had him written up. I know that myself, I was about at the end of my rope, and I prayed and said.."Lord you know that I cannot stand the thought of Kayla upset, and Faith being in pain, Please take care of this situation." I know there were a lot of prayers from a lot of different people reaching into heaven for Kayla and Faith, and I know that it wasn't just one person responsible for the prayers.
The next morning I went to work and finally called Patty at the Hospital to find out what was going on. The doctor finally showed up and was going to get in and out in a hurry, but Patty and Kayla wasn't going to let that happen. He examined Faith and said...."who said her joints were dislocated?" He examined her and said that it must have been a faulty MRI or some other mistake, and she was fine. The doctors can claim mistake, or misdiagnosis, but we know the truth. You see she was on pain medication, and she did cry when she was handled, and the MRI said she had joint dislocations, but we know GOD intervened. Many people would say that made no sense, why would he heal that part and not heal her limb loss. I always tell them that GOD has a plan for Faith, and we don't know what that is, and we may never know on this earth what the purpose of her condition is, but we have faith that GOD knows. I believe he healed her of her joint dislocation to tell us,....."I am here, I am in control, and I still care, just have faith".
She has been home now for over a year and a half, and brought more Joy to this house than anyone could ever imagine. Yes we at times wish she had arms and legs, but what kind of blessings would she miss that GOD has for her and others if she had arms and legs. We just got back from having her castings made for her first prosthetic legs, and everyone is excited about that. Kayla got to go buy Faith her first pair of shoes. We have watched her hop around on her little stubs to get from one place to another, and we are looking forward to walking with Faith, running with Faith, and jumping with Faith. It has been an amazing time watching her progress, but all the while I can see that we are the ones learning to take the steps of Faith.
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