Meeting the Public and other Challenges

I was not exactly dreading it, but neither was I especially looking forward to it. It turned out to be much better than I expected. After three full weeks of tumult, my girlfriend and I took advantage of the opportunity to head to church this morning for face to face fellowship around the Word. I usually enjoy attending church, even though I am basically a shy person. This morning’s hesitation, however, was fueled by an anxiety that people would make an undue fuss over me given the fact they had been made aware of our medical hi-jinx. Well it didn’t happen and I was glad. Folks didn’t ignore me, and that was good. Several asked how I was doing, and assured me of their prayers and moved on. There were three individuals, though, who each took several minutes to venture a bit deeper and then offer encouragement … a hand on the shoulder or elbow, and important words of support. They know who they are and so does the Lord. I am grateful to each of them and I trust He will bless them for their sensitivity in offering just the the right dose of “fuss” that I needed. 😉

Aside from an increased tendency to fall asleep when motionless and a higher level of fatigue when in motion (now that is a problem isn’t it), I feel good at present. I’m happy to be able to continue serving with Midwest Church Extension and to return to driving Uber/Lyft after a two week hiatus. I haven’t fallen asleep at any stoplights yet, so that is good! Tomorrow I see my cardiologist and we will have a discussion about implanting the Watchman Device into my heart. Doing such a procedure will eliminate the need for the blood thinner that may have been the cause of my brain bleed. That should be a fun discussion, don’t you think? I’ve been told that it does NOT involve cracking my chest open and then slicing my heart open to get the device in. Instead they feed the device up my femoral artery on a device similar to the “snake” that one unclogs the drain with … deposit inside the heart … and then withdraw the snake. It sounds like a lot of fun and I hope that they do not use general anesthesia, thus allowing me to fully enjoy the experience. If the doctor agrees we will be scheduling that for a date that is presently unknown.

In a week, I will have an MRI of my brain to see if the brain bleed has healed itself and if we can eliminate a cancerous lesion as its cause, thus pointing to the blood thinner. In two weeks I get to see my oncologist again and will receive my second infusion.

In all of this, there is a truth and comfort of which I was reminded by the postlude after the service this morning. Written in 1872 by Annie S. Hawks and Robert Lowry. When this hymn was first published in 1873, this Bible verse was included underneath the title: “Without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5). Each of the first four stanzas of this hymn dwells on a different facet of our dependence on God: our need for His peace, our inability to resist temptation alone, our need to find true meaning in life, and our desire to see God’s promises fulfilled. The fifth stanza is an intense plea for God’s presence.

It blessed my soul as I thanked God for arranging for it to be played … for ME! The Hymn? I NEED THEE EVERY HOUR … Let it bless your soul as you read: