Grandpa, Stop Making Faces
4-9-02 Grandpa, Stop Making Faces
Friends & Family,
"O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good for his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He hath redeemed from the enemy." Psalm 107:1-2
We are saying SO...the Lord is Good and His Mercy endureth forever.
Surgeries are a success!!!!
Cindy
According to Uncle Wendell, Cindy's condition is "not so bad, not so good". The
infection in her leg went all the way to the bone. The doctors were able to
remove all of the infected tissue, but some of it was muscle tissue. They did
not remove any bone. They implanted antibiotic "beads", which should help clear
the infection.
Uncle Wendell was very encouraged with the surgery. He felt it was successful. If there is no more infection she should not require any more surgeries. Yes, you read that correctly! We asked Dr. Wendell twice for clarification and he did say, "If infection is kept under control and Cindy continues to heal as well as she is, she may not require any more surgeries!!" What a miracle! We stand in awe of all He continues to do....
Specific prayer request: Pray that the bone will not become infected, the whole wound would heal quickly, and no infection would be allowed to enter into Cindy's body. Please pray the implanted antibiotics would take care of the existing infection and that Cindy would continue to progress rapidly.
Samuel
Samuel's surgery was a success. The doctors were able to clean out all of the
infection and implant the correct antibiotics into the brain area. They also
sealed the brain membrane, which is an indication they feel very good about the
surgery. Uncle Wendell was very encouraged and said "they finally got things
fixed." The bad tissue was able to be removed and the doctors are hopeful this
surgery could eliminate the existing infection.
After he was released from recovery, the family saw immediate neurological improvements in him. He was able to eat after a few hours so Grandpa Rees fed him some bread. Samuel wanted to eat quicker, so he grabbed the bread out of Grandpa's hands and fed himself. Samuel could not do that yesterday! His eye-hand coordination is already showing marked improvement. The surgery relieved the pressure on the brain and Samuel is doing much better. Praise the Lord!!! "O Lord of Hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee." Psalm 84:12
Everyone was also very encouraged with Samuel's improvement in communication. For example, when Grandpa was feeding him. Samuel said, "Stop that." Grandpa said, "Stop what, Samuel?" Samuel was a little frustrated so Grandpa made a silly face at him. Samuel said, "Grandpa, stop making faces at me." This is the first time that everyone felt that Samuel really formed a sentence on his own. Everyone is thrilled. They described the neurological change as "phenomenal." Thank You, Lord!!!
Our prayer needs for the next 24 hours are extremely critical. Surgery went well. Now we need intense prayer coverage for this critical window. Uncle Wendell indicated there are two great risks:
1) Bleeding - the after effects of the surgery could cause some bleeding. Normal tissue and blood vessels were removed in order to get to the bad tissue. This can cause bleeding. Pray it won't be an issue...pray the incisions will be sealed by the Divine Healer and no complications will arise.
2) Infection - infection continues to be our greatest concern. We ask that you pray for protection over Samuel's body from any infection entering it and that the implanted antibiotics will be effective in killing off any infection the neurosurgeon might have missed.
Samuel's next step is physical therapy. Pray he will respond well to the therapist and be cooperative. Rees has reported that Samuel is doing much better with the therapist since we began praying for this specifically. God is answering our prayers!
Helping Hands
All are weary and eager to return to the states. Pray everyone will be able to
return soon and pray God will continue to sustain them. The family is tired.
They are walking in Grace and still singing His Praises, but are very much in
need of a fresh touch from God.
"For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee." Psalm 84:11, 12 KJV
We are rejoicing over the good reports!
With smiling faces,
Nick and Donna Nickerson
