Siran Stacy is scheduled to speak tonight at Frazer United Methodist Church in Montgomery tonight (like soon, maybe a couple of hours?) and hopefully you'll consider going if there's still time. Either way, please take a few moments to watch these videos (here and here... sorry, I cannot get them to embed into blogger for anything. Get thee behind me, Satan!) of Siran Stacy's recent visit to WSFA in Montgomery to share his testimony. I beg all of you to ask yourselves if what you have faith in would sustain you through such a tragedy, or really any tragedy at all (or what about just everyday life?) May God continue to be with Siran and his daughter as they go about their mission...
PS: I promise you this, I would HEART Siran Stacy no matter the color of his former uniform so obviously I feel blessed and humbled that he once donned the crimson jersey!
Showing posts with label a MUST-READ post. Show all posts
Showing posts with label a MUST-READ post. Show all posts
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Monday, April 28, 2008
Much overdue... *Updated!
It's been so long since I last posted that I even had to log into Blogger... that never seems to happen! Anyway, this won't be one of those monstrously long posts where I empty out my bookmark links as I've got lots on my "to do" list this morning but there were a few things I wanted to post ASAP.
First, Mr. Plumberboy will now be referred to as Bampa. That's what the grand-younguns call him and I see no reason why that name poses a security threat. Good luck googling "Bampa" and finding us. (That's just an observation, not an invitation.) Anyway, Bampa is recuperating at home after surgery for his retinal detachment. He's having a good bit of pain and is a little discouraged by the slow progress but it appears to us that he is experiencing the normal postoperative course. Regrettably, doctors at this particular practice have a habit of giving patients unrealistic expectations and demoralization quickly ensues. However, through our own series of unfortunate events, we feel we're in a unique position to try and counter that! He goes to the doctor again this morning so I'll try to give you an update later today.
Second (and this will have to be a bit choppy because I'm up against the preschool clock!) but I wanted to post a few links to update my faithful readers on the Burgess Family (of Rick And Bubba fame). In case you weren't listening to the show this morning, Rick discussed his son Brody (aka Taz) being baptized in their family pool* over the weekend (the article says the baptism will happen in May but in actuality it happened over this weekend.) How marvelous! How wonderful! What a testament to their unshakable faith in Jesus, who has overcome this world! I stand in awe of God's Grace and Mercy on this family and their willingness to let God use them... whatever their lot! I wish I had more time but for now all I can do it lay out the links for you to visit. I pray you will take the time... you'll be blessed!
*UPDATE: Turns out that first link about Rick & Bubba is actually the 4th video installment in a 4-part interview with Rick Burgess. You can watch all four installments at that linked website.
Another update from WHNT-TV out of Huntsville
An older article about Bronner and the Burgess' family's legacy
First, Mr. Plumberboy will now be referred to as Bampa. That's what the grand-younguns call him and I see no reason why that name poses a security threat. Good luck googling "Bampa" and finding us. (That's just an observation, not an invitation.) Anyway, Bampa is recuperating at home after surgery for his retinal detachment. He's having a good bit of pain and is a little discouraged by the slow progress but it appears to us that he is experiencing the normal postoperative course. Regrettably, doctors at this particular practice have a habit of giving patients unrealistic expectations and demoralization quickly ensues. However, through our own series of unfortunate events, we feel we're in a unique position to try and counter that! He goes to the doctor again this morning so I'll try to give you an update later today.
Second (and this will have to be a bit choppy because I'm up against the preschool clock!) but I wanted to post a few links to update my faithful readers on the Burgess Family (of Rick And Bubba fame). In case you weren't listening to the show this morning, Rick discussed his son Brody (aka Taz) being baptized in their family pool* over the weekend (the article says the baptism will happen in May but in actuality it happened over this weekend.) How marvelous! How wonderful! What a testament to their unshakable faith in Jesus, who has overcome this world! I stand in awe of God's Grace and Mercy on this family and their willingness to let God use them... whatever their lot! I wish I had more time but for now all I can do it lay out the links for you to visit. I pray you will take the time... you'll be blessed!
*UPDATE: Turns out that first link about Rick & Bubba is actually the 4th video installment in a 4-part interview with Rick Burgess. You can watch all four installments at that linked website.
Another update from WHNT-TV out of Huntsville
An older article about Bronner and the Burgess' family's legacy
Friday, March 21, 2008
Good Good Friday to you!
Not going to post anything political today... promise! In fact, I'll go one step further and post about the most bipartisan event ever in human history.
You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Genesis 50:20
For God so loved the whole world, He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
Click here for a VeggieTales version of the Easter story.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Bear with me...
... this post has been a long time comin' and I already know it's going to be long (seriously, way long. Sorry bout that.) I wanted to wait until Crabman's birthday or something where it would make a little more sense to post it but it just seems so appropriate now with all of the attention on Rick Burgess' family. Plus, I've had about four times the usual traffic on here since posting about Bronner's situation that I didn't want to squander any of these extra readers. If you haven't done so already, PLEASE take/make the time to listen to Rick Burgess' message at his son's memorial. It's long (parts 1, 2, and 3 for a total of approximately 30 minutes) but it could change your life.
Anyway, here's sort of my tie-in to this story with the disclaimer that I no way equate my past experiences with the Burgess experience in hopes of precluding any nasty comments. The reason I feel led to post this at all is because I've had similar Holy Spirit-filled moments that I KNOW that I KNOW that I KNOW were not figments of my imagination or emotional outburts from the heart. I can 100% understand how Rick Burgess stood up there at his son's funeral because we are weak but HE is strong. So here's my story, less famous and less dramatic (unless you lived it) in hopes of pointing everyone who may ever read my words to JESUS because whether Auburn, Alabama, our even Tennessee (smiles)... I love you all and want you to have what I have in my life: Freedom in Christ!
It's hard to find a place to start and even harder to figure out what details are mundane, unnecessary, etc hence the title "Bear with me." As many of you know, I have an autoimmune disease called lupus. Feel free to ask me anything you want about it. I'm no lupus advocate but I'm not shy about it either. Anyway, I have lived a relatively healthy life and while I always appreciated this reason to acknowledge my own mortality, it basically did not interfere with my life beyond making me extremely tired. When I was pregnant with our firstborn, Ricky Bobby, we ran some tests at my request and found out my ANA (a benchmark lupus lab) was still sky-high but I was already 5 months' along so not a lot was done. Despite the fact that I now realize I was probably preeclampsic when I spontaneously delivered him (after a UA football game that I was at-- a story for another time), Ricky Bobby has always been relatively healthy. So about a year and a half later, I found out I was pregnant again, which was a good thing because we always wanted our kids close in age. Things were a little different this time and by now I had an "official" lupus diagnosis so we ran extra labs and did an ultrasound at 8 weeks. Heartbeat: Good. Labs: Bad. On Father's Day 2002 (a Sunday mind you), I got a call at home from my rheumatologist himself saying that some of the labs were sky-high requiring some additional testing as the pregnancy progressed. We never got that far as in July (the 13th to be exact) a trip to the ER brought the news I had always feared... we had lost the baby. I had not miscarried in the physical sense but there was no heartbeat on very in-depth ultrasounds so our baby was gone. And I was far enough along to warrant a D&C. Bad, bad days as I wondered what I was doing when the baby's heart stopped beating, where I was, was it a boy or girl? Still hard to think about that baby turning 5 this month had things gone as I had planned. Nonetheless, in something that can only be attributed to the Holy Spirit and not me in any way (as this is something completely contrary to my own "bratty" disposition), I blurted out "God's will, not mine" in the ER exam room. I remember they gave me a Xanax to take since I was upset. Of course I was upset... I lost a baby and no pill makes that better! I remember the nurse asking me why I was crying as I waited for my D&C. Cause it hurts my heart, that's why! Still, I can honestly say that I wasn't as physically or mentally disraught as I could have been and I honestly felt God was asking me to give Him a chance with another baby one more time.
So after waiting until I had sufficiently passed my original due date (I was weird about not wanting this to be a "replacement" baby), we found out we were expecting again in September 2003. We had a whole "game plan" for this pregnancy that included a meeting with a perinatalogist (high-risk specialist), my rheumatologist (lupus doc), and my OB. Everything went smoothly (well, other than the twice-daily heparin shots to my tummy) and we had 8 (yes, e.i.g.h.t.) ultrasounds with 5 non-stress tests, including the ultrasound and NST on what turned out to be D-day! The baby looked good, I looked good (or at least significantly better than when I was carrying Ricky Bobby... I'll have to scan and post those pics for your enjoyment at a later date. Can you say "swoll"?) So after a neighborhood cookout, I sat on the potty (cause that's what preggos do... they pee, A LOT) and discovered that either I had a hole in my bladder or my water had just broken. Either way, I thought I needed medical attention. As a funny sidenote, Plumberboy thought I was crazy and even managed to convince me I might be crazy during the 10 minute drive to the hospital. It took one of those "litmus tests" by the L&D nurse to convince him otherwise. Too funny as I was already strapped to monitors and fully admitted to the hospital! I think he was in shock since Crabman seemed to be coming about 3 weeks early. Anyway, after a very short and noneventful delivery (much like Ricky Bobby), Crabman was here and beautiful if I do say so myself. I don't know what he APGAR'd but he seemed fine. We all got to hold him and then the nurse took him up to the nursery for vitals, etc while they wheeled me to my room. I threw up on the way (mundane details, I know) but once I got settled into my new room, the very sweet nurse who took Crabman came right in. She informed me that he needed a little oxygen to pinken up and would be sent down to us in a little while. Well, minutes turned to hours and before long it was obvious something was amiss. I was quickly starting to panic so Plumberboy took Polaroids of him (wasn't that long ago but still, no one had a digital camera in the family yet) and brought them to me and eventually I had the emotional strength to go see him in the special needs nursery. I waddled down there and what I saw took my breath away. Crabman was panting like a dog... literally. He was already skinny and it looked like he was about to suck himself through the table. He had a big astronaut looking oxygen hood around his head and if we touched him or talked to him, he seemed to struggle more. Still, we went down there as much as we could and by the end of a long first day, my bruised up body was so swollen I couldn't put my legs together in the shower. I was assured over and over by the medical staff that he would get better as just needed to turn the corner on prematurity. Afterall he was, as they stated, "a wimpy white male" so he should be better soon. To the point... he wasn't and after two days Plumberboy, with the help of my sister and parents, insisted we transfer him. We didn't care if it was to Children's or just a larger regional hospital with a NICU but someone needed to come get him. Let me tell you, that transfer was tough. This thing came and we couldn't even ride with him. It was a long, long hour to the new hospital with indescribable relief when we saw it parked in the loading bay. Once there, it didn't take much time at all to get him assessed (first miracle, literally a miracle) and in less than an hour the neonatologist had come out to inform us that Crabman's lungs weren't working, not because he was premature but because his heart wasn't working. All we were expecting was a blast of surfactant, not expecting to hear that he might need ECMO, a trip to Boston, or the things they do when your heart is really bad. They agreed to keep him at this hospital and treat him with what they had, which was steroids and a ventilator. This news literally knocked me down. All the internet research I had done, all the precautions we were taking... THIS was worse-case scenario and I'm an already paranoid person, people! So yes, it appeared that Crabman was afflicted with the infamous neonatal lupus syndrome, which other than miscarriage (been there, done that) or stillbirth, is the worse complication that could happen. And it's rare too--very, very rare. Lovely. Also, the NICU waiting room was horrid. It was dimly lit and full of people we didn't know and uncomfortable chairs. (Holy Spirit reminded me that during Jesus' time on earth, he frequently didn't have a place to lay His head.) Luckily we had a few nurses show us some mercy and we hunkered down for the rest of the day and night. Over night, Crabman was moved from a regular ventilator (the kind you see on ER that seem somewhat peaceful) to an oscillating ventilator that rather looks and sounds like a washing machine. And, uh yeah, it "breathes" for your kid at 200 breaths per minute. So our 4-lb baby was strapped to this quasi-Maytag overnight, without any notice, because the conventional vent wasn't doing the job. Things looked bleak and I literally cried out to God, "If he's goind to die, take him soon because I can't stand this agony." And I meant it too. Again, that's all the Holy Spirit and none of me because my fleshy heart wanted to rip the heart out of myself or anybody for that matter (except Ricky Bobby) to make him better. I'm telling you, if I had the power to have made him better at that time no matter the cost, I would have made some terrible decisions (can you imagine The Father's agony as Jesus hung on that cross?) But the Holy Spirit required of me submission, especially since there was nothing I could do anyway. I'm sure in God's eyes I looked like a bratty 4-year-old threatening to give Him a spanking or something silly that little ones do when you, the parent, know good and well they can't. Anyway, the minutes crept. Literally. That was a loooonnnnnnggggg night. But wouldn't you know that after that prayer of unwilling submission on the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Crabman turned the corner. The steroids were working, the dobutamine was kicking in, and the next morning his cardiologist (Dr. Rula Balluz, one of the greatest docs ever!) explained that she thought Crabman would pull through. It was still a long journey with 17 more days in the NICU, including 4 more days on the ventilator (a dozen or so collapsed lungs and a partridge in a pear tree.) There were ups and downs along the way with lots of prayers and tears spent over his bed. I can't describe what a miserable place that NICU is but I assure you it is not God-forsaken. I can only speak for myself (though Plumberboy would probably agree) that God the Father was there with me every step of the way, with every breath I took as well as Crabman. There wasn't a single day that went by that I didn't have a "mini miracle" occur (in other words, things that could be explained away but they were entirely too coincidental--especially considering just the sheer volume of these events-- to not be considered miracles.) There are literally too many things for me to go into them here (ie this) but one other thing that really sticks out to me was the next to last night of his NICU stay. We were all set to go home with bags packed in the van, mandatory classes attended, and nothing left in our "room in" room but his carseat on the bed when one of the docs walked in (after he had skipped his hospital duties to have supper with his family) and informed us Crabman was not going home. His labs were all of the sudden showing up abnormal and now they're thinking infection, leukemia, they don't know. That news was almost worse than the initial news in the NICU. This time I was hysterical so the Holy Spirit literally led me to the Gideon Bible tucked away in the nightstand and guided me to the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Right then and there I held tiny Crabman in my arms and prayed aloud (on nothing but the leading of the Holy Spirit as there is not even one fiber of this in my being) for if God willed, please let this cup pass from me. I agonized for over an hour just repeating loudly (and probaby incoherently) for, if God willed, this cup to pass from me. I could not believe I would have come that far to have it all yanked out from under me. I felt like Abraham with Isaac. Why would God ask this of me? They ran the labs again and slowly they seemed to improve. Not good enough to go home but I could keep Crabman with me... I could keep him with me. So, to the point (cuz I know this is super duper long, but what do you care...you're probably at work!), Crabman was released from the hospital the next day and released to go all the way home the next day. We went to the doctor every couple of weeks for a while for echocardiograms, EKGs, and bloodwork to see if he was improving. Let me tell you, 3+ years and counting, Crabman has never looked back. There's NO TRACE anything was ever wrong with him. And this is well-documented... I have the EKGs in hand to prove it. In hindsight, I realized that once he started getting better, they couldn't wean him off the vent fast enough when he was in the NICU. A few weeks after the dust had settled, God revealed to me that I just had witnessed a modern day healing of the paralytic. You remember the guy lowered down from a hole in the ceiling by his friends for Jesus to heal? Then Jesus looked at him and said "son your sins are forgiven." And everybody there was all "what? His sins are forgiven?" Then Jesus knew their thoughts and asked them "What's easier to say? Your sins are forgiven or get up and walk?" Then He said--now pay attention because THIS IS THE WHOLE POINT OF MY STORY-- "So that you may know the Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins on earth: (Talking to the paralytic) Get up, take your mat, and go home." And the paralytic got up, took his mat, and went home. You see, I've struggled lots of times when I hear of someone losing a child (and I've known some personally) as to why my boy was healed and others were taken. And with this whole Bronner situation I've had another realization courtesy of God's word and messengers. It was not about me at all. It wasn't so I wouldn't know the heartache or because Crabman is just such a delight that the world needed to know him (although that might be true... wink, wink!) it's because it was HIS WILL that he survived that situation and it's my obligation to tell people about Jesus...that through my own experiences I know He's real, which means He's coming back someday (and as some Baptist preachers might say, "boy is He mad!) He'll do whatever is necessary to reach you and He wants you to turn to Him, knowing He has the authority to forgive sin and He holds in His hands abundant, eternal life. Thus, I don't want the story of Crabman to go untold and I'm glad I didn't get to vote as to whether or not it happened to me because if given the choice beforehand, I would have never chosen it for him or our family. But contrary to every bone in my body, God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
Anyway, here's sort of my tie-in to this story with the disclaimer that I no way equate my past experiences with the Burgess experience in hopes of precluding any nasty comments. The reason I feel led to post this at all is because I've had similar Holy Spirit-filled moments that I KNOW that I KNOW that I KNOW were not figments of my imagination or emotional outburts from the heart. I can 100% understand how Rick Burgess stood up there at his son's funeral because we are weak but HE is strong. So here's my story, less famous and less dramatic (unless you lived it) in hopes of pointing everyone who may ever read my words to JESUS because whether Auburn, Alabama, our even Tennessee (smiles)... I love you all and want you to have what I have in my life: Freedom in Christ!
It's hard to find a place to start and even harder to figure out what details are mundane, unnecessary, etc hence the title "Bear with me." As many of you know, I have an autoimmune disease called lupus. Feel free to ask me anything you want about it. I'm no lupus advocate but I'm not shy about it either. Anyway, I have lived a relatively healthy life and while I always appreciated this reason to acknowledge my own mortality, it basically did not interfere with my life beyond making me extremely tired. When I was pregnant with our firstborn, Ricky Bobby, we ran some tests at my request and found out my ANA (a benchmark lupus lab) was still sky-high but I was already 5 months' along so not a lot was done. Despite the fact that I now realize I was probably preeclampsic when I spontaneously delivered him (after a UA football game that I was at-- a story for another time), Ricky Bobby has always been relatively healthy. So about a year and a half later, I found out I was pregnant again, which was a good thing because we always wanted our kids close in age. Things were a little different this time and by now I had an "official" lupus diagnosis so we ran extra labs and did an ultrasound at 8 weeks. Heartbeat: Good. Labs: Bad. On Father's Day 2002 (a Sunday mind you), I got a call at home from my rheumatologist himself saying that some of the labs were sky-high requiring some additional testing as the pregnancy progressed. We never got that far as in July (the 13th to be exact) a trip to the ER brought the news I had always feared... we had lost the baby. I had not miscarried in the physical sense but there was no heartbeat on very in-depth ultrasounds so our baby was gone. And I was far enough along to warrant a D&C. Bad, bad days as I wondered what I was doing when the baby's heart stopped beating, where I was, was it a boy or girl? Still hard to think about that baby turning 5 this month had things gone as I had planned. Nonetheless, in something that can only be attributed to the Holy Spirit and not me in any way (as this is something completely contrary to my own "bratty" disposition), I blurted out "God's will, not mine" in the ER exam room. I remember they gave me a Xanax to take since I was upset. Of course I was upset... I lost a baby and no pill makes that better! I remember the nurse asking me why I was crying as I waited for my D&C. Cause it hurts my heart, that's why! Still, I can honestly say that I wasn't as physically or mentally disraught as I could have been and I honestly felt God was asking me to give Him a chance with another baby one more time.
So after waiting until I had sufficiently passed my original due date (I was weird about not wanting this to be a "replacement" baby), we found out we were expecting again in September 2003. We had a whole "game plan" for this pregnancy that included a meeting with a perinatalogist (high-risk specialist), my rheumatologist (lupus doc), and my OB. Everything went smoothly (well, other than the twice-daily heparin shots to my tummy) and we had 8 (yes, e.i.g.h.t.) ultrasounds with 5 non-stress tests, including the ultrasound and NST on what turned out to be D-day! The baby looked good, I looked good (or at least significantly better than when I was carrying Ricky Bobby... I'll have to scan and post those pics for your enjoyment at a later date. Can you say "swoll"?) So after a neighborhood cookout, I sat on the potty (cause that's what preggos do... they pee, A LOT) and discovered that either I had a hole in my bladder or my water had just broken. Either way, I thought I needed medical attention. As a funny sidenote, Plumberboy thought I was crazy and even managed to convince me I might be crazy during the 10 minute drive to the hospital. It took one of those "litmus tests" by the L&D nurse to convince him otherwise. Too funny as I was already strapped to monitors and fully admitted to the hospital! I think he was in shock since Crabman seemed to be coming about 3 weeks early. Anyway, after a very short and noneventful delivery (much like Ricky Bobby), Crabman was here and beautiful if I do say so myself. I don't know what he APGAR'd but he seemed fine. We all got to hold him and then the nurse took him up to the nursery for vitals, etc while they wheeled me to my room. I threw up on the way (mundane details, I know) but once I got settled into my new room, the very sweet nurse who took Crabman came right in. She informed me that he needed a little oxygen to pinken up and would be sent down to us in a little while. Well, minutes turned to hours and before long it was obvious something was amiss. I was quickly starting to panic so Plumberboy took Polaroids of him (wasn't that long ago but still, no one had a digital camera in the family yet) and brought them to me and eventually I had the emotional strength to go see him in the special needs nursery. I waddled down there and what I saw took my breath away. Crabman was panting like a dog... literally. He was already skinny and it looked like he was about to suck himself through the table. He had a big astronaut looking oxygen hood around his head and if we touched him or talked to him, he seemed to struggle more. Still, we went down there as much as we could and by the end of a long first day, my bruised up body was so swollen I couldn't put my legs together in the shower. I was assured over and over by the medical staff that he would get better as just needed to turn the corner on prematurity. Afterall he was, as they stated, "a wimpy white male" so he should be better soon. To the point... he wasn't and after two days Plumberboy, with the help of my sister and parents, insisted we transfer him. We didn't care if it was to Children's or just a larger regional hospital with a NICU but someone needed to come get him. Let me tell you, that transfer was tough. This thing came and we couldn't even ride with him. It was a long, long hour to the new hospital with indescribable relief when we saw it parked in the loading bay. Once there, it didn't take much time at all to get him assessed (first miracle, literally a miracle) and in less than an hour the neonatologist had come out to inform us that Crabman's lungs weren't working, not because he was premature but because his heart wasn't working. All we were expecting was a blast of surfactant, not expecting to hear that he might need ECMO, a trip to Boston, or the things they do when your heart is really bad. They agreed to keep him at this hospital and treat him with what they had, which was steroids and a ventilator. This news literally knocked me down. All the internet research I had done, all the precautions we were taking... THIS was worse-case scenario and I'm an already paranoid person, people! So yes, it appeared that Crabman was afflicted with the infamous neonatal lupus syndrome, which other than miscarriage (been there, done that) or stillbirth, is the worse complication that could happen. And it's rare too--very, very rare. Lovely. Also, the NICU waiting room was horrid. It was dimly lit and full of people we didn't know and uncomfortable chairs. (Holy Spirit reminded me that during Jesus' time on earth, he frequently didn't have a place to lay His head.) Luckily we had a few nurses show us some mercy and we hunkered down for the rest of the day and night. Over night, Crabman was moved from a regular ventilator (the kind you see on ER that seem somewhat peaceful) to an oscillating ventilator that rather looks and sounds like a washing machine. And, uh yeah, it "breathes" for your kid at 200 breaths per minute. So our 4-lb baby was strapped to this quasi-Maytag overnight, without any notice, because the conventional vent wasn't doing the job. Things looked bleak and I literally cried out to God, "If he's goind to die, take him soon because I can't stand this agony." And I meant it too. Again, that's all the Holy Spirit and none of me because my fleshy heart wanted to rip the heart out of myself or anybody for that matter (except Ricky Bobby) to make him better. I'm telling you, if I had the power to have made him better at that time no matter the cost, I would have made some terrible decisions (can you imagine The Father's agony as Jesus hung on that cross?) But the Holy Spirit required of me submission, especially since there was nothing I could do anyway. I'm sure in God's eyes I looked like a bratty 4-year-old threatening to give Him a spanking or something silly that little ones do when you, the parent, know good and well they can't. Anyway, the minutes crept. Literally. That was a loooonnnnnnggggg night. But wouldn't you know that after that prayer of unwilling submission on the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Crabman turned the corner. The steroids were working, the dobutamine was kicking in, and the next morning his cardiologist (Dr. Rula Balluz, one of the greatest docs ever!) explained that she thought Crabman would pull through. It was still a long journey with 17 more days in the NICU, including 4 more days on the ventilator (a dozen or so collapsed lungs and a partridge in a pear tree.) There were ups and downs along the way with lots of prayers and tears spent over his bed. I can't describe what a miserable place that NICU is but I assure you it is not God-forsaken. I can only speak for myself (though Plumberboy would probably agree) that God the Father was there with me every step of the way, with every breath I took as well as Crabman. There wasn't a single day that went by that I didn't have a "mini miracle" occur (in other words, things that could be explained away but they were entirely too coincidental--especially considering just the sheer volume of these events-- to not be considered miracles.) There are literally too many things for me to go into them here (ie this) but one other thing that really sticks out to me was the next to last night of his NICU stay. We were all set to go home with bags packed in the van, mandatory classes attended, and nothing left in our "room in" room but his carseat on the bed when one of the docs walked in (after he had skipped his hospital duties to have supper with his family) and informed us Crabman was not going home. His labs were all of the sudden showing up abnormal and now they're thinking infection, leukemia, they don't know. That news was almost worse than the initial news in the NICU. This time I was hysterical so the Holy Spirit literally led me to the Gideon Bible tucked away in the nightstand and guided me to the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Right then and there I held tiny Crabman in my arms and prayed aloud (on nothing but the leading of the Holy Spirit as there is not even one fiber of this in my being) for if God willed, please let this cup pass from me. I agonized for over an hour just repeating loudly (and probaby incoherently) for, if God willed, this cup to pass from me. I could not believe I would have come that far to have it all yanked out from under me. I felt like Abraham with Isaac. Why would God ask this of me? They ran the labs again and slowly they seemed to improve. Not good enough to go home but I could keep Crabman with me... I could keep him with me. So, to the point (cuz I know this is super duper long, but what do you care...you're probably at work!), Crabman was released from the hospital the next day and released to go all the way home the next day. We went to the doctor every couple of weeks for a while for echocardiograms, EKGs, and bloodwork to see if he was improving. Let me tell you, 3+ years and counting, Crabman has never looked back. There's NO TRACE anything was ever wrong with him. And this is well-documented... I have the EKGs in hand to prove it. In hindsight, I realized that once he started getting better, they couldn't wean him off the vent fast enough when he was in the NICU. A few weeks after the dust had settled, God revealed to me that I just had witnessed a modern day healing of the paralytic. You remember the guy lowered down from a hole in the ceiling by his friends for Jesus to heal? Then Jesus looked at him and said "son your sins are forgiven." And everybody there was all "what? His sins are forgiven?" Then Jesus knew their thoughts and asked them "What's easier to say? Your sins are forgiven or get up and walk?" Then He said--now pay attention because THIS IS THE WHOLE POINT OF MY STORY-- "So that you may know the Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins on earth: (Talking to the paralytic) Get up, take your mat, and go home." And the paralytic got up, took his mat, and went home. You see, I've struggled lots of times when I hear of someone losing a child (and I've known some personally) as to why my boy was healed and others were taken. And with this whole Bronner situation I've had another realization courtesy of God's word and messengers. It was not about me at all. It wasn't so I wouldn't know the heartache or because Crabman is just such a delight that the world needed to know him (although that might be true... wink, wink!) it's because it was HIS WILL that he survived that situation and it's my obligation to tell people about Jesus...that through my own experiences I know He's real, which means He's coming back someday (and as some Baptist preachers might say, "boy is He mad!) He'll do whatever is necessary to reach you and He wants you to turn to Him, knowing He has the authority to forgive sin and He holds in His hands abundant, eternal life. Thus, I don't want the story of Crabman to go untold and I'm glad I didn't get to vote as to whether or not it happened to me because if given the choice beforehand, I would have never chosen it for him or our family. But contrary to every bone in my body, God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
Your "reward" for making it all the way to the end... Crabman in '08:
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Rick and Bubba
As you all know by now, Rick Burgess' (of The Rick and Bubba radio show) 2-year-old son Bronner drowned over the weekend. If you've ever listened to the show, you may have heard him refer to Bronner as "Cornbread." I hope you have been able to tune in at least partially to The Rick and Bubba Show (it's on for 4 hours every morning!) over the last couple of days as I think it would have blessed your heart. Plumberboy and I set an alarm for 5:55 AM Monday morning since we knew "Bubba" Bussey was planning to be on air as scheduled. Man, I cannot tell you what a blessing it was to us as we laid there and listened, cried, prayed, and worshipped with others in the body of Christ via their show. These have been the most amazing radio broadcasts I've ever heard as they have used this tragic event as a platform to PRAISE AND WORSHIP GOD AND HIS SON JESUS as well as spread THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS CHRIST. I truly count it a privilege to listen to The Rick and Bubba Show. From Bubba to James Spann to Scott Dawson, these folks are representing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in such a way that will surely garner a "Well done, thy good and faithful servant."
As for the Burgess family--in as much as the public can percieve their actions at this time--they are a blueprint for how Christians should deal with tragedy (and is there any greater tragedy than the loss of a child? Nonetheless, God understands this pain as He lost a Son as well.) They have risen to every occasion and completely flipped this situation from something meant for harm to something for God's glory. They are fighting the good fight. It's an amazing grace, peace that surpasses all understanding kind of thing. I think some people might be almost offended by their transparency. With their permission, Bubba has been very open about what happened and Scott Dawson (who was with Rick when he got that dreaded call from home) has even discussed the details of Rick's reaction to the tragic news. I do not believe one ounce of this is for ratings or anything other than God's glory and to fulfill The Great Commission. In case you missed it, Bubba prayed (in Jesus' name of course) on the air for an entire segment yesterday and verbalized a prayer that all the folks on the show would "get out of the way and let God do His thing." What a spirit-filled broadcast! They are reaching 50+ cities through the show and Bubba was even on Fox News' Fox and Friends this morning and laid it out there for the entire nation to hear. There is just so much I can't even cover it all here. Truly, truly...Praise the Lord!
The memorial service for "Cornbread" is today at 2 PM and Rick is expected to speak. They have opened this to the public and will even broadcast it on their website at some point. Again, this is at the family's request because they want to spread the good news of Jesus! My prayer is God will protect, comfort, and uphold the Burgess family and those personally affected by Bronner's death at this time.
From the get-go, I think everyone has wanted to know what they could do to help the Burgess family. While they are accepting flowers (the Birmingham area florists don't know where they will put all the orders they have for the Burgess family!) and have even set up a memorial missions fund in Bronner's name, they have specifically stated that the only thing they desire to honor Bronner is for His people to share the good news of Jesus. So in keeping with that, I want to lay out what faith in Jesus even has to do with this situation in the first place. I think there is somewhat of a misconception (albeit an understandable misconception) that somehow Christians are immune from situations like this. It seems that if there was any justice at all in this world, "Godly" families like the Burgesses wouldn't suffer this kind of loss. There's also the tendency (myself totally 100% included) to ask why wasn't the pool covered? Why didn't she set the alarm so the kids couldn't get out? Why didn't she wait until they went to bed to shower? Here's what I think about that and I'm speaking from the heart. I'm a safety-freak (some even rightly say "paranoid") and I'm with my kids about 99% of the time they aren't in school. STILL, there are times that, but by the grace of God, this wasn't us. There's just no way to 100% guarantee against an untimely death. In fact, until Jesus physically returns to earth, there is no way to avoid death at some point. So this is why we need Jesus. We need to know that there is so much more than this passing life. We need to know that Jesus has made everything all right. It's so, so, so very easy...all you have to do is first admit that there is indeed a God. To quote James Spann... you believe in the air/oxygen we breathe but you don't see it. (If we are all believing in a fairy tale, how are hundreds of thousands of us uniting in our reaction to this tragedy? We can't even agree on a presidential candidate!) Next you have to admit you are a sinner as we are all sinners, all having fallen short of the glory of God. (Does anyone really feel like they are 100% in line with righteousness?) You have to acknowledge that in the ULTIMATE ACT OF SACRIFICE, God sent Jesus down from Heaven to live life as a human then eventually yield (willing give) His life on a wretched cross. He then died a physical death, most likely went to Hell and kicked butt, and then physically rose again on the 3rd day to conquer the grave. In other words, if you believe this, there's nothing that can touch you! You can be afraid of the way you meet your end (I know I am though I shouldn't be!) but there's nothing to fear on the "other side"! They even discussed on Rick and Bubba today that they all have a sense of peace that one of God's agents (an angel or maybe Jesus Himself?) took Bronner right out of that pool and lead him home. I have had other personal experiences that maybe someday I can share that lead me to believe the Holy Spirit has revealed this to them. Anyway, without veering off point too much... I just want everyone who ever reads these words (today, tomorrow, in 10 years when they google "Rick and Bubba") to know that this freedom can be yours too! This applies to me, you, Billy Graham, Osama Bin Laden, and so on. It applies to everyone. You just have to acknowledge, beg, and then accept God's free gift. If you've done that today, let me know so I can rejoice with the angels. And live your life today for God's kingdom with His blessed assurance! We are weak but He is strong!
"Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil--and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death." Hebrews 2:14-15
Jesus said "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33
One last thought: When thinking about the Burgess family tragedy and some things that have happened in my own life, I think it is safe to assume that all of us would do absolutely anything to keep our kids safe, to keep them from dying. How great is the Father's love for us that He could have stopped His own son from hurting, from dying, with the wave of His hand or the blink of His eye yet He did not for our sake. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
As for the Burgess family--in as much as the public can percieve their actions at this time--they are a blueprint for how Christians should deal with tragedy (and is there any greater tragedy than the loss of a child? Nonetheless, God understands this pain as He lost a Son as well.) They have risen to every occasion and completely flipped this situation from something meant for harm to something for God's glory. They are fighting the good fight. It's an amazing grace, peace that surpasses all understanding kind of thing. I think some people might be almost offended by their transparency. With their permission, Bubba has been very open about what happened and Scott Dawson (who was with Rick when he got that dreaded call from home) has even discussed the details of Rick's reaction to the tragic news. I do not believe one ounce of this is for ratings or anything other than God's glory and to fulfill The Great Commission. In case you missed it, Bubba prayed (in Jesus' name of course) on the air for an entire segment yesterday and verbalized a prayer that all the folks on the show would "get out of the way and let God do His thing." What a spirit-filled broadcast! They are reaching 50+ cities through the show and Bubba was even on Fox News' Fox and Friends this morning and laid it out there for the entire nation to hear. There is just so much I can't even cover it all here. Truly, truly...Praise the Lord!
The memorial service for "Cornbread" is today at 2 PM and Rick is expected to speak. They have opened this to the public and will even broadcast it on their website at some point. Again, this is at the family's request because they want to spread the good news of Jesus! My prayer is God will protect, comfort, and uphold the Burgess family and those personally affected by Bronner's death at this time.
From the get-go, I think everyone has wanted to know what they could do to help the Burgess family. While they are accepting flowers (the Birmingham area florists don't know where they will put all the orders they have for the Burgess family!) and have even set up a memorial missions fund in Bronner's name, they have specifically stated that the only thing they desire to honor Bronner is for His people to share the good news of Jesus. So in keeping with that, I want to lay out what faith in Jesus even has to do with this situation in the first place. I think there is somewhat of a misconception (albeit an understandable misconception) that somehow Christians are immune from situations like this. It seems that if there was any justice at all in this world, "Godly" families like the Burgesses wouldn't suffer this kind of loss. There's also the tendency (myself totally 100% included) to ask why wasn't the pool covered? Why didn't she set the alarm so the kids couldn't get out? Why didn't she wait until they went to bed to shower? Here's what I think about that and I'm speaking from the heart. I'm a safety-freak (some even rightly say "paranoid") and I'm with my kids about 99% of the time they aren't in school. STILL, there are times that, but by the grace of God, this wasn't us. There's just no way to 100% guarantee against an untimely death. In fact, until Jesus physically returns to earth, there is no way to avoid death at some point. So this is why we need Jesus. We need to know that there is so much more than this passing life. We need to know that Jesus has made everything all right. It's so, so, so very easy...all you have to do is first admit that there is indeed a God. To quote James Spann... you believe in the air/oxygen we breathe but you don't see it. (If we are all believing in a fairy tale, how are hundreds of thousands of us uniting in our reaction to this tragedy? We can't even agree on a presidential candidate!) Next you have to admit you are a sinner as we are all sinners, all having fallen short of the glory of God. (Does anyone really feel like they are 100% in line with righteousness?) You have to acknowledge that in the ULTIMATE ACT OF SACRIFICE, God sent Jesus down from Heaven to live life as a human then eventually yield (willing give) His life on a wretched cross. He then died a physical death, most likely went to Hell and kicked butt, and then physically rose again on the 3rd day to conquer the grave. In other words, if you believe this, there's nothing that can touch you! You can be afraid of the way you meet your end (I know I am though I shouldn't be!) but there's nothing to fear on the "other side"! They even discussed on Rick and Bubba today that they all have a sense of peace that one of God's agents (an angel or maybe Jesus Himself?) took Bronner right out of that pool and lead him home. I have had other personal experiences that maybe someday I can share that lead me to believe the Holy Spirit has revealed this to them. Anyway, without veering off point too much... I just want everyone who ever reads these words (today, tomorrow, in 10 years when they google "Rick and Bubba") to know that this freedom can be yours too! This applies to me, you, Billy Graham, Osama Bin Laden, and so on. It applies to everyone. You just have to acknowledge, beg, and then accept God's free gift. If you've done that today, let me know so I can rejoice with the angels. And live your life today for God's kingdom with His blessed assurance! We are weak but He is strong!
"Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil--and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death." Hebrews 2:14-15
Jesus said "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33
One last thought: When thinking about the Burgess family tragedy and some things that have happened in my own life, I think it is safe to assume that all of us would do absolutely anything to keep our kids safe, to keep them from dying. How great is the Father's love for us that He could have stopped His own son from hurting, from dying, with the wave of His hand or the blink of His eye yet He did not for our sake. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
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