Eddie is yearning for freedom from his hospital bed. He dreams of stealing away with his mom and buying her shoes. He has an escape route planned and he figures that he can get back before most anyone would notice he was gone.
We're not sure what the people at the mall would think of his hospital gown. When he's not wearing his jammie bottoms it can be a little revealing. His doctors heard about his escapades using the hospital corridors to train for the olympics. They were not amused. They figured maybe it was time for him to start physical therapy. Eddie is not sure what part of him needs therapy but he welcomes pretty much any excuse to get out of his room. We're confident that he will give the folks in PT a run for their money. He definitely lights up the dialysis ward.
Thanks to Olive and the folks in Uganda for your prayers and the Bible verses. Olive says the "Ja Ja" (mostly elderly widows) are praying for Eddie. I love to get Bible verses because often the ones you all share are the same ones God is giving me, on the same day. It is cool how God does that.
The passage earlier this week was from Psalm 121. God wanted Eddie to know that he can rest, because He (our Dad in heaven) neither slumbers or sleeps. He guards Eddie's coming and going. I was relieved to read this because Eddie has taken to midnight strolls and I was kinda wondering whether hospital security has been trained to contain AWOL's.
At the moment Eddie is taking a shower. This takes quite a while because he really likes his shower. When he comes out he sometimes looks like a prune. But he smells better so we don't mind.
Starting tomorrow (Friday), I will be gone for four days, visiting my mom. However, Eddie's dad, Roger, will be here all of that time, so Eddie and his mom, Nancy, are really looking forward to the weekend.
While Eddie freshens up, Nancy is tending to Eddie's roomate, Ron. Ron is being transferred to Manor Care today and we're going to miss him. Especially Nancy; she has become Ron's #1 nurse. However, Ron will not be able to escape our attention. Now he will get regular visits from Tony and the kids at Village Church.
Keep those prayers coming, especially for Ron. He doesn't have anyone visiting him, except angels. The angels are all over this room. Sometimes it makes me cry. Thanks for sending them our way.
Eddie got a shunt put in his shoulder, near his neck, for dialysis. This will allow his nurses to close up the holes in his lap, at the top of his legs, which have been used to access his veins.
Eddie continues to be very tired and nauseous. Please continue to pray for rest, cleansing of toxins, healthy kidneys and restoration of his urinary function. Please also pray that God would continue to do his work in Eddie's soul.
We are so thankful for your prayers.
TUESDAY - Day 14 (Written Tuesday afternoon)
Late last night, Eddie got "sick and tired" of being sick and tired. So he got himself out of bed, dropped down to the floor and did five push-ups. Then he went for a walk down the hall. Deciding he needed more exercise, he began to run. He took about five steps before realizing he didn't know how to run anymore. "My legs felt really awkward and tingly." With all the IV tentacles dangling from his lap, he also said he felt somewhat like an octopus. So he backed down to something just shy of a crawl, sat down on one of the couches in the lounge, and "did my best not to puke."
Talk about a victorious limp! The courage of this guy is stunning. Other-worldly.
"Fight the good fight." For years, Eddie has ended each e-mail with these words. Now he is ending each day with them.
What a blessing he is to us all.
MONDAY - Day 13 (Written Monday evening)
The day started out with Eddie nauseous and swollen throughout his body. At noon he began dialysis; by 4PM when he finished, Eddie was feeling good and looking good and the swelling was limited to his ankles.
Eddie decided he wanted some exercise. When Oscar and I arrived at the hospital, Eddie had just walked down a flight of stairs with his mom and was enjoying a liesurely stroll through the lower lobby. We walked to another lobby near the retail area for the medical center and sat there for about an hour and talked. Then Eddie got back in his wheelchair and we returned to his room.
We got a call from my brother, Bill, who is a kidney specialist in Connecticut. Bill has not looked at Eddie's chart or talked with Eddie's doctors but talked in general terms about what was going on with Eddie and what we could expect. He said that the great majority of patients similar to Eddie (young and in good health) recover completely from acute renal failure. He said it might take up to six weeks for that to happen, and there are no treatment options (drugs, surgery, etc.) to consider. The kidneys must heal themselves. Bill said that diet was important to minimize intake of sodium, potassium and milk products. He said Eddie would feel better if he paid attention to his diet and worse if he did not. He said there were no health reasons for Eddie to drink a lot of water and that he would probably feel better if he restricted his intake of fluids because his body lacks the ability to eliminate them on his own.
He said it was normal for a person with acute renal failure to have no urine output. He said the two signs that the kidneys are beginning to heal is that they begin to produce urine and certain markers in his blood, such as creatine,beging showing signs of improvement. We were encouraged to learn today that Eddie is beginning to produce small amounts of urine.
I asked Bill if Eddie could receive dialysis on an outpatient basis. Bill said it is technically feasible but not likely. He said most outpatient dialysis centers only accept adults who have been diagnosed with chronic (long term, permanent) kidney failure; they are not set up administratively to help people who are experiencing only temporary renal failure. Therefore, the typical scenario for patients such as Eddie is that they remain in the hospital until their kideys are healed.
Despite what is "normal," we continue to pray for a rapid recovery. We want to see Eddie home and his kidneys healed by the end of this week, when his father comes for a visit. Please join us in asking God for still another miracle, if that is within his timing.
SUNDAY - Day 12 (Written Monday morning)
Yesterday, my son, David, and others took Eddie for a stroll in the wheelchair. They left the tower where his room is. Eddie stood and sat in the sun for awhile, then David sat in the wheelchair and Eddie wheeled David back to his room.
Most of the rest of the day Eddie was tired and nauseous. We got a report about what the recommended diet is for new dialysis patients. We found out that he is not always eating the right stuff. Part of the problem is that he craves things that are not good for him in quantity. Hopefully we will be able to help him eat in ways that don't make him feel quite so sick. The underlying problem is still the toxins in his body. Until his kidneys get better, he probably won't feel great.
Eddie's mom, Nancy, now has Eddie's car so she can be a little more flexible, coming and going from the hospital. Most nights she has been staying with David and his roomates. They are cooking for her and caring for her very well and everyone seems to like that arrangement. Jesus is all over that one.
We continue to hear amazing stories about Eddie being lifted up before lots of people, literally all over the world and the oceans in between. Thanks again for your faithfulness in prayer.
SATURDAY - Day 11 (Written Saturday evening)
Eddie was tired and a bit spacy today. However, he was not delusional as he was in the middle of the week. He believes the toxins in his body are what makes him spacy and tired.
He received dialysis today. He said that the refreshed blood he received during dialysis felt really sweet. However, he will not receive dialysis tomorrow. He receives dialysis on only an intermittent basis because his doctors want his kidneys to begin doing their work, rather than the machine.
Eddie looks the best we've seen him since he returned from Uganda. He has lost most of his yellow color and most of the swelling, except in his ankles. He has showered and shaved. He looks little worse for the wear, except for a little bruise on one wrist.
Eddie enjoys all the encouragement he is getting from the letters, visits and calls. Thank you, everyone!
My personal opinion is that Eddie probably could benefit from more rest. There are no gatekeepers at the hospital to help him have time during the day to nap. Please keep this in mind when you consider a visit. We have seen God at work in many of your visits, so the last thing we want to do is discourage anyone whom God may be prompting to visit. But please remember that Eddie is still healing. Eddie's basic nature is not conducive to rest and sometimes Eddie's bursts of energy do not serve him well. During the past week, he has proven vulnerable to over-stimulation. We all need to try to help Eddie get rest not just at night, but during the day as well.
Please pray for rest, cleansing of toxins, healthy kidneys and restoration of his urinary function. Please also pray that God would continue to do a mighty work in Eddie's soul.
Thank you for your prayers. We have no words to express the depth of our gratitude for the way the Body of Christ is carrying Eddie and his many caregivers day by day.
About a year ago, Marty Chamberlain, pastor at Christ Life Church, prophesied that there would come a time where Eddie would be stricken with something that would leave him paralyzed. He would need to depend on God's strength and on others whom God had placed around him. He would overcome this and God would use it to re-create in Eddie love. Eddie would be reminded that all is through God's strength. Eddie would see how much God loves him and how much love God has placed in people around Eddie for Eddie.
On the same day, another woman at Christ Life reminded Eddie that he is like a spring in Gods hands. God's work springs out from Eddie's life.
It has been an amazing thing to watch these prophesies unfold.
Long before Eddie ever planned to travel to Uganda, our Heavenly Father forsaw that Eddie would be stricken with malaria. God had the power to prevent it, but instead God chose to use it for His purposes. When Eddie finally arrived in Africa but had yet to develop any symptoms of the disease, our Heavenly Father promised, through the words of Psalm 41, to protect him, preserve him, sustain him and restore him. This is the miracle we have witnessed in present days.
Since last summer, Eddie has longed to experience the hand of God resting on him and working through him in such a powerful and miraculous way, that there could be no other explanation for the course of events, but for the grace of God. It was as if some long-afflicted place in Eddie's soul was bubbling up and crying out, "where are you, God?" Eddie hurt a lot inside, and he found great comfort in the presence of his friends. But the deepest parts of his being longed for something more, an intimacy with his heavenly Dad that even life's most challenging afflictions could not disturb.
I believe that the transformation now under way in Eddie will do immeasurably more than what Eddie imagines. The life of a missionary is full of trials. With each one, the love God pours into Eddie will become deeper and more profound, while the love God pours through Eddie will bless the nations.
The immediate trial that Eddie faced yesterday was keeping his food down. His appetite returned midweek, and on Thursday, he enjoyed real meat for the first time in over two weeks. The hamburger from the hospital kitchen tasted so good, Eddie longed to have another. His buddy, Tony, obliged by delivering one hot off the grill from In 'N Out. Unfortunately, the second one lived up to its name. What went in Thursday afternoon, came out Friday morning. Eddie battled with nausea most of the day and finally relented to receiving medicine for it, early Friday evening.
On the brighter side, Eddie's mental condition on Friday was much improved over the day before. He was tired, but some of that was attributable to staying up too late with friends. (Oh Eddie, some things never change!) Most every vital sign was either perfect or trending that way. The main area of concern is his kidneys; they haven't shown much improvement in the past week. His doctor said that sometimes kidneys don't turn around until the urinary tract gets flowing, and that part of his machinery was still stuck in neutral Friday night.
Except for dialysis every day or two, the machines are now gone. He is now mostly wireless, tubeless and ambulatory. The latter state is a cause to celebrate for Eddie, but a source of concern for his caregivers. For awhile Thursday night, Eddie went AWOL, cruising in a wheelchair with his friend Shannon, leaving not only the ward but the building.
Somehow, they managed to get themselves locked out of the hospital. His hospital gown proved a bit breezy for the brisk night air. (The Spirit blows where it will.) Pray that Eddie doesn't catch a cold.
THURSDAY - Day 9 (Written Thursday afternoon)
Yesterday morning, when Eddie learned that he was going to be moved from the ICU to a regular hospital room, he began to talk about holes in the ceiling. Dozens of times Eddie mentioned holes in the ceiling, and his friend Shannon figured that it was just part of his confusion.
A little while later, Shannon walked along side Eddie as he was moved from the first to the sixth floor. When they reached Eddie's new room, they paused while his bed was turned 90 degrees to fit through the door. At that moment, Shannon looked up and saw a large hole - missing pieces of tile in the ceiling. Pointing to it, Shannon asked Eddie, "is that the hole in the ceiling you were talking about?" Eddie nodded and said, "there are men on the roof." Later, Shannon learned that men were doing repairs to the building - they had been on the roof and had removed the tiles from the ceiling. Buried as he had been in the bowels of the intensive care ward, Eddie could not have possibly known about these repairs. Yet he did.
It was then that Shannon began to realize that, dazed though Eddie may be, some of Eddie's insights were superior to his own. I learned a similar lesson this morning.
I walked into the place where Eddie was receiving dialysis, and his eyes opened very wide. Skinny, almost gaunt, his face looked older and wiser than his years, but there was an innocence about him that made it seem like he was only five years old. A big grin came covered his whole face as he greeted me; at that moment it felt like there was no one in the whole world more important to Eddie than me. He asked me about my wife, Karen. He told me that it was time for me to leave; Karen needed me more than he did; I needed to go home and spend time with her, even if it meant sitting beside her while she worked at her computer. I received his earnest coaching as a word from the Lord. Then Eddie held my hand and proceeded to pray for Karen, for me and for our marriage. The prayer was spoken straight from our Father's heart, and it melted me.
I sat by his bedside, weeping. I came to minister to Eddie, and here he was, ministering to me. The fragrance of Jesus was so strong in the room, it was overwhelming.
"She's such a beautiful woman, she loves you so much, and the two of you are perfect for each other," Eddie said with a big smile. I asked him if he knew that Karen had visited him last night. He said he didn't know that. I told him it was all right, because he was sleeping.
"They said I did a lot of strange things yesterday," he said with a look of concern on his face. I told him it was all right, that was just the malaria working on his mind.
"I didn't steal any money?" Eddie asked.
"No, Eddie, you didn't steal any money."
"Nobody got fired because of me?"
"No, Eddie, nobody got fired because of you." (There's been a few times when I could have been fired because of Eddie, but mercifully, they did not cross my mind at that moment.)
Eddie looked at a woman in the dialysis unit, in the bed across from his own. She was sleeping soundly as her machine whirred, her head tilted to one side. "She's going to get a stiff neck." I didn't say much nor do anything to respond, so he turned to the nurses.
"Excuse me," Eddie said politely. Nobody heard him, because the three nurses were chatting with each other.
"Excuse me," Eddie repeated, somewhat louder. Now, he had their attention. "That woman over there is going to get a stiff neck. Could you give her a pillow to lean on?"
The nurses hesitated but Eddie didn't. He grabbed the pillow from behind his head and offered it to the nurses for the woman. Seeing that Eddie was not about to take no for an answer, one of them grudgingly found a towel, folded it, and gently placed it next to the woman's face, so her head had support as she slept. Knowing how Eddie's own neck ached, I was amazed at his generosity. But Eddie was just warming up.
Seeing that his newfound friend had finally been comforted, Eddie turned his attention to others in need. He spoke of his friend Dan, a police officer in Omaha, who has a son named Xander with a brain tumor. A while back, Eddie told me about how he had prayed for Zander, but so far Xander had not been healed. Now Xander was at the Mayo Clinic for a second surgery.
Later, I learned that Eddie had called Dan at the Mayo Clinic that morning to ask about Xander, while Eddie himself was receiving dialysis. When Eddie hung up, he turned to his mom, Nancy, and said, "I need to send Dan $1,000."
"That's nice," Nancy replied. "I don't know if you have $1,000."
"Neither do I," said Eddie. "I don't even know if I have any checks."
At that moment, I was driving to Reno, talking to my mom on the phone. My mom mentioned how she was looking forward to seeing me next weekend. Out of the blue my mom said, "When you get here, I'm going to give you $1,000 to give to Eddie."
Having no clue about the conversation that was then occurring between Eddie and Nancy, I said to my mom, "Can I use it for something other than Eddie's medical bills?" My mom said I could. When I got to the hospital, I knew that my mom's gift was headed to Xander. I marveled at how God uses the weak and the poor to bless each other, and how I am often used by him in ways I could not fanthom.
Thank you, Dad! I love to see you at work!!
Noticing that Eddie no longer had bags for his catheter or colostomy, I inquired where they had gone. Eddie said matter-of-factly that he had removed them himself in the middle of the night.
"Didn't that hurt?" I asked.
"I thought I had ripped out one of my testicles," was his candid reply. "But I looked down and saw that they were still there."
Suddenly, I understood what he had meant earlier that morning, when he mentioned something about blood. Like just about everything else that was said today, the comment seemed a bubble left of level, but was actually much deeper than it appeared.
When the dialysis was finished, they wheeled Eddie back into his own room, and a nurse appeared to make arrangements for lunch. Eddie, being Eddie, ordered ice cream for the entire crew - his mom, Shannon, two nurses and I.
Trying to determine what he had already eaten, one of the nurses asked him, "What did you have this morning?"
Eddie replied, "Only confusion."
Indeed.
What's a little dementia when you are resting in the hands of our Lord?
If only I could be so confused.
WEDNESDAY - Day 8 (Written Wednesday evening)
Eddie took steps forward and backward today.
Eddie no longer needs any IV's, which is a big step forward. He was also removed from his various monitors (heart, blood pressure, temperature, respiration). He was transferred out of the ICU into a regular hospital room, with a view from his sixth-story window looking west. This signals the end to the critical phase of his care, and for that we are deeply grateful. Praise God!
He still has catheter and colostomy tubes and a small tube in his nostrils for oxygen. He remains "rigged" for dialysis, although he did not receive any dialysis today, pending evaluation of his kindney function. He will continue to get an antimalarial drug until Friday, but that is now being administered orally. He began to drink liquids and eat soup and jello.
Today, for the first time in ten days, Eddie talked pretty much nonstop. He showed no discomfort in speaking. He had a lot of energy, despite getting very little sleep the night before. These are all very encouraging signs.
The setbacks were in his mental condition. He had considerable dementia today and it was often difficult to carry on a conversation with him. He could not recall basic facts. He would count to three unexplicably. He repeated himself frequently. He would focus on certain objects excessively, while ignoring others. He had irrational fears. He sometimes resisted people who were trying to help him. He received a lot of neurological testing. I did not hear the conclusions from those tests.
His new room remains in the Sierra Tower - Room 630. Visiting hours are 9AM to 9PM.
Please continue to pray for healing with respect to his mental condition, kidneys, lungs and blood. Please also pray for spiritual renewal as the Lord leads you.
Thanks for your prayers.
TUESDAY - Day 7 (Written Tuesday evening)
At Eddie's request, Tony brought a video game console to the ICU this morning. However, Eddie and Tony had such a good time just hanging out (with Nancy and Stephanie) that they didn't end up plugging it in. "Hanging out" again involved Eddie communicating by sign language and via note pad.
Eddie got the short form of dialysis today (three hours), which he received well. Tomorrow, they are going to assess whether he needs more dialysis. His blood pressure is excellent without any special medicines. He is receiving no medicines for pain or nausea. I didn't look at his IV's today but I think the only IV's he is now getting are related to nutrition, plus an anti-malaria drug. Without further transfusions, his platelet count has increased on its own from 20 to the mid-50's, which reduces his risk of bleeding. It still has a way to go.
This afternoon, Eddie had his tubes removed from his mouth. This was a surprise for all concerned and another answer to prayer! In lieu of the ventilator, he has a small oxygen tube in his nostrils. They told him not to talk too much, and his throat is sore so it is hard for him to talk, but he is talking some and it is great just to hear his voice. He is also able to sip flavored ice chips.
Eddie's voice is weak but he seems to have a whole lot of energy. He is already staying up later at night than I am (which isn't saying much).
It sure looks like the Lord is giving Eddie a miraculously fast recovery. Praise God!
Thank you for all your prayers!!
MONDAY - Day 6 (Written Tuesday morning)
Last Friday, a college friend, Shannon, who is like a brother to Eddie, decided to leave his home in Kentucky and spend this week bedside. We prayed that when Shannon arrived on Monday, that Eddie would say hello to him. We swallowed hard when we prayed, because at the moment last Friday when we sent our prayer heavenward, Eddie was pretty much unconscious.
As Shannon entered the ICU yesterday, Eddie caught a glimpse of him when he was still 50 feet away. Eddie pointed at him and smiled. Eddie didn't have to say a word because the heavens were screaming "Hello!" Eddie is back!!"
Monday was a very good day. Medically, the progress was incremental. Stronger blood pressure, lower fever, less aggressive support of his breathing. All the tubes, wires and machines were still in place doing their things, but somehow they seemed a lot less necessary. Almost superfluous. What was dripping from all of those IV bags paled in comparison to the tears of joy dripping from eyes. The constant whining of the dialysis machine couldn't drown out the frequent laughter.
Nancy seemed to spend a whole lot of the afternoon nestled in Eddie's arms. I couldn't figure out who was enjoying it more, mostly because both of their faces were buried in each other's shoulders.
Eddie spent the day awake and engaged with his guests. Because of the tubes in his mouth, he couldn't speak yet, but he wrote a ton of things down on his message pad, and typed quite a few more on a laptop that became his voice for the day. Most of them were questions.
Much of the time, there was no need to write. I saw a skill in Eddie I had not seen before - sign language. I saw how he has gotten by in all those countries where he didn't know how to speak the language. He just used his hands. Many times he communicated intensely personal thoughts, solely with his hands. Some of them were about bodily functions. (And Tony was not even in the room.) At other times he expressed a deep, overwhelming gratitude for God's grace.
One of the first things he expressed was a need to apologize to the folks at Teen Mania for his no show at last weekend's session. When we told him how everyone there had been praying for him, that Laura had been his personal emmisary and Soraya had sent him her personal wishes right before boarding her plane back to Mexico, a smile beamed across his face. Oh how he loves you all!
Although Eddie's near term memory - what has happened these last five days at the hospitals - was reduced to a single unforgettable encounter with his catheter, his longer term memory is totally intact. As we were piecing together the story for him, we began to recount the promises that God had personally made to him, as delivered through Facebook by Kim a couple weeks before he fell ill. We pulled the verses off the wall by his bed, but we hadn't even begun to read them, before he signaled "4" and then "1" with his hands. He was referring of course to Psalm 41. Eddie knew what promises God had made to him, even before any words were spoken, because God had written them on his heart.
The word of God has been Eddie's ever constant companion, even when he was unconscious.
Whoa, let that one sink in for awhile.
SUNDAY - Day 5 (Written Monday morning) |
On Saturday, Eddie was not able to receive dialysis due to low blood pressure. God had other things for him that day - awesome worship as we described in the prior update.
On Sunday, doctors did things to allow him to resume dialysis. They gave him a couple pints of blood and some medicine to support his blood pressure. They also "turned down" the machine so it flows at a lower rate, which is easier on his body. Eddie is now on dialysis about 12 hours a day. This will help his body cleanse itself of the toxins that are making him sick. Eventually, it will also reduce the fluids which is making him swolen.
Eddie slept comfortably throughout the day, without assistance of any pain medications or other mood- or mind-altering drugs. Praise God!
Eddie still needs a ventilator to help him breathe. Doctors have turned down the oxygen level, which is one step toward helping him breathe on his own. His lungs are clear of fluid, which is good. His vital signs are trending in the right direction. He has a little temperature, which is good since he is very sick and his body is fighting the bad stuff.
Eddie is very tired and needs his rest. When Eddie wakes up, it is only for a moment. He is aware of what is going on around him. He would like to communicate but his mouth has a ventilator in it and it takes too much effort and concentration to communicate otherwise. When Ian arrived yesterday, Eddie waved at him. This made our hearts soar.
Many of you want to visit. This is so cool that you want to connect with Eddie. He can receive visitors in the afternoon so if God is leading you to come, give me a call right before you are preparing to leave and I can alert you to any potential roadblocks in the moment.
If your main motivation to visit is to encourage Eddie, please know that the best way to do that at the moment is through prayer. I am confident that he gains spiritual strength through your presence in prayer.
Regarding what to pray for, it's always best to be led by the Spirit, but the list we provided on Day 3 is still accurate - mental state, lungs, kidneys and blood. I am sensing that the healing God is bringing to Eddie in the spiritual realm is very important, so please pay attention to that when you pray.
We've started a wall of praise. If you have a picture or drawing or a sign with a verse or words of encouragement for him, you can send it to him. This will be really cool for him in coming days as he regains the ability to comprehend and enjoy it. His address is:
Eddie Roach
Renown Medical Center Room S-108
1155 Mill Street
Reno, Nevada 89502
Thanks again for your prayers.
SATURDAY - Day 4 (Written Sunday morning) Whenever it came time to celebrate in ancient Israel, the party started when the sun went down the afternoon before. Saturday afternoon, Eddie got a head start on celebrating his victory over the malaria parasite, by partying with his friends in the ICU unit. It was through you that we knew that it had come time to party. On Friday night and Saturday morning, several of you told us in various ways that Eddie needed music in his home-away-from home. Our dad is the Great Physician, so we received music therapy as God's prescription for day 4. Working in shifts so as not to overcrowd the room, we shuttled people through our makeshift chapel, surrounding Eddie with praise as his bed become our altar. Things went well until we got to How Great Is Our God, which always seems to rock the heavens. That's a hard one to hold back, and our enthusiasm could be heard throughout the eastern half of the ward, if not the U.S. The pleasant grins from the nursing staff turned to cold stares as we began to "disturb" the other patients. What a Young Life moment. For me personally, it proved to be quite a struggle to reach that sacred hour. In the techno world we live in today, my ipod is as ancient as Israel , and it was working none to well when I tried to upload music to it Saturday morning. My old IBM desktop kept rejecting my even older Apple ipod as some kind of evil virus, as I labored for over two hours just to get music to play on the machine. (There's a spiritual analogy here I will fail to make, because it would give too much encouragement to the Apple faithful.) Although I eventually prevailed, we were only able to play a couple songs for Eddie through the old codger, before its battery ran out. On the way home after our day at the hospital, I stopped by the Apple store to see if they could help me out. The bad news was the battery was not replaceable. The good news was that, for a nominal fee, they offered me a brand new ipod, twice the gigs, a technicolor display and a battery that wouldn't quit. It was a deal I couldn't refuse. In the middle of the night, God showed me that Eddie has received a similar bargain. Even before his current bout with malaria, the last year has been a big challenge for Eddie, as things didn't work out the way he envisioned. An amazing faith rose up in him, as Eddie chose, time and again, to praise God in the midst of the turmoil around him and in him. Yet Eddie could not see in himself what we saw in him, and he had begun to think of himself as weak in faith. It had become a curse, and it was not something God wanted Eddie to have. Over the past couple of days, some of you have shared with me that you sensed that God was doing something to heal Eddie's spirit, even while he is healing his body. It is not always easy to see such things, and even more difficult to watch God do them in someone you love. Sometimes when I look at Eddie, I see John the Baptist. There he is, asking "are you the one?" All the while his savior proclaims there is no one on earth greater than he. "Blessed are you, if you do not fall away, because of me." As I came alongside Eddie after his return from Southeast Asia last summer, my prayers for Eddie fell short of the mark. I asked God to give him a new battery, but now God has shown me that he is in the midst of giving Eddie an entirely new ipod. We're not talking about his body; we're talking about his heart. The old one kept praising God, blinking on and off as it struggled with a shortage of joy. The new one will offer ceaseless songs of praise, displaying in full technicolor the richness of Eddie's sonship in Christ. Because the joy of the Lord is our strength, God’s power is often released through joy. During all of his trials over the past year, Eddie never stopped believing that a fresh infusion of God's joy-power was only a prayer away. If any of you have ever let Eddie get his hands on your cell phone, you know that he rarely returns it the same as he found it. Kim Casselberry found this out a few weeks ago, when she tried to call Eddie but could no longer find his name in her phone's directory. The next time she saw him, Kim asked Eddie where his number had gone. "It's still there," Eddie said. "It's just under a new name." "What name?" Kim asked. "Powerhouse," Eddie replied. "Why 'powerhouse'?" Kim wondered. Thumping his chest, Eddie said "because power is in the house." Yesterday, we started a new thing in the ICU unit, taping words of encouragement on brightly colored construction paper on the walls where Eddie can see them. The first one to go up was little Isa's prayer, that I mentioned in yesterday's update. The second one, written in bright yellow, said: you can do it - POWERHOUSE! Before Kim hung that one on the wall, she stuck it a couple of inches from Eddie's face. His eyes opened wide as he strained to read it. Looking straight into Eddie's eyes, Kim repeated the words, "You can do it - powerhouse!" From under his plastic breathing tube, a big grin curled up from the corners of Eddie's mouth. He isn't saying much yet, but the picture of that big smile on Eddie's face was worth a thousand words. We can be assured that the God who began a great work in Eddie, will carry it through to completion. Even now a new power is arising within Eddie, and at its center is a joyous heart of praise. Yo God! Amen.
FRIDAY - Day 3 (Written Saturday morning) The day started out downhill. In the middle of the night, Eddie's breathing became a bit labored and his ability to receive oxygen began to diminish. This is called "Adult Respritory Distress." So at 4AM, they put a tube in his mouth to help him breathe. That is uncomfortable so he had to receive a drug to help him accept this intrusion. At the time, Eddie was not on any pain medications or anything else that would alter his mood or mind - which is absolutely fantastic - praise God! But once he went on the ventilator, he could no longer talk to us because his mouth was taped shut, and he could not clearly understand us because now he had to be drugged. That was a real downer (pardon the pun), and a constant reality throughout day 3. The great news is that the malaria parasites in Eddie's body are now mostly gone. On day 1, 33% to 40% of his blood was infected. On day 3, 1% of his blood was infected. What a miracle! Praise God! I know many of you have been specifically claiming God's victory over those little buggers so we are really thankful that God has heard your prayers!! Let's pause and reflect on what has already been accomplished. A million people die each year of malaria worldwide. Eddie was on course to become one of them, and would have died before this weekend, but for the grace of God. My eyes water and my heart turns to mush when I think about this. On the one hand, we are so very grateful that God is rescuing Eddie. On the other hand, very, very, very few people are this fortunate. When we are blessed, we must pray for those who are not. Please pray as God leads you on this one. My spirit is groaning for all who are stricken by this wicked disease, and their loved ones. Eddie is not out of the woods. The parasites released massive amount of toxins throughout his body. Doctors say Eddie is "septic." Not a nice thing. The good news is that an ICU was designed to deal with these problems. But doctors are the first to warn us that the very interventions that help Eddie heal can also make him sick. He is on a road toward full recovery, but it is a narrow, bumpy road. Pray for wisdom for his doctors - especially to know when to intervene and when to let Eddie's body do the work without intervention. Eddie is getting very good care. But most people that are visiting Eddie are shaken by how sick he is. His skin is yellow and he is swolen from excess fluid. His blood pressure is still moving around and yesterday afternoon a fever returned. Although he is responsive, he is sometimes restless. He sleeps most of the time and is therefore mostly not aware of what is going on around him. At times there are as many as six machines at work. He has dozens of wires and tubes covering every part of his body. People ask "how long will he be sick?" Doctors are reluctant to answer that question. When they do, we do not hear it expressed in days. We usually hear it expressed in weeks or months. We want to see more miracles, so please pray for a recovery in terms of days. Then - and this is really, really important - believe that Eddie has received it! If you want to pray for specific kinds of healing, here are four areas you can pray for: Mental state. That Eddie's brain and mind would be protected from any harm and his full mental abilities would be restored. Lungs. That they would be strengthened and healed and that he could breathe well on his own without a ventilator. Kidneys. That they would be healed, function normally, and do their work without dialysis. Blood. Health. That his platelets would increase, protecting him against potential bleeding. That he would be filled with the blood of Christ! When you pray, please pray with confidence because God is very fond of Eddie and he is able to do way more than everything we can ask or imagine. God warned me two different ways yesterday - once during prayer and once through a Bible verse supplied by Tanya Canino - that we are not to place our hope in Eddie's recovery or in the medical devices God is using to bring healing to him. We can and should bless the doctors and the nurses and the machines and the drugs and the fluids, but our hope is not in these things. We can and should hope FOR recovery, but our hope is IN Christ. We are deeply grateful for your prayers. Among us are some very able prayer warriors. One of them is two years old and lives in Cambodia. Her name is Isa. Yesterday, this was what Isa's said: "eddie come home, eddie eat" Kids often see things we can not, and I like what Isa sees. Small though she may be, Isa is already quite a prophet. We are praying that the day Isa forsees is right around the corner.
THURSDAY - Day 2 (Written Friday morning) Yesterday was a challenging day for Eddie. He was tired and slept a lot. When he awoke, he did not say much. We got a few words out of him during the day. Doctors did a CT scan and reported the good news that his brain is in good shape. He has a condition called toxic metabolic encephalitis, not uncommon with severe infections, which impairs his mental ability. These sorts of symptoms come and go with malaria, so please pray that it goes soon and Eddie will talk more with us today. Eddie has a strong immune system, and he is fighting the parasites. This has overloaded his kidney with toxic blood cells, and so the doctors are helping him through dialysis, which began yesterday afternoon. The beginning of dialysis is uncomfortable. Please pray for comfort, and that God would bless the dialysis, there would be no side effects, and his kidneys would return to health. Eddie has a severe infection. One way some malaria patients are treated is by an exchange transfusion, in which all of their blood is replaced. Eddie's doctors are considering such a transfusion. Right now that is not an option because this procedure can not be performed in Reno and Eddie is not currently in a condition to transport. Please pray for discernment for the medical team about the exchange transfusion. Please pray that Eddie's blood would be rid of all the bad cells and an exchange transfusion would not be necessary. His mom, Nancy is now here. This is a blessing to all of us and especially Eddie. Please pray for strength for her. His dad, Roger, is at home. Please pray for Roger as it is very difficult for him to be away from Eddie. Eddie is having trouble breathing. During the night, changes were made to his treatment to help him breathe. We will report more about that tomorrow. Please pray that God would strengthen and protect Eddie's ability to breathe. Our doctors are consulting daily with medical experts at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta about how to help Eddie. Please pray that they would get and follow the best advice. We are trying to locate a malaria specialist here on the west coast that can work directly with our medical team. I will be placing a call soon to Claire Panosian, MD, who is founder and director of the Travel and Tropical Medical Program at the UCLA Medical Center. Please pray that Dr. Panosian would take me call and agree to help Eddie. Many of you have expressed an interest in visiting Eddie. I know he really wants to see you. As the medical treatments get more involved, access to him is becoming more limited. If you want to visit, please call me right before you are thinking of coming and we will tell you whether it is a good time. Thank you for your prayers. I see their effects, every time I look at Eddie. Since you have begun praying, he has for the most part seemed to avoid most of the severe symptoms he had before he entered the hospital. There were many times yesterday when he seemed to be resting comfortably, without medications to control pain, nausea or fever. This is a very hopeful sign and such a blessing to him.
WEDNESDAY - Day 1 (Written Thursday morning) Please forward to others. . . As you may have heard, after returning from his latest missionary journey to Uganda, Eddie contracted malaria. He was diagnosed as soon as we took him to the ER in Incline Village yesterday (Wednesday) morning. He was transported via ambulance to Renown Medical Center in Reno. He is in the ICU receiving very good care. They began him on the antimalarial drug Quinidine yesterday morning. This is a major Jesus sighting. A couple weeks ago, the Lord prompted Kim Casselberry to send the following message to Eddie via Facebook from Psalm 41: Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the LORD delivers him in times of trouble. The LORD will protect him and preserve his life; he will bless him in the land and not surrender him to the desire of his foes. The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness. At the time, Eddie was not sick and Kim had no knowledge that Eddie would become sick. However, Kim knew that God wanted her to remind Eddie of his promise. Yesterday, God showed himself faithful to his promise. During the 24 hours before Eddie was diagnosed with malaria (at home with us), he was very weak and disoriented. He was in pain - sometimes much pain - and suffered from extreme nausea that required treatment with anti-cancer type drugs. He was weak to the point he could not walk or sit or sometimes even roll himself over in bed. He had alternating episodes of coldsweat and chills. He could not feed himself. He could not speak in sentences. Yesterday, I am figuring from the accounts I heard, over 1,000 people were praying for Eddie. Thank you, everybody! What a demonstration of the Body of Christ! When I left Eddie last night, he was resting relatively comfortably, yet he had received no drugs for pain or nausea. I am no malaria expert but from what I've heard, the disease is notorious for its twists and turns. Sometimes things look good, and sometimes look bad. Maybe what we saw last night was just a calm between storms, so please do not take this as an indication to stop praying. But I believe is that this turn of events can not be explained by the treatment. He was only on an IV for hydration, nutrition, the antimilarial drug and norepheniphrine, to raise his blood pressure. The IV could help with hydration and nutrition and therefore improve Eddie's mental state (along with the oxygen). But it can't explain the lack of symptoms from the infection. When he arrived at the Incline hospital, Eddie was in a condition of "septis" - widespread infection in his abdomen that was beginning to threaten his internal organs. He had been on precautionary antibiotics only a few hours by the time I left him last night, not nearly long enough to have eliminated any symptoms from a bacterial infection, if there were one. With respect to the malarial infection, my brother, who is an MD/kidney specialist, told me the near term effect of treatment with Quinidine should be to worsen the symptoms from the parasite, as it triggers the release of toxins into the blood system. However, what we witnessed was the opposite of that. What we've seen so far is a miracle. No pain, no nausea, no chills, no coldsweat. Eddie was coherent and completing sentences. He has such a large team of caregivers that at one point Eddie introduced some of them by name to each other. He even prayed for us. Praise Jesus! And please - keep praying! |
So I've been in Uganda for almost a week now, and it feels like I've stepped back into a life I once knew. I truly love it here. A few days ago we had our first full day in the village, and I am so amazed at what has already taken place. Eddie and I have both preached a few times, and the Lord has touched many lives. The people have been so grateful for the Talking Bibles, as
