Day 38 - July 23 - What's going on?

Connor is back in the roto-prone bed, the one that puts him upside down. The doctors have sedated him heavily, to the point where he's asleep all the time. Because of this, Cherié, Joélle and I took the opportunity for some family time and went to see a movie. We had a great time together, but the shock of stepping back into our reality when the credits rolled was like someone dumping cold water on you. All three of us ended up a bit shell-shocked on the drive home. When we got to the RV, we sat in the truck for a bit and talked about where we were at.

We are struggling to find some balance in our lives - when do I go back to work; how should we balance being in Fresno with being in Morgan Hill: how long can we sustain this after the family goes home; etc.. But our conversation came back around to how Connor is handling all of this, and we pretty much agreed that he's dealing with this situation better than all of us. We are convinced that God is communing very closely with Connor during these days, and that He has something incredible planned for the boy in some way. We can't see what form it will take, nor the timeline, but we are sure that something mighty is coming out of this. I mean, look at all the things that are already spreading outward from that first splash into Hume Lake - faith is being increased, people are drawing closer to God or even committing themselves to Him for the first time, marriages are being strengthened, and non-believers are being drawn closer to God - and this is in the first month. God is using Connor mightily already, and we get to be here to watch it.

I've found that I wrestle most with God about all this when I focus on how it impacts me and mine. Kent mentioned the woman with whom I prayed this morning. What he didn't tell you is something he couldn't see - about five minutes before that lady came out of the elevator, I had gotten the word that the boy was going back on the bed. In that first five minutes, I had already begun digging my emotional pit to climb into, but when I heard her cries of anguish, I knew I had to go help if I could. So I went and spent about 20 minutes listening to, then praying with her and her boyfriend. The interesting thing (to me) was that, when I returned to the waiting room, I was able to consider the roto-bed without going into depression. That's me - you only need to hit me four or five times with a fencepost before I start recognizing what's right in front of my face!

So I spoke with the girls tonight about seeking out opportunities to minister, rather than just waiting for the ones that drop into our laps. Please pray for us in that regard - it's so much easier to sit and do nothing than actually try to look past our own needs.

Connor has again taken to the roto-prone bed without too much trouble. His stats are all good; his heart rate is stable, his saturation is high, and his blood pressure is solid. We'll see in the morning X-ray how he's responding to being back on his face. In the meantime, please continue to pray for his lungs to clear, that he remains sedated enough to not be tortured in the bed, that God restores the nerve function to Connor's diaphragm and other limbs and muscles, and that God would be working closely with the boy to make him more the man He wants him to be.

Thanks, y'all.