Tuesday, September 2, 2014

September 2, 2014 -- Surgery Continues

We just heard from the OR nurse again. . . 

It took 2 hours to get Hope set up for surgery and she is now about 4 hours into actual surgery time, for a total of 6 hours.  God is using the dear family that is here to help the time pass much better than I'm sure it would be on our own!  Praise Him for the blessing of all of our wonderful family, both here and those at home on their knees!

Hope is doing well so far.  She has not needed a blood transfusion yet, and so blood loss has not been too excessive.  They spent this first 4 hours attaching all the screws and hooks into each individual vertebrae, and placing the big screws into each hip.  They have now started to attach the rods and try to straighten her spine.  Please pray that her spine would straighten even far beyond the correction to 60 degrees that they are hoping for!  After the rods are placed and straightening is done, then they will begin the fusion, which involves mashing the discs between each vertebrae, sawing off the spinal process of each vertebrae, and placing those pieces of bone between each vertebrae for bone on bone contact which results in the fusion as it heals.  Finally, they will be doing a 3 layer sealing type of suturing job to close the wound which will extend from her neck to the top of her bum crack (for lack of better terminology).  The OR nurse said that she will come back at 3:45 pm before she is off shift to give us an update, unless the surgeon is close to being done and will be paging us back to speak with him directly.  Thank you for your continued prayers, dear ones!  We are so thankful for the prayers pouring in from all over the world for our precious girlie today!  God is able and He is faithful!!!  May His will be done and His Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven!

You are loved, dear ones!!!

Here is a message from Hope's daddio. . . 

I just wanted to relay to you how thankful we are for your prayers. I see the fruit of them daily, even in the poem that Hope just wrote (see the Hope Proclaims post from earlier this morning for the poem that she wrote about her surgery). I am so thankful for the balance I see in Hope in her view of God. On the one hand she knows Him as the God who struck down men like Uzzah and Nadab and Abihu when they failed to recognize His holiness. I see in Hope a proper fear of God. However, she knows God as the One who is so powerful and also so loving that He would die on our behalf so that we might be reconciled to Him. Hope sees God in His fullness as we all ought too. As God's people have cried out to Him on Hope's behalf, we have seen His faithfulness in so many ways. As her father, I am most thankful for the way that she is continuing to grow in her love and knowledge of the Saviour.

This morning I read Psalm 86 to Hope. There were so many great reminders, but the verse that we were both greatly encouraged by was verse 10. "For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God." We are asking for great and wondrous things solely because we serve a God who can do it. May He be greatly magnified for He alone is worthy of all praise! Thank you for your kindness and love you have shown to our family. You are loved!

1 comment:

  1. Praying for you all and nearly in tears on Hope's behalf, but looking to Christ I know He will comfort and sustain you and use this trial for His glory and to make you more like Jesus. May His Word ring in your mind when you are tempted to get your gaze off of Christ. Lots of love from the Johnson's in Oregon!

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