Waiting

Highlight: Yesterday homemade cream of chicken soup and today sweet and sour chicken were things that Joseph ate with relish.

Highlight: Joseph’s latest results from his blood analysis showed that most of his numbers went down, which is the wrong direction for going home.

Highlight: Kate and I are being trained in how to care for his needs at home. We just don’t know when that will be.

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Yesterday Joseph ate very little for breakfast, but at lunch home made cream of chicken soup was on offer and I tried it with Joseph. To my surprise he ate a bowl and a half. He was even saying “yummy”.

Today Joseph’s blood test results were back and he lost ground in almost all his numbers. We had been warned that the inter-muscular shot that he had on Monday can cause your bone marrow to become less active for a period of time. It looks like that may have been the case here. Before the shot he had about half the neutrophils he would need to be released to go home (which is still extremely low and leaves him at risk of infection.) Now he has about 1/3 the level of neutrophils that he would need to be released to go home on Friday.

Prayer Request : That Joseph will grow the blood cells that he needs for his health and for going home.

Kate and I are being trained in how to maintain Joseph’s semi-permanent line. On alternate days we will have to inject a fluid into his line to keep it in good working order. This procedure requires the utmost attention to keeping a sterile working environment when doing the line flush. Just touching your skin with the sterile gloves requires you to start your preparation all over again. Kate and I are being trained in how to do this procedure in a totally sterile way and have to be checked off by the training nurses before Joseph can come home. We are on track to be certified by Friday.

Today Joseph ate very little for breakfast and lunch but at dinner there was sweet and sour chicken on rice and he ate very well. Again it was something that he really seemed to enjoy.

While it was disappointing to see Joseph’s blood results going the wrong direction today, he was certainly in good form. He was laughing, singing, playing, chatting with the nurses, and giving one of the doctors a “high five”. So he is doing really well but his good health is fragile and we fully respect the caution of the doctors. We have been told that he could show the improvement needed on his next set of blood tests on Friday morning. Then again it could take weeks for him to develop the neutrophils needed.

We have not mentioned to our other children about Friday being a possible day for Joseph’s homecoming. They have been upset and really missIng Joseph. Yesterday one of them said he was “angry with the doctors for keeping Joseph so long”. Tonight we sat down with the boys and explained that the doctors and nurses really care about Joseph and are only keeping him to keep him safe. As soon as they feel it is safe they want him to come home.

It is at times like this that we recall one of the hardest disciplines in the Christian life, waiting on the Lord. In the Bible it speaks of “waiting on the Lord” hundreds of times. Over and over again God has shown that even though it looks like the “right time” for something to happen, He knows the perfect time for things. This is called the “fullness of time”. This means that God is doing a lot more than what we can see and is working on so many levels for so many goals that we just can’t grasp it. We can become impatient in this time of waiting – which to us seems like a waste of time – after all we would like our answer now, or be delivered from oppression, or have provision provided. But if we trust in Him, He promises that we will never regret it.

Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,

and therefore He exalts himself to show mercy to you.

For the Lord is a God of justice;

blessed are all those who wait for Him.

Isaiah 30:18

 

3 thoughts on “Waiting

  1. Kate & Ed,
    Thanks for giving us prayer objectives. We are attempting to keep you in our prayers throughout each day. As we are winding down my business demands, more time is given to the more important things in life like praying for your special Joseph. We will anticipate the gift of better blood result for the future.
    God’s comfort to the Underwood family,
    Joe & Harriette

  2. Thanks for the update. And for sharing what God is teaching you all through this about waiting. This something that was very timely reminder for me and am sure for many others.
    Praying for you all!
    Anna

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