“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. (Romans 8:14 NLT)
“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.” (James 1:5 NLT)
“When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.” (John 10:4 BSB)
Day 17: Wednesday (11/17) continued – It was time to make the call that I had hoped would never come. After a time of prayer I called Melody to let her know that the doctor was recommending that she go on the ventilator. Her phone was answered by the nurse who informed me that Melody may not be able to speak to me, but that she had adjusted her medication temporarily to make sure that she was awake and clear minded for what I was about to tell her. As I began to explain the situation, Melody removed her BiPap , cut me off in mid sentence, and simply said, “it’s OK, I’m ready” (these words will take on huge meaning in the near future). With that said, Melody gave the phone back to the Nurse and drifted off to sleep. This would turn out to be the last words ever spoken to me by my beautiful, courageous, “Queen of Hope.” Soon after hanging up the phone Melody was put on the ventilator.
Day 18: Thursday (11/18) – On Thursday Melody was heavily sedated so I was unable to call her. I spent the day at home as a “normal day of Covid Quarantine” with Savannah.
Day 19: Friday (11/19) – It was mid-morning when I received my second “turning point” call from Melody’s primary Doctor. He called to prepare me for the soon coming “In House Consultation.” He said that if nothing changed in the next 24 hours he would need me to come to the hospital to meet with the medical team and discuss Melody’s future. While my mind and emotions did their best to move me into fear and doubt, my spirit (empowered by the Holy Spirit) refused to move from a position of faith. I once again made a decision to stand on the Word. By Christ’s stripes Melody WAS healed (not may be, not will be one day, but past tense, it was already done!); God’s Word had been sent and she was healed (again it was already a “done deal’); Melody already possessed the Kingdom of Heaven within her so she already possessed the Kingdom benefit that He “forgave all her iniquities and healed all her diseases!” With a lump in my throat, and tears in my eyes, I declared the Truth of healing, and decreed the reality of Divine health over my life partner.
Day 20: Saturday (11/20) – The call came asking me to come to the hospital for my “In House Consultation” (first time inside the hospital since Melody was admitted 20 days earlier). Upon arrival I was allowed to look at Melody through the window, but due to current “Covid Restrictions,” I was unable to enter the room. I met with the medical team just outside this window. The team explained that there was no more they could do. All medication options had been tried, and the ventilator was at maximum capacity (the machine doing all of the work with minimal support from Melody’s body). Her primary Doctor recommended that I have her removed from the ventilator and stated that he did not expect her to live without the machine. After listening to what the team had to say, I decided to have them monitor Melody overnight looking for any signs of improvement. It was also decided to do some testing of her lungs. I let the medical team know that I was going to take the night to fast and pray, then go to Church in the morning to Worship and listen to my Daddy for guidance. I would then return after Church Sunday afternoon to see what unfolded overnight, and give them my decision as to how to proceed.
Day 21: Sunday (11/21): Decision day. During worship, with my hands lifted high, and my voice raised in praise and worship to my King, my Daddy spoke to my heart and told me to take Melody off the machine and trust Him. As soon as Church was over I got in my car and with a fresh Word from the Lord in my heart, and a peace that calmed my raging emotions, I drove to the hospital. As I drove tears were streaming down my cheeks produced by a very unique combination of sadness for what Melody had been going through, and joy for what my Daddy was about to do on her behalf. When I arrived at the hospital the first thing that I did was to meet with the medical team. They reported that there had been no improvement. Her numbers actually dropped, and bodily functions decreased over night. While at this lowered state, her vitals had momentarily stabilized, but there were no signs indicating the possibility of improvement. They went on to explain that X-rays showed that her lungs were riddled with scar tissue and had no elasticity. The primary Doctor stated that her lungs would most likely burst at any moment due to the pressure of the ventilator forcing the scar tissue to stretch beyond capacity. Up until this point I had not been in Melody’s room. I had not had any physical contact with her in 21 days, and had not spoken to her in 4 days. I had made my decision, however I told the team that I needed to spend some time with her before announcing how we were going to proceed.
We’ll continue this tomorrow…