Monday Doesn't Have to be Mundane!

Good Monday to one and all. We didn’t make it to our regular Church services yesterday morning. Instead, my wife and I left at 4 a.m. to drive 200 miles to surprise my mom for breakfast in honor of her birthday. She and dad were on a weekend getaway and I found out where they were staying and we decided to surprise her. When I called her in their motel room she was expecting me to check on them but she nearly fainted whenever I told her I was only fifteen minutes away. We had a wonderful breakfast with them and what a blessing to be able to go and wish her a happy birthday in person. God is GOOD! Coming back we listened to several live Church services and it was encouraging to know that so many people are hearing the truth.

My surgery last Thursday went about as well as anyone could ever expect. I have no idea how many they do per session but they were doing a huge number on that day. The waiting area was full and they were taking them in fairly quickly. I believe three different doctors were operating that day and as some were being called in, others were showing up for their slot. It was all very impressive.

Once they got me into my little curtained cubicle they hooked me up and prepared me for the procedure. It was all very organized and executed with precision. The doctor came in and initialed the knee and once the word was given the twilight shot was administered and my wife said I began to offer some comic relief as my words became longer and longer. She said she finally told me she thought it would be wise if I would just hush.

Twenty-five minutes later she was allowed to come into the recovery room and I had nothing to share since I couldn’t remember anything that happened past the injection. They processed me out and by 11:30 we were sitting at the IHOP enjoying breakfast and I was walking without any assistance or crutches. It was time for me to break my fast since I had not eaten since 6:30 p.m. the previous day. The experience was quite remarkable. The results are still pending but we do have access to wonderful services and what a blessing they are!

Health care in our country is hugely expensive but there are times whenever you have to just sit back and marvel at the innovation, technical advances, and precision reflected in the people, the tools, and the techniques utilized. The surgery itself was almost like a blip compared to the screen full of activities that preceded it. The one thing I have trouble with is being immobilized. During the stress test, the MRI on my knee, and some of the other tests I had to be as still as possible for up to 20 minutes at a time. I do not know exactly why but this is a huge challenge for me. When they tell me I have to be perfectly still every fiber of my body begins to convulse. It is only by the grace of God that the images they captured didn’t look like someone doing a war dance. I do need to work on this but since it’s mostly an involuntary response I don’t even know where to start.

Maybe this is what my wife is always trying to warn them about. In the end, all I can say is praise the Lord for His helping me to do what I needed to do. I’ve had some sprained ankles and I’ve gotten a few bruises while playing on Church league teams many years ago. But I’m certain this is the only injury I have sustained while actually doing the Lord’s direct business since it occurred when I was teaching His Holy Word. It has been quite an experience and people still joke about it today. Last Wednesday evening one of the fellows told me that he would be praying for all those folks down at the surgery place because he knew in dealing with me they would need it. My how the word gets around! I do hope you and yours will have a blessed week. Amen. …..More later.