My sister in law

Lanessa had surgery to reattach the bone plate to her skull on Monday and she is doing fine.

They went in for surgery at 7:30 and the procedure was scheduled to start at 9:30. The staff didn't actually take her back until 10:45 then they didn't start the surgery until 12:50.

Apparently the reason that the surgery started late was because Dr. Becker was running late. Perhaps he was out buying beard products or polishing his degree from Stanford. That poor girl, she has had the surgery pushed back for weeks now and now, when the time finally arrives, they push it back three more hours.

It reminds me of the time when I was 8 or 9 and my parents got me a tetherball pole for my birthday. I had really been wanting, nay NEEDING, a pole for a while and I was truly joyful when I got it. We put it in the ground in the frontyard but my dad said I had to wait a few hours for the concrete to set. This was unacceptable. I threw a fit (as I am prone to do). My dad simply said, "You've never had a tetherball pole in your whole life. Why is it so hard to wait 3 more hours?" Hard to argue with that logic.

Okay, so realistically my tetherball pole and Lanessa's surgery have nothing in common but I couldn't pass up on a chance to talk about myself.

Anyway, I talked to Lanessa last night and she has her head wrapped up like a member of Platoon and she said the left side of her face is swollen and her left eye is swollen shut. I asked Jason if it looked like someone punched her in the eye and he said it looked like a bunch of people had punched her in the eye, hence the graphic at the top.

But she is doing better and hopes to be home by Friday. It's my prayer that this is the last MAJOR procedure she has to go through with this and now she can focus on TOTAL recovery. She is a soldier in every sense of the word and I'm very proud she's my sister-in-law.

To God be all the glory for showing her and our family His mercy. Thank you guys for praying. Please don't hesitate to let me know how I can pray for you. God is good.

What a year. Part 2.

This is only called "Part 2" because I wrote a HUGE post about what my life has been like in 2008. I bet you I wrote 3,000 words and it got me to the middle of March.

I pulled it because I just felt like it was a little too personal. But I do want to take a few minutes and recap my year. I don't expect anyone to be entertained by this but it is therapeutic for me.

This year has been extremely difficult for me. I have encountered challenges that I never ever thought I would encounter, let along make it through. I have waded into emotional waters that I never thought I would get close to. It's just been a tough year.

It started in January when my girlfriend Tricia and I decided to give it another go. In retrospect it wasn't meant to be but neither one of us was really ready to admit it at that time. After a couple of really tumultuous months we broke up and it tore me apart. I battled all that the Devil threw at me for a while and still battle it to this day. I miss her.

Then in April, B and Sara's son Elliott was born and passed on the same day. That affected me more than I could even imagine. Just three days ago, I was looking at their blog and got tears in my eyes looking at the picture of Elliott. The Skaggs are family to me and I hurt for them EVERY time I think about it.

Then, after we had gone our separate ways for a short while, Tricia came back to work at the golf course and it totally threw me for a loop. Literally one day later I was given the opportunity to leave my comfortable fancy job for a much more difficult, less lucrative job. I made the move because it was time for a change.

That job turned out to have a couple of positives but by in large it was just a challenge from the word go. I didn't mesh with the people there or their lack of work ethic. Not a lot of fun.

Then while I was there, my sister-in-law contracted encephalitis and we almost lost her. If anyone wants to read my thoughts on that then just scroll through the archives of this blog. Such an intense time.

Following that, I was completely fried and unloaded all my frustration and hurt on the guys I do ministry with in CWF. I decided to take some time away from wrestling and from ministry. For those of you that know me, taking ANY time away from CWF left a huge hole in my life.

Then shortly after I returned from from Alabama and being with my family, my boss sent me an email letting me know he might need my help for about a week at a golf course in Lubbock. Sounded good to me.

One thing led to another and now I have an apartment and the responsibility of managing a 36-hole golf course that is under fire from the City of Lubbock and faces so many small challenges every day.

For one thing, Tricia (who really likes Lanessa) came back into my life to be supportive and then she never really left again. I talked to her every single day during Lanessa's illness and we hardly go more than a couple of days now without talking. The night before I left for Lubbock, we had a wonderful dinner together. All of that old comfort came back.

Truth be told, I am so glad that the Lord has challenged me this year. I am a better man because of it. But I am just not enjoying the present day very much. I miss Tricia, I miss my old apartment in Coppell. I miss CWF.

I moved out here and I literally don't know a single soul. I have made one or two new acquantainces out here but it's so lonely. Luckily I have cable. And a gym membership.

I don't know why I wrote all of this other than to actually sit back and reflect. For 29 years of my life I resisted change and stayed put in my comfort zone. Now I am out of it and it's just what I imagined - uncomfortable. I'm not depressed. I'm not sad. I'm just uncomfortable.

Hopefully soon I can sit down and elaborate on the challenges and what God has taught me through each of them. At this point, I don't know what I am supposed to be learning from being out here in Lubbock. I do feel like God is teaching me a little bit about being a man of my word. I'm completely ready to go home to Dallas but I signed on to do a job here and that's what I am going to do. But it IS difficult.

Anyway, hope all of you are well out there. By the way...Sara, I don't have an opinion on how you should cut your hair. But I do have an opinion on how you shouldn't cut it. Remember that haircut you had when you showed up at our front door in Georgetown? Ya, don't go back to that one.

Peace.

SHE IS HOME!!!!

She came home last night. We got to sleep in our own bed, she got to take a shower in her own shower and most importantly she got to take care of Clark.

Me and the boys are so excited to have her home.

This is going to be a short post because Lanessa has updated her blog, so please got to her site and you can finally hear from her.

Jason

Update on Lanessa

I got to come home for alittle while today so I wanted to give everybody a quick update on Laness and post a few pics of her at rehab. My brother is in Lubbock for work so he has not been able to.

She is doing great at Healthsouth, that is the rehab facility she is at right now. She does PT twice a day, phyiscal therapy in the mornings and occupational therapy in the afternoons.

We were told she would be there at least 2 weeks if not more because of her condition when they evaluated her at Flowers hospital. Now she is being released on thursday the 18th. That means she will have only been there 11 days. As of today she can walk really well with a walker and they even gave her a cane. She won't have to come home with a wheelchair or any other aids besides the walker and cane, and knowing Laness she wont use either anyway. She has worked very hard and through alot of pain to get out of that place. I am so very proud of her, she has been emotionally and spritually stronger than I could have asked for. She has her rough moments, but with all she has been through and missed with the boys and especially Clark, she is the strongest person I know.

Once she leaves there she goes straight back to Flowers hospital and will see her neurosurgen about putting the bone flap back in. We are praying he decides to and if that happens she will have the surgery on Friday and then spend a day in ICU and then a day on the recovery floor, and then she will be coming HOME! Its possible she could be home Sunday or Monday. If they dont do the surgery that day then we have to see what the doctors time line is and if it is going to be a week or two more she can come home for a few days and then go back. If she comes home early she will have to wear a helmet and be very careful at home. (Which in our house that is really hard to do.) We all want her home so badly and I know she wants to be home, I just worry about her coming home and then having to go back into the hospitial. I want to see this thing through and then have her home for good. No matter what we will do what is best for her.

Thank you all again for everything. Here are a few pics of her with Parker, Banner, her netbed and her helmet. (she is very proud of bed and helmet)

Jason & Lanessa

Thank You All........

WOW, were do I even begin. Right now I really wish I had my brothers talent for writing because I would love to be able to tell all of you how I have been feeling the last month, but I still just don't have the words to describe it all.

What I can say is Thank You.

Thank you for every card that was written

Thank you for every note that was sent or left for us

Thank you for every gift card for food or gas

Thank you for every piece of clothing or gift given

Thank you for all of the dinners brought to us

Thank you for all the formula and diapers

Thank you for each comment left on the blog

Thank you for every dollar given to me or my family (I promise that what has not been used directly for this situation will be tithed to our church in all of your names)

Thank you for all the beautiful flowers (we put them all by her bed so she could at least smell them even if not see them)

Thank you for your time spent with Lanessa, me or our families

Thank you for every encouraging word

Thank you for your churches and their hearts for us

Thank you for all your concern for us

and especially....

Thank you for your prayers. Your prayers brought back a wife, mother, daughter, and friend. That is power for which I cannot comprehend.

As you can see even through all of this I still have so much to be thankful for. All of you have done more for us then we could ever ask. You each deserve my personal thanks and I will try to do that as I see you. I love you all so much.

These are the verses that have gotten me though many a long night this past month, just wanted to share it with you.

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messanger of satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Please continue to pray for my wife, much of her physical struggle is still ahead of her but now she must confront the emotional and spiritual battles as she begins understanding what all she has been through.

I also know that at times it is easier to put a face on who or what you are praying for so I wanted to leave you a picture of my lady and I. We took this tonight before I left the hospital. Eleven days ago I did not know when or even if I would get to talk to my wife again.

To see how she has come so far in such a short amount of time see the thank you for your prayers post above.

Jason & Lanessa

Wednesday morning

Jason took a picture of he and Lanessa yesterday and I think it will be up on the blog in the next couple of days. I think she wanted to give photographic evidence that she was improving. And also to let people know that even with a hole in her head and no hair, she is WAY WAY out of my goofy brothers league.

Lanessa is, of course, out of the hospital and doing physical therapy daily. Yesterday was her first day at Health South and she actually enjoyed it. Jason said that she likes her physical therapist, I think her name is Tammy. He told me that Lanessa just likes being able to DO something during the days instead of just lying around in bed all day.

Apparently they have tailored the therapy to Lanessa's exact needs which is great. I'm really excited for her that she likes it and I can imagine that she will accelerate through this faster than a normal person would. She's just that way. 

I talked to Parker on the phone yesterday and he told me that he thinks Momma can come home in "about 14 nights" so he is probably eagerly awaiting her return. I also talked to Banner on the phone and he said, "Hi toot" and then laughed hysterically. So did I.

Please lift her up in prayer that her spirits and motivation would stay high. Lanessa is a winner and I don't think she's ever not been good at something. Please pray that she would attack this challenge like she does all challenges - which is full force. 

Blog updates will probably be a little more sporadic now that Lanessa is out of the hospital and at the Health South rehab facility. I'd love to give everyone breaking news but there just isn't that much to report on a daily basis. But I will make sure to update anytime there is something big, including when she goes back in to have the bone plate put back in. 

Monday night

I really want to apologize for not posting since Wednesday night. Ever since I got back to work, I've just been completely overwhelmed. Okay, enough about me.

God continues to be so so SO good to my beautiful sister-in-law and our entire family.

When I last posted we had just found out that Lanessa was going to get moved out of ICU and into a recovery room. This was on Wednesday night and it was just another total blessing from out of left field! As I probably mentioned, our family was hoping that Lanessa would get moved out of the ICU on Friday. The one of her doctor's cleared her, then another, and another and another and so on. Now, here she was, getting out two days early! Just a total blessing.

I want to clarify, in case anyone feels like they have missed anything. She is still missing the 4x4 inch bone plate in her head. The plan is for her to go to the rehabilitation center then come back to the hospital and get the plate put back on. The wonderful news is that the swelling in her brain continues to go down, apparently it is pretty noticeable now. Another tremendous blessing.

From the time she got moved out of ICU, I started thinking about two things: when can she see the boys and when does she get moved to the rehab facility. Not a rehab facility in the "Lindsay Lohan" sense but a Health South rehab facility. I don't think Lanessa has any addictions - unless you count giving birth.

She got moved out of the ICU on Wednesday night and Jason got to stay the night with her. Now I've never been married but I have to imagine that sleeping alone for a month while your wife is in the hospital is just excruciating.

In fact, it's funny because now whenever I call my brother and ask him what he is doing he always tells me what "they" are doing. If I say, "What are you doing?" he'll say "We're just sitting here watching The Office." or "We just took a trip around the hospital in a wheelchair." I'm just overjoyed at the fact that "they" are getting to do anything together. Because, in all honesty, there were times Jay was worried he might not ever get her back.

Well on Friday morning Jason got to take Parker up to see her. I think Jay was probably a little bit curious about how Parker would react. Parker is a sensitive, emotional little man (he's a lot like his Uncle Chris) and I was also kind of worried how he might react. But he soldiered through it and went right in and hung out with momma for a while on Friday morning. He did tell GiGi (my mom) that "mommy cut all her hair off".

The biggest challenge she has faced so far since being out of ICU is her physical therapy. The first day she took a few steps and did her therapy sitting in a chair. Then the next day she took 5 steps, then 7 steps, then 10 steps. Today she walked around the room. She is making baby steps in her progress - literally.

Probably an even bigger highlight than getting out of ICU and seeing the boys was that she FINALLY got to take a shower! Can you imagine the utter discomfort that comes from laying in bed for a month and not taking a shower?

(Actually, I know for a fact that some of you can imagine that because laying in bed and not showering is what some of my friends called "Freshman Year". Ya, I'm talking to you Jerrod. And you Dave.)

Jason actually said that getting to take a shower really helped her attitude. Uh Jay, she has a hole in her head, blood clots in her legs and hasn't seen her kids in a month - a little attitude isn't alright?

That's another thing that has been comforting has been listening to the stories of them making fun of each other. Jay keeps telling her she needs to have a better attitude. She got my mom on the phone one day and said ,"Tell Jason to let me take a shower. He listens to you at least.". It's so good to have her back. 

On Saturday, Jason took Banner and West up to see her and he said that West did GREAT! He just climbed up on the bed and was completely fascinated with Lanessa's buzz cut. Just take a look at this kid. He has a grin permanently implanted on his face.

He did say that Banner was a little shy at first but that he warmed up. Banner being shy is a little bit of a surprise. I completely expected him to commandeer an electric wheelchair and drag race down the halls of the pediatric unit. Seriously.

Then yesterday, Lanessa got to see Clark. So she has gotten to see all of her boys, her husband and her parents in the last few days. We finally feel like things are getting back to normal. In fact, I feel much much better about it right now because I just got to talk to her!

I took a quick break from writing to call Jay and I heard her talking in the background. I asked if I could talk to her, not really not knowing what kind of condition she would be in. She just hopped on the phone and gave me a big ole "WHAT UP?". It just about made me want to cry.

She actually did make me cry but it was from laughing. I asked her what she was doing and she said, "Nothing. Just sitting here like an invalid trying to eat something." I laughed so hard. She also wondered aloud if she would be allowed to compete in the Special Olympics. That might be offensive to some but, man, is it funny. She is hilarious.

She moved to the Health South Rehabilitation Center this afternoon and gets started again on physical therapy tomorrow morning. She told me that she really doesn't want to do it and that it really hurts. The blood clots in her legs are still pretty bad and Jason said that the swelling is pretty intense. Please be in prayer that the blood thinner she's on will take effect and the swelling would start to go down.

Also be in prayer for her strength and stamina. Therapy is really hard on her and she is also having headaches because of the missing plate in her head. So she is making progress but it is challenge for her daily. She is so strong though.

She is also tremendously blessed. We all are. God has been so good to surround Lanessa, Jay and the boys with godly people. All of your prayers have been heard and the Lord has answered beyond what we could have hoped for.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

Ephesians 3:20-21

He has done more than we could have asked or imagined. The Father is so good to us.

I know that Jason is going to log on to the blog and thank everyone but, on his behalf, I want to continue to thank all of you. They have been overwhelmed by the support and prayers. Please continue to pray for her. You all have been so faithful.

I don't think I have missed anything but if anyone has any more questions, please call me at (254) 541-9013 and I will tell you anything you need to know. Jason is still tough to get a hold of and will be for a while. Thank you all so much. To God be ALL the Glory!

Wednesday night

I'm exhausted from work so this will be a quick update. But, man, is it a good one.

In fact, by the time you guys read this my sister-in-law will be out of the ICU. I am so so overjoyed to get to write that.

Jason called me at 7:30 and when I called him back they were getting ready to finish up the paperwork and head out of the ICU and back to the second floor. Jason told my dad that the nursed on the second floor were scurrying to get Lanessa the nicest suite.

All praise and honor goes to God. I am just overjoyed tonight. Tomorrow morning Parker gets to go see his momma and tonight Jason gets to sleep in the same room as his wife for the first time in a month.

I will give more details tomorrow but I just want to point all glory and praise and honor in the direction of the Father. We are in awe of Him tonight.

Praise God. 

Wednesday afternoon

Got another very good report this afternoon from Jason.

Lanessa spent the morning with her mom, Lisa, while Jay stayed at the house with the boys for a few hours. He got there around 12 while she was doing her therapy and said she did really well. Lisa also said that she had another very good morning, being fairly talkative and awake.

After a morning of therapy and being awake, she was pretty tired so Jason didn't spend much time with her before he let her go to sleep. So there is not much to report at this minute. 

One really great bit of info is that Dr. Davis, her nuerologist, has signed off on her. I believe that this means that, nuerologically, she is ready to leave the ICU. Praise God!! Of course, she still has 1,600 other doctors that have to sign off on her before she can be released to a recovery room. As long as she is improving, I know we can all wait as long as needed. We just want her to be healthy.

Speaking of moving to a recovery room, I want to tell you guys how wonderfully generous the people at Flowers Hospital in Dothan have been. The pediatric nursing staff on the Second Floor told Jason and the Kings that when Lanessa gets out of ICU she can actually come back to the Second Floor and Clark can stay in there with her. These nurses invested so much emotionally in Lanessa, Jason and the boys that they now want to help see Lanessa through this until the end.

While Clark was in the nursery and Lanessa had moved up to ICU they let us stay in the original hospital room but when Clark was discharged we had to vacate the room. They allowed Jason and me to stay in a "courtesy" room on the third floor for almost ten days. They continued to bring my brother a tray of food three times a day and nurses from the second floor and third floor were continuously checking on Lanessa's progress. 

The nurses in the nursery actually cried when Clark left. They were so sweet to him and our family while he was there. Jay and I went to the nursery one day and a nurse was holding him while she did work on her computer. They were just tremendous.

Lanessa's dad Lynn mentioned all the miracles that have taken place thus far in Lanessa's illness and he was dead-on. She was fortunate to already be in the hospital when she got sick, fortunate enough to have a Stanford-trained nuerosurgeon (not some guy straight off the boat from Panama) on staff, fortunate to be in a hospital with a staff full of Christians.

So Lanessa had a good morning this morning and we can continue to pray for the encephalitis to go away, the swelling in her brain to go down, protection from blood clots, pnuemonia or any other sickness. We can also pray for continued progress and humbly ask God to move Lanessa out of ICU so she can see her Army of Allmans.

Things are looking better each day and we are so unworthy of God's favor. We also don't deserve the care and concern you all have shown to Lanessa, Jason and the boys. I can't wait for Parker, Banner, West and Clark to hear about all that God did when their Momma was sick. Thank you all for being a part of the lives of the Kings/Allmans the last few weeks. Please don't stop now. God is so good.  

Tuesday night

I'm sorry for not posting since this morning but there hasn't been much news to report. Jay has been going home in the evenings to spend time with the boys so there isn't a ton of different news to report in the evenings. 

Jason saw Lanessa at 12, 2, and 4 and gave me thumbs up on each report. He said that she did really well during her 12 o'clock visit when she got to spend time with Kim and her friend Kacey.

We are still praying intently for a hedge of protection around Lanessa. What we really don't need right now is any kind of sickness - from pnuemonia to the common cold. We are praying that the Lord would protect her from those things while continuing to cure the encephalitis and the brain swelling and protecting her from those blood clots.

I would ask for you all to be praying for my family - me in particular - in one certain area.

A friend from college posted a great comment on the Tuesday morning update that was a tremendous eye-opener. She posted that "God is good and gives us so much more than we deserve, but not more than what He trusts we can handle."

What an awesome statement and it was what I really needed to hear. I have a tendency to receive God's blessings and then I go back to my regular, irreverant self. I get fat and happy with the fact that God provided once again and start to think that I am entitled to it. Please be in prayer for all in my family that we would be constantly reminded what God has done/is doing in Lanessa's recovery. Let us not get content with God's blessings and take them for granted. 

Basically just be in prayer for me that I would stay out of the way of God's wonderful work and be continually humbled and grateful for His blessing.

I'll update tomorrow around lunchtime. Thank you all so much.

Tuesday morning

Here was the exact quote from Jason when he called me just after 11:00 this morning.

"Oh man. She did soooooooooooooo good."

I don't think that the words in this update will be able to express the joy and enthusiasm that I have right now for Lanessa and for Jason.

Jason went in to see her at about 9:15 and the ICU nurses had her bed sitting at a 90 degree angle. She was sitting on the bed and basically kind of holding her head up, which may not seem like much but it is a tremendous step forward! She also made huge strides in her occupational therapy, doing things such as taking cups from her therapist and stacking them on top of each other.

The swelling in her arm and legs is also down a bit as she is able to bend her fingers a little bit more and physical therapy comes a little later today.

Jason stayed in there from 9:15 until 11:00 and said that he didn't want to leave. I can only imagine how excited he is. Her friend Kim from church came in to see her and she and Lanessa talked for a while. The really encouraging thing is that Jason said they talked about all the things they usually talk about. The things they talked about before Lanessa got sick.

Jason also said that Lanessa smiled real big once and even made a couple of jokes. She hasn't smiled in weeks. Apparently she was lamenting to him how bad she just wanted to leave the hospital and that she didn't want to be there anymore. A few minutes later Jason told her about their friends that had each accepted Christ and joined the church and Lanessa said, "Oh good! And I'm just sitting here compaining."

Dr. Davis (nuerologist) and Dr. Hewitt (some other type of medicine) were both very pleased with Lanessa's progress and a case manager from the hospital talked to my brother and told him to start thinking about where he wants her to do her rehab when she gets out. You hear that? WHEN she gets out!!! Music to my ears!!!

There is a slim hope that she could even get out of ICU by Friday which would mean her boys would get to see her. Parker is really the only one who is old enough to really realize that Momma has been in the hospital for a month so it would be a great blessing for him and a tremendous joy for her.

It brings tears to my eyes to hear that she is improving. It is so wonderful to hear Jason say that he really believes she is getting better. To hear the hospital staff talk about a plan for when she gets out is just more than expected today.

It was 5 days ago that Jason, Lisa and I sat in the waiting room on the 4th floor and waited to see the results of her second CT scan. We had just gotten the news about the blood clots and we were really praying hard that she could start on the blood thinner. Then we got good news about that and the good news just started to snowball.

I want to hammer home a point that I've probably mentioned a few times. Our families or so unworthy of the blessing God has shown us and this is no different. There is nothing about any of us (Lanessa, Jason, parents, siblings) that is SO good that it warrants this type of mercy from the Lord. Beginning to heal Lanessa is an example of the abundant mercy and grace that abounds from His throne.

So my wonderful wonderful sister-in-law had another good day. And if you read this and you can tell the joy it brings me, just imagine how full my brother's heart is right now. He loves his wife so much.

She still has a long road ahead of her but we are so grateful for progress. I am humbled by this entire situation and it has caused me to develop a genuine awe of the Father.

Please continue to pray just as humbly and as fervently as ever. Pray for a wall of protection in that ICU and in her heart. We are confident that God will guide her through this completely.

Thank you all for caring so much. People are going to come to Christ though this and it is because of each of your personal spiritual investment in praying for this situation.

I stole a photo from Beth Saxton's blog and I'll leave you with this wonderful thought about my sister-in-law's healing. If hearing about what God is doing through her and hearing about her healing makes you smile, you can know that, for the first time in weeks, Lanessa is smiling with you.

Praise God.

Monday afternoon

Just got a GREAT phone call from my brother. His 2:00 visit was awesome! He said it was the best visit he has had with her. 

Most visits last about 30 minutes or 45 minutes if she's feeling up to it. Jay was in there for an hour and a half and got to talk to her the whole time!  And this was after physical therapy which was really wiping her out last week. So she has made some progress in that area.

He got a chance to sit and tell her EVERYTHING that has gone on in the last 2-3 weeks. She was kind of turned on her side and he got to pull up a chair and get face to face with his wife for the first time in about two weeks. Imagine the joy he felt getting to be that close and that personal with his wife. That in itself brings me such joy.

Lanessa remembers everything before August 14 and not much afterwards. Her short-term memory is what's currently being affected. It's nothing drastic like her not remembering that Jay is her husband or not remembering Clark. It's things like not remembering that her Sunday School class came into pray over her in ICU and she only slightly remembers her nurse from yesterday. Jay said that tomorrow, she likely won't remember everything about today. He will probably have to refresh her daily but I certainly don't think he minds sitting and talking to his wife at all!

Jason also saw Dr. McBecker and he was very pleased with Lanessa's progress all the way around. He told Jay that things are really starting to tighten up for Lanessa, meaning her brain is looking better, the blood clots, her sodium levels, kidneys and liver are also all improving.

She likely won't get out of ICU until she can sit up on her own and feed herself and we don't know how long that will be. We are hoping for about another week but we will be grateful whenever it happens. We also don't have a timetable on when they will put the bone plate back on. 

Jason sounds so much better. I am encouraged for him. We took a couple of minutes to pray and thank God for His wonderful mercy and then, of course, said KEEP IT COMING LORD! We are again hoping and praying for even more progress each hour and praising God for being so compassionate to our family in the last few days.   

Her recovery from this is going to entail much more than a physical recovery . It's mental, physical, emotional and likely spiritual. When you get a chance, read this to find out what encephalitis survivors have to battle.

Please join our family in rejoicing for progress but I am pleading with all of you to continue to fight for Lanessa. To steal a phrase from Dr. Home Alone, she is improving but she's still a sick girl. She still has a long road ahead of her and it will be very difficult at times. Continue to pray for healing, the swelling in her brain to go down, the blood clots to dissolve, swelling and movement in her arms and legs and also that the Lord would equip her and prepare her for ALL of the coming battles ahead.

Praise God for His mercy and compassion and His desire to hear our prayers.

If anyone wants to "subscribe" I usually send out text message updates on her condition and anytime I update her condition on the blog. Just call me at (254) 541-9013 or text me with your name and I will put you on the list.

Also, some of you have private blogs that I want to look at (I'm talking to you college roommate Eric and Erik). So why don't you guys stop being so CIA and let me look at your site?!

  

Monday afternoon

I apologize for not getting a Monday morning report up sooner.

I talked to Jason at around 11:00 and he said that Lanessa had another good morning. She talked to him and it looked like the swelling in her arm and legs had gone down JUST a little bit. The most encouraging part of Jay's report was that they had started Lanessa's physical therapy again. What an answer to prayer! I was so happy to hear that because that means that the blood clots are not as severe of a threat as before. It's also beneficial because her being able to move around helps fight against the possibility of pnuemonia. 

I always ask my brother if HE is encouraged by the reports. Just because I think something is good news doesn't mean it always is. He told me he was encouraged by his visit and was pleased with the progress. I believe that they are going to have a speech "doctor" come and look and see if her throat is healthy enough to swallow. If it is then she might get to take out the feeding tube and perhaps have a regular drink. This is a small step but it is a step forward.

After Jay told me about her progress I just felt an overwhelming need to say a prayer of thanksgiving immediately. I would encourage all of you to do the same. I am once again humbled by the fact that God is healing Lanessa and that he is kind enough to hear our prayers. 

1 PRAISE THE Lord! (Hallelujah!) I will praise and give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart in the council of the upright and in the congregation.

    2 The works of the Lord are great, sought out by all those who have delight in them.

    3 His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever.

    4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious, merciful, and full of loving compassion.

    5 He has given food and provision to those who reverently and worshipfully fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever and imprint it [on His mind].

    6 He has declared and shown to His people the power of His works in giving them the heritage of the nations [of Canaan].

    7 The works of His hands are [absolute] truth and justice [faithful and right]; and all His decrees and precepts are sure (fixed, established, and trustworthy).

    8 They stand fast and are established forever and ever and are done in [absolute] truth and uprightness.

    9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant to be forever; holy is His name, inspiring awe, reverence, and godly fear.

    10 The reverent fear and worship of the Lord is the beginning of ^[a]Wisdom and skill [the preceding and the first essential, the prerequisite and the alphabet]; a good understanding, wisdom, and meaning have all those who do [the will of the Lord]. Their praise of Him endures forever.

Psalm 111:1-10

I am so grateful that the Lord is letting Lanessa slowly get better. His name is holy and above all names. It overwhelms and humbles me. 

Please continue to thank Him for his wonderful mercy and continue to pray that it is in His will that Lanessa be completely healed. Thank you all for everything.

Sunday night

Having some trouble laying down to sleep tonight as I am thinking so much about my family. I was reading a book that someone gave me a few months back and it pointed me to Luke 22:39-44.

39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation." 41 He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.^[a]

I don't want to lose the agony and anguish that I have when praying for Lanessa. I don't want to be distracted by my everyday life. I want to bear her burden and Jason's burden. I'm not praying that the Lord would keep me from hurting. When I feel that anguish or that agony or that "thorn in my side", if you will, I want to pray more earnestly and more intensely. I really want to pray the right way instead of just praying the same prayer over and over again. 

Just a few thoughts. I appreciate all of you that are bearing this burden with Lanessa and Jason. Please continue to pray earnestly and humbly that the Lord would "take this cup" from Lanessa but most importantly please pray that His name is glorified and His will is done. 

Pray against the blood clots, against pnuemonia, for her organs and vital signs and that the encephalitis would continue to be healed. Thank you all. 

Sunday afternoon **updated**

I haven't talked to my brother since about 11:15 this morning but that's actually good. Last night I told him that if I didn't hear from him much, then I would assume no news is good news. So as far as I know Lanessa is doing okay today. I will likely talk to him later this evening and try to post late (anytime between 8:45 and 11:00).

Remember to pray for good news from the doctors tomorrow. Pray for protection from the blood clots and pnuemonia and that the swelling in her brain would continue to plummet. Thanks for all your encouragement and prayer for Lanessa, Jason, the boys and the entire King and Allman families.

**I talked to Jay at about 5:00 and he said that the 4:00 visit was pretty good but that she was tired. I think we both forgot that it still takes a whole lot out of her to do much right now. So being awake and talking at 10, 2 and 2 o'clock probably wears her out a little bit. Wish I had more to update but it's been a fairly slow afternoon. Thank you all for your prayers. Keep it up!**

Sunday morning

That picture will make a lot more sense when you get to the end of this report.

Just got another update from Jay and it was another pretty good one. 

He said she was the same as she was yesterday and on Friday night which was responsiveness and somewhat talkative. Jay said that she talked to Sara pretty good this morning and he said that he might be able to give her something to drink today which is good. 

He is also hoping that they remove the feeding tube on Monday as well. As far as I can it's a tube that goes in through her nose and into her stomach to provide some nourishment while she can't eat anything. So if Jay is allowed to give her a regular drink then I am pretty confident that progress is being made.

The real shining moment of the visit was that the very first thing Lanessa asked when they got there was how Clark did last night. It was totally unprompted. Jay didn't even say anything and she asked about him. This is so encouraging in part because part of the scare of encephalitis is possible short-term memory problems. So it was great to hear that she asked about Clark, who she has not been able to spend much time with at all.

It also serves as a reminder that love is something that isn't generated from any part of our brain. She might not remember all the details about having Clark but she knows it's her son and she loves him.

I asked about the swelling in her arm and legs and Jay really couldn't tell if it had gone down. She also hadn't seen any of her doctors today so we don't have a report on sodium levels, kidney, liver or her brain swelling.

The doctor's are going to reassess things tomorrow and hopefully they will confirm what we are hoping and praying for - that she is getting better.

So it was another encouraging report and I'm pumped to be able to share it with you guys. She's had about 36-40 hours of pretty good progress and we are just continuing to pray for more while standing in awe of God's mercy. He is so good to allow progress and I am reminded daily of God's faithfulness and consistency. 

I am humbled by the fact that the Lord that we pray to is the exact same one who rose Lazarus, fed thousands with nothing, resisted Satan's every temptation, endured the shame and pain of the cross and rose from dead. He is truly the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Thank you all for praying so hard for Lanessa, Jason and their family. Please don't stop. After being home for a couple of days and not being right there with my brother I can understand the helplessness some of you feel being at home and waiting for updates. It's brutal.

I want to encourage you all with a passage I really clung to about 6 months ago during a difficult time in my life. It's the story of Lazarus. When I read it, it is revealed to me to be a story about hope. That we all hope is literally lost, God revives. 

40 Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me.

42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."

43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" 

44The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. 
      Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."

John 11:40-44

We have had very scary and nearly hopeless moments in the last few weeks but we know what our Savior is capable of. We are praying hard for His perfect will and hoping beyond hope that He will heal Lanessa. Thank you all again for praying.

Before I go, I did want to say that I discovered a family whose children's names are even more wacky than Jason and Lanessa's (Parker, Banner, West, Clark.)

It's newly chosen Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin. Her kids names are Track, Trig, Bristol, Willow, Piper. 

My nephews are named after super heroes. Her kids are named after and Olympic sport, math, a city in Connecticut, a brilliant 80's movie about a dwarf, and professional wrestler/B-movie hero.

I love my country.  

Saturday evening

This is the oldest Allman boy, Parker. The other night we went to Red Lobster and the waiter said he was "gonna bring us some hot biscuits". So Parker's new nickname is "Hot Biscuits" Allman.

Just got off the phone with Jason and it was another pretty good report.

She was responsive at 4:00 and was able to talk to B and Sara Skaggs (yes, they made it there). Jason also said that her sodium levels were down and her kidney and liver numbers were better today also. One of her doctors said that it looked like the swelling in her arm and legs might have gone down just a hair.  

I needed to clarify with Jason that her responsiveness and the swelling going down were good things. I didn't want to assume that she was improving but find out that these are just fluke things. He said that they were, in fact, good signs and hopefully are a sign that the methods they are using are working. 

I have learned to temper my enthusiasm for the most part and continue to march along but my heart is just full of joy right now because my sister-in-law had two pretty good days in a row. Now I thank God and then continue to pray full force.

I was listening to a podcast (I'm very hip to technology. I have a laptop, an IPOD, a blackberry and I listen to podcasts. Of course, I also don't have cable and still use my VCR. Maybe I'm not that hip after all.) from my pastor, Matt Chandler today and he was talking about 9 prayers of Jesus in Luke Ch. 11. He said he believed that the Lord's Prayer was a very mature way to pray. He called it "varsity prayer". He said that it was God-centered and focused on the Father's glory in any and every circumstance. I was encouraged because I really feel like that's how I have been praying. To God be the glory in every instance. In this particular case, all praise goes to Him for allowing my wonderful sister-in-law to have a couple of pretty good days. And for being Our Light when it seems so dark. 

Please continue to pray against those blood clots, against pnuemonia and for the swelling in her brain to continue to drop. To God be the glory!

1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, 

"Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."

 2 He said to them, "When you pray, say: 

" 'Father,^[a] hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.^[b] 

3 Give us each day our daily bread. 

4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.^[c]

And lead us not into temptation.^[d]' "

Luke 11:1-4 

 

Saturday morning

Being back at work stinks.

I just got off the phone with Jason about 30 minutes ago and it sounds like Lanessa was pretty much the same as she was last night. She was a little groggy but responsive. She had her eyes open for most of the visit and managed to talk to Jay for a little while. Praise God for that.

Jay sounded encouraged which was honestly music to my ears. My focus right now is praying Lanessa back to health but my second priority is making sure my brother doesn't lose hope and doesn't get beaten down by Satan's attacks. Read this passage from Exodus:

10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Exodus 17:10-13

People this is us. The battle being fought is for Lanessa's health and Jason is our Moses. He is praying fervently for his wife because he loves her and leads her as Moses did the Israelites. Who are we? We are Aaron and Hur. Simply put there are going to be times when Jason's arms start to fall. Our job is to sit by Jason's side and hold him up.

Please continue to pray specifically for the following things:

1. Swelling in the brain to go down
   
2. Blood clots to "dissolve". That her heart would be shielded from those clots
   
3. Sodium levels keep improving
   
4. Responsiveness
   

I was also praying this morning that somewhere inside of her that Lanessa has the strength to pray. She is an incredibly godly woman and I'm certain that she has never wavered through this.

Just please continue to pray for Lanessa's healing. We are humbled and grateful by God's presence and his work already and we are eager for Him to continue to move. There are many challenges ahead and I pray that Lanessa and Jason are equipped for them. 

Also pray for B and Sara Skaggs. They are driving to Alabama right now and if I know B then they are probably somewhere in Maryland right now trying to find their way back to I-20. Bless his heart. The kid is gifted in so many areas but navigation is not his forte. Remind me to tell you all about the time that B and Jay were driving back from Houston with B driving. Jay fell asleep in the car in Bastrop and woke up three hours later...in Bastrop. Man I love B.

If anyone has any thoughts to pass along to Lanessa and Jay or questions about her health don't hesitate to email me at callman@eaglegolf.com

You are all awesome. 

 

Friday night

I'm sorry for the delay today. It has been a long day for me personally between flights and trying to get back for something work-related.

Okay, here's the latest on Lanessa.

For the first time in about a week Lanessa was fairly responsive to Jason. He went to see her at 10:00 and she was pretty much the same as she has been. Then he got the chance to spend the day with a couple of his many many sons at Chuck E Cheese. Lucky.

When he went back to see Lanessa at 4:00 she was more responsive than she had been in more than a week. She had her eyes open for most of the visit and even managed to talk to Jay a little bit. 

Then when Jason went back at 8:00 she was even more responsive than she was at 4:00. He said she had her eyes open and was able to talk to a little bit more than at 4:00. The good news was that she knew she was at Flowers Hospital. Jason asked her if she knew how long she had been there and she responded, "It doesn't matter".

 Also, Dr. Becker had mentioned to Jason, Lynn and Lisa that they needed to try and rouse her by raising their voices. So Jason will occasionally say, "Laness. Wake up! Laness." In the past she had just kind of softly "shooshed" them. Tonight she told him to stop yelling at her and that she didn't like when they did that. She was kind of mean (in a sweet married way) and I really think it made Jason feel better. He sounded so much better on the phone tonight than he did yesterday. The poor kid is just beat down.

I wish I could give you the actual medical reason for why Lanessa was responsive this afternoon and evening but I can't. The nurses said that one potential reason is because the sodium levels in her blood have improved. For the past couple of weeks she has had very high sodium levels. I THINK it was because she was so dehydrated. The healthier levels could be a result of her slowly getting rehydrated.

We don't know if this is going to be an isolated incident or if this is the beginning of some improvement. Obviously we are hoping and praying for the former and not the latter. Her progress today might be the most resounding answer to prayer that I have seen since this whole ordeal started.

In the past few days there have been some spiritual battles going on in my world. I have really been attacked with some scary thoughts about what might happen to Lanessa. It has caused me to absolutely pour myself out before the Father and ask for a wall of protection for me and, especially, Jason. For the last two or three days I have just been completely broken. I have praised God, asked for His forgiveness and then just PLEADED for compassion and mercy on Lanessa. I mean PLEADED. 

This morning was especially emotional for me as I had to leave my baby brother in the midst of the hardest time of his life. Satan attacked me and tried to tell me I was an abandoner and that something bad was going to happen to Lanessa and I wasn't going to be their to comfort Jay.

I prayed and prayed and prayed all day long for a hedge of protection and for a physical change in Lanessa and a spiritual encouragement for Jason. I prayed that Lanessa would have the opportunity to touch the garments of Jesus Christ and be healed. I prayed that the blood that is clotting in her vains would be replaced with the perfect pure blood of the Lamb of God. I prayed for a tidal wave of mercy and healing to sweep through that ICU and begin to heal her. I also prayed that Jason would be hit with a spiritual shot-in-the-arm. I prayed and I prayed and I prayed.

I was really grieving over Lanessa's condition and not being able to be with Jay when he called to tell me about his visit at 4:00 and then his visit at 8:00.

I immediately felt an assurance that the Lord had answered my prayers. 

I am not ready to sit here and say that we are out of the woods just because Lanessa had a good day. I am not ready to sit here and think that just because I prayed hard enough that Lanessa is going to get better. 

But what I can say is that God heard my cries today and responded. He was good enough to give Lanessa a good day, to reinvigorate my brother and to calm my fears. I would also imagine that this good news today is an answered prayer for all of you. 

But we still have SOOOO far to go. Please be in fervent prayer that today was not an isolated incident. Please ask God to lower the sodium levels, lower the swelling in her brain, DESTROY those blood clots and help her start to get better. I just don't know how many more up-and-down days Lanessa and Jason can take.

Please pray that when Jason sees her at 10:00 tomorrow morning that she is even better. Plead with the Lord to have mercy and compassion and that he would begin to move in a mighty and sweeping way.

Folks please just pray. And pray and pray and pray. The boys need their mom back. Jason needs his wife back and I want my sister-in-law and my friend back.

Most importantly, take a moment to praise our awesome God. He had been so good to us thus far and performed many miracles that we don’t even realize.

I can’t begin to explain to you how overwhelmed my entire family has been by all of your support. The other night Jason and I were sitting at dinner and he asked me, “Why do people care about us so much? Why do they care so much about this?” Those might not have been the exact words but it’s pretty close.

My brother is a pretty humble guy so I told him that I thought people are just carrying out the mission Christ called us to. People are bearing burdens and interceding in prayer. They are doing exactly what a body of believers are supposed to do.

Then I also explained that there is obviously great sympathy and compassion when a mother of four sons is battling for her life.

Thirdly, he’s part of the UMHB family. I know that a lot of people said they we all lived in a bubble when we went there but let me tell you something – the folks in the bubble have been UNBELIEVABLE in recent weeks. We’ve heard from the Speers, the Fitzwaters, the Higginbothams and many more that I haven’t talked to in years.

My brother reads all the comments that are posted here and I know he appreciates every one. If you don’t know Jason he won’t ever be a guy that delivers a big thank you speech and makes a big deal out of all of this. But I can honestly tell you that he has been stunned by all of you guys support. Please know that. I am very serious

Thank you all again. Please continue pray fervently for my beautiful sister-in-law, my rock solid brother and my nephew Clark and his three hair-raising brothers, Parker, Banner and West. Thank you again. 

Friday morning

I love waking up in the morning at our hospital "dorm" room and knowing that Lanessa had another night with no issues. Praise God.

I am going to be on airplanes all day but I will keep all of you updated with text messages and post as soon I talk to Jason and can get to a computer. 

Don't stop praying today!

Thursday night

I'm sorry for the delay in posting. Lanessa had a rough day today.

Last night she started developing swelling in her right arm and her left leg. This morning they pointed it out to Jason and hypothesized that it was likely blood clots.

It turns out that she does in fact have three blood clots - one in each leg and one in her right arm. The doctors pointed out two potential options for dealing with the clots. One was to start her on a blood thinner and the other was to insert something they called the "umbrella".

Here's the difference between the two: the umbrella would have been put in place just above an artery in her heart and would have been in place to stop any blood clots. What it would not have done was help "dissolve" any current blood clots or prevent any other ones. It is basically something that allows blood flow but catches any clots before they enter the heart, which is the pathway to the lungs and brain.

The advantage of the blood thinner is that is will help prevent other clots from forming and also help to "dissolve" the current clots. If you notice I keep putting "dissolve" in quotes. They don't actually dissolve as much as they just kind of return to being part of her natural blood flow. It's a process too complicated to explain but I think I might have dumbed it down enough that we can all understand. it.

But before they could decide which route to go they had to get a CT scan on her brain because if there was any type of blood already on her brain then they couldn't do the thinner. The only option would likely be the umbrella.

So we suffered through a pretty tough 90 minutes or so as we waited for the CT scan. Dr. Becker was on the phone with Dr. Prophet consulting about the results and ultimately Dr. Prophet came to see us to tell us that the CT scan looked okay and he recommended the blood thinner. 

I actually found this to be a relief just because it would really attack the blood clots and not just hold them in place until it was okay to use the blood thinner. Ultimately, Dr. Prophet's recommendation meant that we could bypass the umbrella (which is not a routine procedure by any means) and start on the blood thinner. 

There are still several risk factors involved. First, there is still a chance that the clot could get loose and head towards her heart. It's a very slim chance but it is still there. 

Then there is the risks of the blood thinner. There is a chance it might not work. It is also a very small risk. They mentioned that since Lanessa has never had blood clots before then it should work but nothing is full-proof. 

Finally, there is the chance that the blood thinner could cause some bleeding on her brain. Again this is the small chance but it's there. Although when there is bleeding on the brain the first concern becomes pressure on the brain and skull. Well since she is missing a 4x4 inch part of her skull then the threat of pressure subsides just a little bit.

Which brings me to the swelling on her brain, which is really the barometer for progress and how she is doing. Dr. Davis, the nuerologist, showed Jason today's CT scan and compared it to the CT scan that was taken last Monday when she had emergency surgery. 

It showed that there is still very serious swelling going on. What it also confirmed was that if she had not had the surgery last Monday night then she most certainly would have died. 

So today's challenge has been the blood clots. It will likely be the focus of every visit and every meeting with the doctors for a few days.

I'm not going to lie - it was scary today for a little while. We were really afraid that the blood clot was going to dislodge at any minute and kill her. We were also afraid that they were going to discover that her brain couldn't handle the thinner and she would be forced to undergo a pretty major procedure to insert the umbrella. 

But God continued to show His faithfulness and saw her through yet another challenge today. Lanessa encountered another challenge today and made it through another day. She is so so so tough. She got her another small victory today.

What I have prayed hard about today is that God would see her through this challenge with the blood clots and she could get back to the business of getting that swelling down in her brain.

I know that Lanessa is the focus of this but today's news really hurt my brother and he has been really discouraged since this morning. I've honestly never seen him as down as he was this afternoon. He's not getting to spend any time with his sons and it's just brutal on him.

If you're scoring at home, here is how I would pray for Lanessa:

1. Blood clots - that they would "dissolve" and that they would stay away from her heart, lungs and brain.
2. Swelling - that it would continue to go down
3. Overall healing
4. Jason - that he would find the strength and stamina to continue to fight spiritually for his wife. We're human and sometimes we are just too tired to pray or read. He needs to be lifted up.
5. Parker, Banner, West, Clark - These boys don't even realize what's going on but I want them to have their mommy back.

The latest prognosis seems to be that Lanessa is still a couple of weeks away from the bone flap being replaced on her head. I have also been under the misconception that as the swelling goes down, her level of alertness will slowly rise. This is not the case. The swelling will need to go down and THEN her level of alertness will rise. I have been confused as to how her swelling can be slowly going down but she has not talked to Jay in a week because of unresponsiveness.

Another wonderful blessing from this has been that someone from the Army anonymously contacted Similac, the baby formula people, and informed them of Jason and Lanessa's situation. They have donated a very large amount of formula that will be delivered to the house in a couple of days. What a wonderful act and we thank God for that person(s).

Also, the EEG that we were worried might show possible seizures that were missed turned up normal. We are thankful that there was not any more trouble with her brain.

I am going to be going home tomorrow morning but I will continue to update after every phone conversation. Please be in prayer for me as it is going to be very hard to leave my little brother in the midst of such a difficult time. I just feel like if I leave now, when things are slowly improving and not so critical, it allows me to come back in the coming weeks or months when Lanessa starts to get better. But I am already very emotional about leaving Jason and our family in the midst of this.

I just got back from seeing Lanessa with Jason and reading some Scripture and then praying over her. I absolutely can't stand seeing her suffer. I want so badly to trade places with her so that neither she nor Jason has to endure this trial. My mind and heart are consumed with this little girl's health.

At this point we are weary and heavy-laden. We are all tired and hurting but we will not doubt the goodness of our Father. 

And a woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at ail, but rather had grown worse, after hearing about Jesus, came up in the crowd behind Him, and touched His cloak. For she thought, "If I just touch His garments, I shall get well." And immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was bested of her affliction. And immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My garments?" And His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude pressing in on You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?' " And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him, and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."

Mark 5:25-34

Thursday morning

Jason is up with Lanessa right now visiting. As far as I know we still don't know anything from the EEG.

Lanessa was pretty unresponsive this morning and she also had really bad swelling in her right arm and left leg. They are planning to run an ultrasound at some point today to see if she could possibly have blood clots developing in her arm or leg. 

I think we all want a little bit of good news today. Please continue to pray fervently for healing for Lanessa.

Wednesday night

Okay, here's the latest on Lanessa.

She had the bolt removed this afternoon and, as expected, it was quick and painless. However, she has been pretty unresponsive for most of the day.

When I say "unresponsive", it can mean a couple of different things. Some days she wakes up, has her eyes open and will talk just a little bit to Jay or Lynn or Lisa. Other days she doesn't ever really open her eyes but she hears all that is going on and will nod or respond to doctor's commands. 

Dr. Becker can usually rouse her from her slumber by calling her name loudly. When Jason tries that she tells him to be quiet. But today, it sounds like Dr. Becker couldn't really get her to wake up. So what he did was order an EEG.

I read a great deal about it on Wikipedia and I really don't completely understand what an EEG is but, from talking to Jason this evening, they did the EEG to see if it's possible that Lanessa suffered a seizure that they might have missed. If you remember, they had to take her off of her anti-seizure medicine because it was affecting her kidneys while they were dehydrating her. Here's what I pulled straight from Wikipedia:

These various forms of EEG recording can be used in the following clinical situations:

• to distinguish epileptic seizures from other types of spells, such as psychogenic non-epileptic seizures, syncope (fainting), sub-corticalmovement disorders and migraine variants.
• to characterize seizures for the purposes of treatment
• to localize the region of brain from which a seizure originates for work-up of possible seizure surgery
• to monitor for non-convulsive seizures/non-convulsive status epilepticus
• to differentiate "organic" encephalopathy or delirium from primary psychiatric syndromes such as catatonia
• monitoring depth of anesthesia
• as an indirect indicator of cerebral perfusion in carotid endarterectomy
• to serve as an adjunct test of brain death
• to prognosticate, in certain instances, in patients with coma

They will get the results of the EEG in the morning and, if necessary, order another CAT scan. The doctors aren't quite certain they will order the CAT scan so that is kind of a wait-and-see for tomorrow.

Please continue to pray for Lanessa. She is just being thrown one challenge after another. She is truly in need of a completely supernatural strength. There is no way that the human body can endure what she is going through. It is going to take the power of Jesus Christ inside of her to get her through this.

I have been praying that while Lanessa is struggling physically, mentally and probably emotionally that she is growing spiritually. I have been praying with Jason that the Lord is already shaping her testimony and His glory even though she is physically incapacitated. Jesus Christ is very much alive in my sister-in-law and it's by His mercy she is still with us and by His wonderful grace that she is going to beat this. 

When Jason and I got back to the hospital this evening, he went to visit and I read Psalm 100-103. I found great encouragement as well as the word I have been looking for since these trials began. The word I was looking for was "compassion". 

We have praised God and adored God. We have asked for mercy and for his strength to manifest inside of Lanessa. But as I have begun to pray for compassion this evening, I have felt like I was really talking to the God of this situation. I would ask all of you to pray specifically for compassion as you pray for Lanessa. Compassion for Lanessa, Jason and the boys. 

I also want to encourage each of you begin your prayer life by praising God for who He is. That's what we are doing here because it is an absolute necessity to realize that the greatness of our Father does not rest in the outcome of this sickness. He is a perfect God with a perfect plan that just happens to be a mystery in this instance. So please remember to praise Him for who He is and pray expectantly for compassion, healing and strength for my beautiful sister-in-law. 

I'll try to post tomorrow morning or whenever we get the results of the EEG. 

103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all that is within me,

bless his holy name!

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits,

3 who forgives all your iniquity,

who heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit,

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

5 who satisfies you with good

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The Lord works righteousness

and justice for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses,

his acts to the people of Israel.

8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

9 He will not always chide,

nor will he keep his anger forever.

10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west,

so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

13 As a father shows compassion to his children,

so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

14 For he knows our frame; [1]

he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

and its place knows it no more.

17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,

and his righteousness to children's children,

18 to those who keep his covenant

and remember to do his commandments.

19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,

and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,

you mighty ones who do his word,

obeying the voice of his word!

21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,

his ministers, who do his will!

22 Bless the Lord, all his works,

in all places of his dominion.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Wednesday morning

Lanessa had her physical therapy this morning at 9:15 and Jay was back in our hospital room by 9:55. He said she really didn't wake up much for physical therapy and that she went right back to sleep when it was over.

I can tell that he is very discouraged by how little she responded this morning. He totally understands how sick she is and how long it is going to take for her to get better but I think there are times when he really has high hopes when he goes into ICU and he really just wants to talk to his wife. 

My brother doesn't talk a whole whole lot and the one person that he does talk to is unable to talk back to him. He has to be a wreck inside right now. 

Anyway, just please pray for a better afternoon for Lanessa and please pray that a little trip to see his sons will reinvigorate my brother's spirits. 

Remember the bolt comes out today and I will let everyone know how that goes. Thanks.