A VARIETY OF WARS
One night on the flight home from Houston where my husband Steve had tests at MD Anderson, we were privileged to be on the airplane with the body of an American soldier. The color guard was on the plane with us also.
Upon landing in Tulsa, everyone on the plane sat in silence as the color guards exited the plane, removed the casket from the cargo, marched in silence and respect as they ushered the heroic body into the presence of the waiting family sitting in cars who were accompanied by police cars with flashing lights, an ambulance with flashing lights, and a hearse.
After the awesome happening took place, the passengers on the plane exited the plane in silence and respect. All of this happened in the dark of night with only the flashing lights of the vehicles and the lights of the plane. What a wonderful experience to be a part of. However, it reaffirmed to me the horrors of war, that death is always a result of it, and families on both sides of the battle are changed forever.
Steve had a melancholy reaction because it brought back to him all remembrances of the death of his brother Morris during World War II. His mother never got over it because Morris' body was buried in France. His mother never forgave the Germans for killing her son. When Steve sees visual events like this, he still hears the deep, gut wrenching wails of his mother from her room for days and days after receiving the news that Morris had been killed. Yes, he gave his life for his country so that others might be free, but his mother was never free of the grief.
Then I realized that all the people we saw in Houston at MD Anderson are fighting their own wars, battles against cancer. They have loved ones and friends who are standing by them in support and prayers, just like the soldier did. Some of them will eventually succumb to the demon of cancer just like the soldier had to yield to death by the demon of war.
They are all heroes in my eyes, the soldier in uniform in the casket and the brave soldiers fighting cancer evidenced by their bald heads, oxygen tanks, masked mouths and noses, gloved hands, wheel chairs, chemo poles and frail bodies. They are all heroes to me.
GOD, PLEASE FREE US FROM THE EFFECTS OF ALL WARS, the wars for power by countries and the wars instigated by all diseases.
HEY, HE DID. AND THAT'S THE MESSAGE OF CHRISTIANITY, THAT HE SENT HIS SON INTO THE EARTH SO THAT HE MIGHT THEN SEND HIS POWER INTO THE EARTH IN THE PERSON OF HIS HOLY SPIRIT to heal diseases, to bring peace to all men, to comfort the broken hearted and to set the captives of addictions free. If we would only yield ourselves to His power we would end all the devastation.
We've dropped the ball; God hasn't.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
THE PERFECT MAESTRO
THE PERFECT MAESTRO
"Strike up the orchestra," I can almost hear God say during certain situations. I can imagine Him tuning up certain species of angels, calling them to do their specific duties in order for a situation to be perfected as prayers are answered.
My husband Steve and I experienced the divine orchestration by God as He arranged and rearranged a tense situation for us.
We had an appointment at MD Anderson with Steve's oncologist at 2:30 on Wednesday after my husband had completed his blood test, his chest x-ray and his CT scan the night before.
After the scheduled appointment with the oncology doctor, we had allotted almost five hours leeway before our scheduled airplane flight took off for our trip home. However, our appointment with the doctor was delayed and he didn't even enter the exam room until 3:30. Things seemed to be getting complicated. We knew we still had time for the scheduled flight, but it would be close.
Then the oncologist gave us some shocking news, that my husband had a blood clot in his left lung caused by the tumors but that it would be easily taken care of with daily subcutaneous shots in his stomach.
The next statement of the doctor dropped a bombshell into our plans to make the plane flight. He said that we should go to the pharmacy at the Main Building on the 10th floor, get the shots, then come back to his exam room where Angie, his primary oncology nurse, would show us how to administer the shots. We surmised there would be no problem, that we could still make the plane flight.
Enter the problem. The technician at the pharmacy said it would be an hour before the shots would be ready, making it impossible to make the flight.
We caught the elevator, ran from the elevator to the doctor's office, waited to see Angie, the primary nurse, where we told her our dilemma.
Angie, smiling at us like she had been doing during the long afternoon, disappeared for a few minutes, came back and said, "Go back to the pharmacy and the shots will be ready for you." This was impossible because of the backlog of prescriptions.
Running back to the elevator, then running down the hall to the pharmacy, we began thanking God for his supernatural orchestration for us, using Angie to intervene with the pharmacy in getting Steve's prescription bumped up ahead of the many, many other patients waiting for their own meds. Some of the patients were in wheel chairs, others on gurneys, others pushing chemo poles, others waiting patiently for their meds that would relieve their pain, heal their cancers, etc.
As was predicted by Angie, the shots were ready for us. Steve grabbed the sack of shots and signed the proper papers.
We raced again to the elevator, then down the hall to meet Angie who ushered us into the exam room. I commented to Angie that if she would turn around I would like to see her wings, because she was doing supernatural angelic work for us. God tuned the proper angel for this feat, Angie, who was in a fantastic mood for late in the day for an oncology nurse who had seen all kinds of devastating effects of diseases during the day. However, she could speak with the necessary authority needed to influence the pharmacy tech, something we had not been able to do.
Angie hurriedly demonstrated the steps to us for giving the subcutaneous shots. No problem, we could do it efficiently when we got home. We left Angie's presence praising her for being an angel to arrange the impossible feat for us.
Running back down the hall to the elevator, still praising God for His orchestration, Steve called Sam, the hotel shuttle driver whom we call St. Samuel because of his loving and caring ministry to the hotel customers who are in cancer treatment. Steve told Sam about our situation, that we had to make the flight, but our luggage was still at the hotel.
No problem. The orchestration had already been ordered by God. Sam asked what our luggage looked like. Steve told him and Sam went to the storage area, got our luggage, loaded it up in his van, came to the Main Building of MD Anderson Cancer Center and picked us up. We got to the airport in time to make the flight back home.
When Sam unloaded our luggage from the van, Steve quickly told him the good report, that the tumors had shrunk to the place of being almost invisible. St. Samuel gave Steve a strong congratulatory hug.
Sam drove off with a big smile on his face. He had previously told us that if he hears one good report a week that it keeps him dedicated to doing his ministry of transporting patients from the hotel to the treatment center. Steve gave Sam the boost he needed to continue for another week.
Thank God for the eyes to see that He has performed orchestrations for us, using Angel Angie, the nurse at the treatment center, and Saint Samuel, the shuttle driver, to manage to get us to the airport on time.
When we think about the published facts we have learned, that 100,000 patients a day are treated at MD Anderson, we are even more thankful that Angel Angie was able to do her part of the feat in pushing Steve's prescription to the top of the long, long list, and that Saint Samuel was able to do his part in finding our luggage and picking us up in time for the flight.
Listen for God to tune up the orchestra in your behalf in answer to your prayers. It happens trillions and trillions of times a day, and we often call it a coincidence. They really are orchestrations by a Loving Father in our behalf.
Aren't we lucky children to have such a wonderful Maestro for a Father!
"Strike up the orchestra," I can almost hear God say during certain situations. I can imagine Him tuning up certain species of angels, calling them to do their specific duties in order for a situation to be perfected as prayers are answered.
My husband Steve and I experienced the divine orchestration by God as He arranged and rearranged a tense situation for us.
We had an appointment at MD Anderson with Steve's oncologist at 2:30 on Wednesday after my husband had completed his blood test, his chest x-ray and his CT scan the night before.
After the scheduled appointment with the oncology doctor, we had allotted almost five hours leeway before our scheduled airplane flight took off for our trip home. However, our appointment with the doctor was delayed and he didn't even enter the exam room until 3:30. Things seemed to be getting complicated. We knew we still had time for the scheduled flight, but it would be close.
Then the oncologist gave us some shocking news, that my husband had a blood clot in his left lung caused by the tumors but that it would be easily taken care of with daily subcutaneous shots in his stomach.
The next statement of the doctor dropped a bombshell into our plans to make the plane flight. He said that we should go to the pharmacy at the Main Building on the 10th floor, get the shots, then come back to his exam room where Angie, his primary oncology nurse, would show us how to administer the shots. We surmised there would be no problem, that we could still make the plane flight.
Enter the problem. The technician at the pharmacy said it would be an hour before the shots would be ready, making it impossible to make the flight.
We caught the elevator, ran from the elevator to the doctor's office, waited to see Angie, the primary nurse, where we told her our dilemma.
Angie, smiling at us like she had been doing during the long afternoon, disappeared for a few minutes, came back and said, "Go back to the pharmacy and the shots will be ready for you." This was impossible because of the backlog of prescriptions.
Running back to the elevator, then running down the hall to the pharmacy, we began thanking God for his supernatural orchestration for us, using Angie to intervene with the pharmacy in getting Steve's prescription bumped up ahead of the many, many other patients waiting for their own meds. Some of the patients were in wheel chairs, others on gurneys, others pushing chemo poles, others waiting patiently for their meds that would relieve their pain, heal their cancers, etc.
As was predicted by Angie, the shots were ready for us. Steve grabbed the sack of shots and signed the proper papers.
We raced again to the elevator, then down the hall to meet Angie who ushered us into the exam room. I commented to Angie that if she would turn around I would like to see her wings, because she was doing supernatural angelic work for us. God tuned the proper angel for this feat, Angie, who was in a fantastic mood for late in the day for an oncology nurse who had seen all kinds of devastating effects of diseases during the day. However, she could speak with the necessary authority needed to influence the pharmacy tech, something we had not been able to do.
Angie hurriedly demonstrated the steps to us for giving the subcutaneous shots. No problem, we could do it efficiently when we got home. We left Angie's presence praising her for being an angel to arrange the impossible feat for us.
Running back down the hall to the elevator, still praising God for His orchestration, Steve called Sam, the hotel shuttle driver whom we call St. Samuel because of his loving and caring ministry to the hotel customers who are in cancer treatment. Steve told Sam about our situation, that we had to make the flight, but our luggage was still at the hotel.
No problem. The orchestration had already been ordered by God. Sam asked what our luggage looked like. Steve told him and Sam went to the storage area, got our luggage, loaded it up in his van, came to the Main Building of MD Anderson Cancer Center and picked us up. We got to the airport in time to make the flight back home.
When Sam unloaded our luggage from the van, Steve quickly told him the good report, that the tumors had shrunk to the place of being almost invisible. St. Samuel gave Steve a strong congratulatory hug.
Sam drove off with a big smile on his face. He had previously told us that if he hears one good report a week that it keeps him dedicated to doing his ministry of transporting patients from the hotel to the treatment center. Steve gave Sam the boost he needed to continue for another week.
Thank God for the eyes to see that He has performed orchestrations for us, using Angel Angie, the nurse at the treatment center, and Saint Samuel, the shuttle driver, to manage to get us to the airport on time.
When we think about the published facts we have learned, that 100,000 patients a day are treated at MD Anderson, we are even more thankful that Angel Angie was able to do her part of the feat in pushing Steve's prescription to the top of the long, long list, and that Saint Samuel was able to do his part in finding our luggage and picking us up in time for the flight.
Listen for God to tune up the orchestra in your behalf in answer to your prayers. It happens trillions and trillions of times a day, and we often call it a coincidence. They really are orchestrations by a Loving Father in our behalf.
Aren't we lucky children to have such a wonderful Maestro for a Father!
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