I believe there are a list of phone calls that most parents don’t want to receive. We received one of those several weeks ago and immediately, an unexpected life detour began.
We were on our way to church on a Sunday morning and the call came from our daughter, Erica, who lives in North Carolina. She told us that she had been up all night, doubled over in severe pain in her abdomen and lower back. We told her that she needed to call a friend to take her to the ER immediately. Erica has such amazing friends and one of them immediately came and rushed her in to get help.
I’ll be honest…I don’t think I could tell you much about our church service that morning. This mama’s mind and heart were in North Carolina and not in what was going on around me. Updates were sent to us often and finally, after tests were run, it was determined that large cysts on Erica’s ovaries were pressing on the ureters of her kidneys. They released her and instructed her to see her doctor the next day because surgery would be needed ASAP.
The next morning, while I was on a plane flying to be with her, Erica saw her doctor and she confirmed that surgery would be needed just as soon as it could be lined up. But what she was told next…were words that no one wants to hear. The surgeon she needed to see was an OBGYN Oncologist, because some of her test results pointed towards the possibility of cancer.
No one wants to hear the “C” word…cancer can take on many forms and can entail so many decisions, procedures and outcomes. As I arrived to be with Erica and she told me the news, my heart fell to my toes. But I knew that God was in control and whatever was ahead, was His perfect plan for her…even if it made absolutely no sense to me and scared me to death.
Of course, even though the surgery was deemed as one that was needed immediately, we were told that the OBGYN Oncologist couldn’t see Erica until Thursday. What added to the stress load of concern while we waited, was the fact that they told her to be very careful in the meantime, since her kidneys could suddenly shut down…or one of the cysts could burst which wouldn’t have good results. So much to fill our minds with as we walked through the days until Thursday.
Of course, because I believe our God has a sense of humor, it was at this time that I was writing in my blog about trusting God completely…with no ands, ifs or buts. That isn’t too hard to do if life is going along swimmingly, but throw in a sudden, scary detour and it takes it to a much higher level. But God just kept reminding me…and I just kept saying over and over “God, I am going to trust you…with no “buts”.
Thursday finally arrived and we went to her appointment…expecting to come out with a game plan and a surgery date. I’m telling you, I think the hardest thing I have ever done was walk into a women’s cancer center with my daughter. Oh, if it could have only been me that needed to see the surgeon…not my daughter. But that hadn’t been God’s plan, so we needed to see it through.
After the exam was done, we heard encouraging words and discouraging words. The doctor said that even though Erica’s counts were high…she didn’t think she had cancer…but because of that, she didn’t think she was the right surgeon to operate. She felt a Minimally Invasive OBGYN surgeon would give Erica a much better outcome and wanted to refer us to one in the area.
We walked out a little relieved but a whole lot frustrated. We felt like we were back to square one and now we would have to wait again to see the next surgeon. Many calls were made, and, in the end, we were told that this surgeon couldn’t see Erica until the next Wednesday. So, more days of waiting, all while wondering what might happen since the surgery needed to be done ASAP…but no one was in a hurry but us.
Waiting. I’ve decided I don’t like it. If you are waiting for something fun to happen…there is excitement in the air and waiting is part of the fun. But when you are waiting for something that you wish you didn’t have to even experience…waiting becomes, at times, overwhelming.
Since Easter is on the horizon, this experience has me wondering what it must have been like for Jesus during the days leading up to His crucifixion. Talk about waiting! It wasn’t a situation where He didn’t know what was going to happen…He knew every detail. We were waiting for the unknown…He was waiting for the known. He knew what He was going to have to go through…for you and for me…so that our sins could be forgiven and we could spend eternity with Him. Absolutely unbelievable.
Are you in a time of waiting? Trust Jesus. He understands exactly what you are going through. He’s been there and He won’t let you walk the detour without Him. Reach out to Him today. If He loved you that much to be willing to go through the waiting period that led up to being crucified…I think He can help you as you walk these uncertain days.
Until next week, when I’ll share about the next wrench that was thrown into our detour…
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.”
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