Act Like Men

The Journey 

Part 1

Beginnings

I really don't know where to start but I suppose I will begin with two things, the verse that has been a foothold in what feels like shifting sands, and where the journey begins.  Psalm 55:22 has been the go to verse in my prayers and in my meditations so often recently.  David writes "Cast your burden upon the LORD, and He will sustain you.  He will never allow the righteous to be shaken." What powerful words of encouragement and what an incredible reminder to stay focused on the LORD throughout this journey I have been set on.  As I begin to unfold this journey I want to be clear, there is no doubt that God's hand is, has been, and continues to be working in a powerful, sovereign way.

In March of 2014 I began feeling very sick.  I had already felt that my energy was down and I wasn't functioning normally.  At first we thought it might just be a stomach bug that was lingering on much longer than usual.  We tried to treat it like you would any other stomach/bathroom issue that won't cease.  I knew, deep down inside, that something was not right.  Something was off.  Something was very wrong.  I'll spare you the gory details.

It was Easter Sunday, April 20th, I has preached two services that morning and was feeling more drained than normal.  Preaching has a tendency to drain, but this was not the normal.  I had been itching and running a slight temperature for a couple of days.  I was not able to eat without running to the restroom.  I sat down in my chair when Colin, our 10 year old, promptly jumped in my lap and started looking intently at my face.  He stared for a few moments and then said "Dad, why are your eyes yellow?"  Yeah, something wasn't right.

The next day I found myself in the doctors office, at the urgency of my wife and my mom,  chatting with our family friend and physician.  She talked with me for awhile then abruptly stopped and said, you are yellow.  I want you to know that being told you have turned yellow is not high up on the list of things you want to hear.  Two people in my life had confirmed what I knew, things were not right.  That day I was sent to the lab for blood tests and the next day I arrived at the hospital early for more tests.  Later that evening, on Tuesday April 22nd, my bride drove me to the Emergency room at Covenant hospital in Lubbock Texas.

I feel that I need to pause at this moment to cover a couple of God moments more clearly up to this moment.  First my son asking about my yellow eyes.  It was in a very brief and intense moment that he seemingly jumped in my lap for no other reason than to look into my eyes.  His words were worried and urgent "Dad, why are your eyes yellow?"  It's as if God urged Colin to do this just to push me.  You see, I had been sick at this point for almost a month and just treated symptoms, not the cause.

The next moment happened in the doctors office.  I was literally getting ready to leave when she caught the yellow hues in my skin and eyes.  The very next day some of the tests were going to be delayed and once again she got me in and then quickly directed us to the emergency room in Lubbock when the results were in.  She didn't have to do any of this but God had her ready for such a time as this, He used her in a powerful way.  Tamara Todd and her staff are above and beyond what we deserve and our thankfulness is never ending to them.

So we will pause here on the journey and next we will move to the hospital.  It was here that miscues, great nursing staff, lots of ice cream, and God began to move towards the next step in this journey.  To this point all we thought was my gall bladder was bad, little did we know how bad things were.  The burdens were beginning but God was already preparing the way and how thankful we are that His plans cannot be thwarted!