When I was three years old, I nearly died when I came down with epiglotitis. That is when the epiglottis in your throat swells up and you cannot breathe. My dad was a lieutenant in the Army so my parents took me to the base hospital. They didn't know what was happening, other than their child was gasping for breath and had thick phlegm. The doctor on call was a major, who chalked my condition up to "croup" and described my mom and I as being hysterical. My mom summoned a courage she hadn't known until then to stand up to the man who outranked her husband. To make a long story short, I nearly died. Mom said after that that God had angels watching over me.
I definitely kept them on my toes throughout my life, doing reckless and stupid things as a young "adult." But I never really thought about them too much. I know the bible talks about angels and celestial beings, but I never really considered them too much.
Isabelle was pretty scared the morning of surgery. (I found out today that she thought I was going to die.) So I read her Psalm 91 and told her to refer to it throughout the day if she felt scared. The part that especially resonated with me were verses 11-12, as well as 14-16:
"For He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways
In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone."
"Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I
will deliver him; I will set him on hight, because he has known My name.
He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him, And show
him My salvation."
As I read it to her, I couldn't help by tear up. That isn't uncommon for me when I feel the Holy Spirit speaking to me. Especially when facing something so huge. I explained to her how I knew that this was God speaking directly to me that morning as I went into surgery. That I would be okay. See? It says it right here in His Word.
Several hours later, after I said goodbye to Eric and my mom, I was being wheeled into the operating room. I kept repeating in my head, "He is giving His angels charge over me....He is giving His angels charge over me..." As the anesthesiologist put the mask over my face, I kept repeating this as I drifted off to sleep.
The next thing I recall was a blurry scene with noises and fuzzed images. (I did not have my glasses or contacts in). But overriding all of these senses was the thought, "He gave His angels charge over me. I am okay."
Needless to say, the whole thing blew my mind. It was experiential. It no longer is theological or intellectual. I experienced the care and safekeeping of the Lord, who gave His angels charge over me. I had before, of course. But I wasn't aware of it at the time. This time, God let me know ahead of time so I would not be afraid. And I wasn't! I didn't need any pre-op sedative. The lady in the pre-op bed next to me took it upon herself to take Valium before she came in, and asked for more when she got there. I had something better. I was scared, but I had a peace that passes understanding.
He gave His angels charge over me. I am okay.
I will describe the surgery day in more detail very soon. I even have some pictures to share.
My prayer requests:
- That my body heal from surgery. I am sore around the drain sites. I am taking pretty powerful painkillers, but they have some side effects.
- That scar tissue does not form around the drainage tubes, which would cause pain when they are taken out.
- That I be able to look at myself in the mirror. I have the post-surgical camisole on right now. My surgeon says I can shower. But the thought of taking the camisole off and seeing what is underneath gives me the shivers and makes me want to puke. They gave me extra dressings to put on afterwards, but still. It freaks me out.
- That my family be able to recover and rest.
- That I be able to rest. I can only sleep on my back, and moving at all lying down hurts.
