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JULY 9 UPDATE – Day 49
Psa. 136:1-4 Give thanks to
the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give
thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give
thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. To
Him who alone does great wonders, For His lovingkindness is
everlasting;
David continues to
do well health wise with an occasional cough and
fluctuating temperature. We are still concerned and disappointed
in David's neurological progress (or actually regression). Please pray
for OUR patience and endurance and for David's improvement. Please
remember to pray for
his surgery tomorrow: for skill for the doctors and nurses, good
healing, and for no infection. Pray for the process to get David to
Shepherd Center. Also, please pray for all the financial details and
insurance - what a mess!!
Thanks for all your prayers and meals and visits and e-mails and cards.
1
Peter 1:23-25 for you have been born again not of seed which is
perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring
word of God. For, “ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS, AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE
FLOWER OF GRASS. THE GRASS WITHERS, AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF, BUT THE
WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.”
JULY 10 UPDATE – Day
50
Heb. 12:1-13 Therefore, since we
have so great a cloud of witnesses
surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin
which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race
that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and
perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne
of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners
against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. You
have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving
against sin; and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed
to you as sons, “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE
LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD
LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” It
is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for
what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are
without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are
illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers
to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be
subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for
a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our
good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment
seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been
trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of
righteousness. Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the
knees that are feeble, and make straight paths for your feet, so that
the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be
healed.
Give thanks to the Lord
with us: David came through the prosthetic eye
surgery well (he didn't have the Greenfield filter installed because
the surgery was delayed almost 4 hours
due to some emergency surgeries. He also had the staples from the first
reconstruction surgery removed.) Many thanks to Dr. Siddens who missed
his afternoon tee time (just kidding, he waited all afternoon
for the operating room to be available, just like us) who did a
fantastic job (even if he is letting his daughter Jodie [a classmate of
David] go to U. of Georgia) Please pray for no infection and for
complete healing.
Please continue to pray for his neurological improvement and for the
details of getting David to Shepherd Center (if that is God's will!)
John
13:34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even
as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men
will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
JULY 11 UPDATE – Day
51
Is. 40:21-26 Do you not know?
Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who
sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like
grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads
them out like a tent to dwell in. He it is who reduces rulers to
nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. Scarcely have
they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their
stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they
wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble. “To whom then
will you liken Me That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One. Lift
up your eyes on high And see who has created these stars, The One who
leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; Because of
the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, Not one of
them is missing.
David started the day
with a "bang" by having surgery at 8 AM to
install the Greenfield filter (to protect David's heart, lungs and
brain) from blood clots that form in the leg.
It seems to have gone well and David spent the day recovering. We ask
you to pray with us that God would grant David renewed use of his arms,
hands, and fingers along with his legs and feet. It looks like there
will not be a bed
at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta until July 21 or later. This may be
good for David - he needs the time to recover from the reconstructive
surgeries before he begins rehab in earnest.
Isaiah 40:27-31 “ Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel, “My
way is hidden from the LORD, And the justice due me escapes the notice
of my God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God,
the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or
tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the
weary, And to him who lacks might He increases power. I Though youths
grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet those
who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with
wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and
not become weary..”
JULY 12 UPDATE – Day
52
Rom. 5:6-11 For while we were
still helpless, at the right time Christ
died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man;
though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God
demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His
blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if
while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of
His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His
life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord
Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
David continues to
recover from his surgeries on Thursday night and
Friday morning. He has some swelling around his right eye. He appears
to be in some pain which Jenny has tried to alleviate with soothing
words and massages instead of medicine. His whole body would shake with
pain for awhile until Jenny would begin her "therapy" and then he would
calm down. He even developed red "splotches" on his body that the
nurses diagnosed as an allergic reaction until we explained that
several members of our family react to stress in that way. We have
asked that David not be put back on Baclofen (the muscle relaxant)
which will hopefully enable him to interact more. Please pray for his
healing: mental, physical, and Spiritual. Pray for our rest on the
Lord's Day.
Is. 53:3-6 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He
was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself
bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him
stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for
our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening
for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own
way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
JULY 13 UPDATE – Day
53
Psa. 5:1-3 Give ear to my
words, O LORD, Consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help,
my King and my God, For to You I pray. In the morning, O LORD, You will
hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly
watch.
It was a good day of
rest for David and his family. He continues to
recover from his surgeries of last week. One of his nurses, Marty, said
that David moved his thumb in response to a request. This is a first
since these recent surgeries. He also was sleeping with his mouth
closed (may seem small, but not to us) for the first time since the
accident. He is still in the Trauma ICU (which is an answer to prayer)
where he receives excellent and personal care by a highly skilled
staff. We are so thankful for them and can't wait for David to walk up
to the fourth floor and tells them thanks. Thanks for your continued
prayers for his recovery, health, and spirit.
Rom.
8:23-28 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first
fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting
eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in
hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who
hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see,
with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. In the same way the Spirit
also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should,
but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for
words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit
is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to
those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
JULY 14 UPDATE – Day
54
1Sam. 7:12 Then Samuel took a
stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen,
and named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.”
Well, we received some
surprizing news today. It appears that David
could be moved to the Shepherd center in Atlanta as early as Wednesday
this week. After a series of confusing phone calls from the Shepherd
Center and our insurance company (and their PPO) and a meeting with the
rehab doctor from the Roger C. Peace rehab clinic, it appears that our
insurance will pay for treatment at the Shepherd Center and that they
should have a bed by Wednesday. There are still several things that
must happen: (1) the insurance company and their PPO must give final
approval for transport and admission to Shepherd Center (2) The medical
staff at Greenville Memorial must release David medically, and (3)
transport must be arranged from Greenville to Atlanta and (4) plus a
thousand small details!! Please pray for us during this transition.
Pray for our family as we are separated.
Pray for David - that this would help his recovery.
Is.
26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee;
because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in Jehovah for ever; for in
Jehovah, even Jehovah, is an everlasting rock.
Eph. 3:20 Now unto
him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or
think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be the glory
in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and
ever. Amen.
JULY 15 UPDATE – Day
55
James 1:12-18 Blessed is a man
who perseveres under trial; for once he
has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has
promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I
am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He
Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is
carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived,
it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth
death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good thing given
and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of
lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. In the
exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that
we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
We received final
confirmation today that David is being released
medically from Greenville Memorial, that the insurance company will pay
for the move and the rehab at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, and the
Shepherd Center has an open bed. YEAH!! We are thankful to our Lord,
our family, and our friends. We are excited but also a little
apprehensive of (1) the rehab process, (2) Jenny living apart from the
family in Atlanta, (3) Living in Atlanta = the hot, crowded, busy,
city. Please pray for David and his transport, the new caretakers in
Atlanta, travelling mercies for us (Jenny, Rebekah, & Robert).
Please join us in giving thanks to God our Father through our Lord
Jesus Christ for preserving David's life, granting him much improved
health (for the first time since the accident he is completely off of
antibiotics), for some encouraging improvements in his neurological
response, for a caring, competent, diligent, & skilled medical
staff - esp. the surgeons, infectious disease specialists, and the
fantastic Trauma ICU nursing staff.
James
5:13-18 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone
cheerful? He is to sing praises. Is anyone among you sick? Then he must
call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him,
anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered
in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him
up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore,
confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you
may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish
much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly
that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three
years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and
the earth produced its fruit.
JULY 16 UPDATE – Day
56
Prov. 18:10 The name of the
LORD is a strong tower; The righteous runs into it and is safe. Prov.
19:20-21 Listen to counsel and accept discipline, That you may be wise
the rest of your days. Many plans are in a man’s heart, But the counsel
of the LORD will stand.
After 56 days at
Greenville Memorial Hospital, most of that time spent
in Trauma ICU, David rode into the sunset (actually to the Shepherd
Center in Atlanta). We packed up all his medicines, charts, films, etc,
and took an uneventful 2 hour ride to Atlanta. We were very impressed
by the doctors, nurses, and therapists that compose David's "team" at
the Shepherd Center. It was a gracious confirmation by our Heavenly
Father of
our decision to transfer David. Over the next few days David will
undergo intensive therapy and examination. Next Tuesday at 1:30 pm we
will meet will the "team" and they will present their diagnosis and
prognosis. Please pray for
David to rapidly improve in his cognitive and neurological function.
Pray that he will remain healthy and that his Spirit would thrive and
grow in grace. Pray for Jenny as she stays alone in Atlanta to comfort,
encourage, and help David.
2Cor.
1:3-7 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our
affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any
affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by
God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so
also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted,
it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for
your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same
sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly
grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also
you are sharers of our comfort.
JULY 17 UPDATE – Day
57
Romans 5:1-7 Therefore, having
been justified by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have
obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand;
and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we
also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about
perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character,
hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been
poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to
us.
David was dressed in regular "clothes" (shorts and polo
shirt)
today for the first time since the accident. They sat him up for 2
hours twice during the day. He was worn out from therapy and sitting
up. They are trying to toughen him up and strengthen him. One of their
"theologies" is to get him back to normal as much as possible. They are
trying to feed him
just 3 times a day (still administered through his PEG.) It didn't work
too well today - he threw up and had diarrhea. They are modifying his
feeding. If you want to write to David or Jenny, address it to: David
Spears care of
Shepherd Center, 2020 Peachtree Rd. NW, Atlanta, GA 30309-1465. Please
pray for David not to become discouraged or worn out - pray for his
strength, health, and mental abilities.
Rev.
22:1-5 Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as
crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle
of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life,
bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the
leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no
longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in
it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and
His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any
night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light
of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will
reign forever and ever.
JULY 18 UPDATE
– Day 58
Dan. 4:34-35 “But at the end of that period, I,
Nebuchadnezzar, raised
my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the
Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever; For His
dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom endures from
generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are
accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of
heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His
hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’
David had a very busy day, again!! The big news of the
day - they
put a cap over David's trach so he is breathing "regular" air - not
extra oxygen, no extra moisture, not heated! Good ole regular air. And
he seems to be adjusting well to his "3 times a day" feedings instead
of continuous feeding. His body health is as good as it has been since
the accident. But, his cognitive and neurological responses are still
not what they were
several weeks ago. Please pray for his continued health and his
neurological improvement. Pray for Jenny as she ministers to David and
is separated from the rest of the family. Thanks again for your concern
and your prayers.
John 14:1-6 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe
also in Me. “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were
not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to
Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way
where I am going.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You
are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way,
and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
JULY
19 UPDATE – Day 59
Is. 45:21-22 “Who has
announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not
I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and
a Savior; There is none except Me. Turn to Me and be saved, all the
ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.
David had an easy day of rehab - only one therapist
worked with him
for about 30 min. But, he was dressed and sitting up both in the
morning and evening. Jenny's brother, sister-in-law, and our niece came
to see
Jenny today and had supper with her. It is good to have family close by
(they live about 50 miles away) Pray that David will do well over the
weekend, gain strength, and begin to show neurological progress as the
new week
of the Lord starts tomorrow. Pray that we will not be discouraged with
his slow progress (and that he won't become discouraged either!!!)
Rejoice with us in God's good providence to us in many ways!!!
Your
continued prayers are greatly appreciated.
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