Monday, June 2, 2014

Healing Faith

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  -James 1:2-6

I find myself, once again, in a position where my need for God to come through for my family is great. Where I need peace and faith in a way that I don't understand. Well, in a way that I didn't understand before Rhett got sick.  I feel worn and down and discouraged, but I know that will pass.  I know my God will come through. That His mercies are new every morning and that my kids are wonderfully made by Him. That He created them and that He, in one breath, can fix their brokenness. 

Today Hattie was diagnosed with Duane Syndrome type 3. This is a rare congenital birth defect where the 6th cranial nerve that controls the muscles in the eyes is either missing or doesn't develop properly. It basically means that the nerves in her eyes and brain are miswired, and unfortunately it cannot be fixed.  Her doctor suggested surgery, but the surgery will not fix the wiring, it will just relocate muscles to help her eyes stay in place. She has type 3, which means that hers don't only not turn out, but they also don't turn in. She can see just fine in the sense that her eyes work, but she cannot turn her eye out or look in toward her nose, and when she tries her brain has no communication and it shuts her vision down until it's redirected and realigned.  

This isn't the first time a doctor has looked me in my wet eyes and told me that my child is in a situation that is not fixable, and that there is no solution. This isn't the first time the Devil has tried to steal our joy with our children. With Rhett's heart we were told that there was no fix, no valve for his size heart, and no solution to stop the leaking. Only a life-long pill to control his heart's size. Four weeks later he was healed. It was an amazing and wonderful and miraculous act of God. Even his cardiologist said she had never seen such a thing. God heard our cries and answered our prayers. So, I am back to ask you to please pray for my Hattie. This is not life threatening, and I know it could be so much worse, but God hears our prayers and only He can make her eyes whole.  

Thanks for your faithfulness to pray, friends!  Love you all!  





Love those precious eyes!