The surgical team came by this morning and informed us that we will be one more day in the IMC, so we will not be moving to a regular floor today. We are OK with that. They will continue to monitor him and the necessary vital signs just to make sure we have a well-man progressing to the next level. They changed out his local pain medicine this morning instead of removing it. Dr. Kemp said that since Jeremy was having success in progressing with the pain medicine, he thought it best to continue to give it to him on a continual release basis as he continues to progress. They will be removing the catheter today and possibly one of the chest tubes. Pray for that as it will be somewhat of an ordeal. We are going to try and walk more today, so pray for endurance and NO NAUSEA. He did throw up this morning, but all signs point to the combination of NOTHING on his stomach except for an incredible amount of pain medicine and another bout with the HICCUPS. He is off of the CPap for the day and will just be doing regular breathing treatments.
Huge Praise for the day - he slept last night and did not have his oxygen levels deplete AND he was not on oxygen! So the levels maintained on solely the power of Jeremy! Yea! Prayer requests for the day: pray for endurance as we work through walking and maneuvering. Pray for the nausea to stay at bay. Pray for the hiccups to stay away. (It is said to be common in patients who lose the nerve that assists with the control of the diaphragm. This might be a problem that he works through for weeks. Keep praying none-the-less because it hurts) Pray for the safe travel of Emma, Papa, Jason, & Rachel. Pray for Emma over the next few days as she accepts that Mommy & Daddy are not coming with her. I think she will be very distracted and not to strained or sad, but Emma is easily traumatized. If you are not aware, the last time we went through a long hospital stint with Jeremy, Emma stayed with her best friend Drew and despite the great comfort of being with friends, she had nightmares for MONTHS afterwards. It was awful. We really need her to be as close to normal as possible when we return as we will still be dealing with IV meds for Jeremy and we will be dealing with the dressing of the wounds.
As far as other needs, they seem to be all met. If they arise, I will let you know of it. Just keep praying. I know you are because it is evident you are being heard. Our God is faithful and I am humbled by where he has brought us in this great journey. Seriously, let's stop and think about this. The God of the Universe gave a mere man the knowledge enough to understand the most complex creation - the human body. In giving this understanding, they know where to make appropriate incisions, how to measure the amount of anesthesia so as to not damage the functioning of the body and yet not have the body experience the trauma of the procedure. They possess the know-how to manipulate and handle the very organ that supplies all life to the rest of the body - the heart - and to delicately remove an infectious matter from it's surface WHILE NOT STOPPING IT'S FUNCTION. They possess the know-how of how to remove what nerve and what it controls. To know what causes a fever; to know there will be fluid because of inflammation; to know how to infuse antibiotics and which one will work appropriately; to create machinery to look inside the body without having to slice it open (CT scan, x-ray, MRI, etc). How humble we should be that the God of all creation would allow us to look behind the veil of his most amazing creation so that we can better operate this vessel for His service! That's what it's all about really. We are allowed to understand the operation of this temple so that it can be better treated with reverence in order to provide the most sacrificial service for His kingdom. How are you treating your temple? How do you respect the gift that God has given you? Really, you have the knowledge. You have the ability - because he also gave this great skillful mind to you as well to help you make wise decisions on what to ingest, inhale, smother, and expose this temple to. Think about that today. Jeremy has restrictions on what he can inhale, ingest, smother, and expose his body to, so it makes our life just a little more complicated. However, it also makes us more aware of what common sense God gave us to not do that to our body (be it handicapped or not) so that we can get the most adequate usage of it. What have you done for your temple today? You need it, but most importantly - God needs it!
5 comments:
Dearest Jodi,
Perhaps we have a tendency to think of Jeremy as our spiritual leader, but Jeremy has an amazing helpmate in you. This posting was a beautiful sermon. I worship the God of creation who knits us together in our mothers' wombs, and I am challenged to respect the temple He has given me. Our congregation/community is so blessed to have the two of you. We look forward to your being back with us physically, but through this blog, you have never left our presence. Thank you for taking time during this very personal ordeal to point people toward God.
Jodi,
I want you to know we're still reading and still praying. Sounds like if Jeremy is not up to it, when you get back home maybe you could preach one Sunday. :-) However, I know he's probably impatient to get back to his normal place of service. Be patient. In the short time I've come to know FBC Hayden, it's obvious you have wonderful people, and they will continue the work while you are away. You are doing exactly what you are supposed to be doing. Rebekah, our daughter, had nightmares when she was little. We taught her a little song (which is scripture) that was on a Steve Green Children's CD: "When I am afraid, I will trust in You, I will trust in You, I will trust in You. When I am afraid I will trust in You, O God who is my help." We would sometimes sing it to her, and then later on I would hear her singing it to herself. It made a diffence. Children have a wonderful ability to adapt, and you know the Heavenly Father loves both of your girls more than you ever could. Trust Him! Keep the Faith! I'm amazed at your strenght and enduranc in this difficult ordeal. God has certainly blessed Jeremy with a wonderful "helpmate."
On a lighter side, tell Jeremy he needs to get better, come back home, and defend himself. Jason is calling him a "nerd" in front of the congregation (a result of the trivial pursuit cards.) You know those youth ministers, always causing trouble. :-)
Look forward to hearing of your return to sweet home, Alabama.
I agree with the the above statement. When Jack was sick You and Jeremy were right there with us being the spiritual leaders we needed and now during this time in your lives you are still being the spiritual leaders we need. I am so glad God brought yall to us. I also got a new nephew out of the deal.:)
Jodi as people have been saying you are a wonderful helpmate.Praying the hiccups are gone the upset stomach.Hope his eating is getting better.You would hate for granny to come up there and feed him.So tell him to try and eat something or i might just send her up there.Praying for you guys all the time.We all are holding up doing what he would want us to do. Think ahead to the day yall come home.(well)It will be a grand and glorious day.Love to you both.If i can do any thing at youhouse before yall arrive or after yall get home please let me know. Debbie
Amazing news...but then again I knew it was just a matter of time and prayers before this thing started to turn around. I know there is still a long way to go but I also know we serve an AMAZING GOD that will be with you guys every step. jodi, i agree with the other comments as well, during this VERY personal and stressful time you find a way to not only keep us informed but inspire us with your words. Tell jeremy keep fighting and we are so proud of you both!!!!!We love yall very much and will continue to pray(and call..hahaha).Ryan,shanda,bailee and brooks.
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