Back from Hopkins

This is Charissa's dad. I spent the last two days with her in the hospital observing firsthand the remarkable and effective joint of supply her network of praying friends is for her and for us (her family). I'm giving Charissa a rest and posting this update for her until the next time when she will be back online. The staff at Johns Hopkins decided that Charissa was still not a candidate for TPN or a feeding tube and that it was important that she continue to press her limited eating abilities as aggressively as she can. They didn't see a need to repeat any previous testing and had no new testing to offer at this stage. Her labs continue to be good and in fact they remarked how surprised they were to see just how good they were given the dramatic, prolonged weight loss she has endured. Charissa is aggressively trying to increase her caloric intake and this requires a constant battle with significant abdominal discomfort in the face of the digestive/ motility issues. Please continue to pray for God's complete healing of this disorder. Until that appears, I know she would appreciate prayer as well for the daily battles to increase and sustain her calorie consumption.

Update

Dear friends,

Thank you for your prayers. I cannot tell you how much we felt them yesterday. My parents and I arrived to an empty waiting room at Georgetown Medical and were quickly given a private room. After explaining our concerns about waiting through the long weekend at my current weight, my labs were taken, and we waited to see what would unfold.

At the end of the afternoon all the labs came back normal, and the attending physician, having consulted with the GI doctor on call, told us there wasn't anything they could do to speed up the process of obtaining testing or getting me started on TPN. Her recommendation was to go home and then call the GI doctors back on Tuesday. She was hopeful that they might see me a bit sooner if I mentioned I had been in the ER over the weekend. So come Tuesday, the phone calls to Hopkins and Georgetown will be underway once again, and we trust God will continue to make the path clear.

Praise:
There is so much to praise Him for!
- I felt His sustaining grace throughout the day yesterday, and He carried me through the more difficult moments.
- I have regained several pounds over the past few days, although I have a long way to go.
- My labs came back normal and even showed some improvement from the previous week.

Prayer Requests:
I am so aware of how dependent I am upon Him for every moment and am humbled as I ask for your continued prayers.

- For the right doors to open as we pursue the doctors and testing at Georgetown and Hopkins over the next several days.
- Pray that I might be able to persevere with the foods and supplements I am taking in right now and be given wisdom in the daily decisions regarding what to put into my system. There are definitely periods where I don't feel well at all, but He continues to carry me through those times and give me strength.
- Both the doctor and nurses were encouraging me to do all I can to get in more frequent high-calorie meals since I'm able to keep food down, so you could pray that my system would begin to accept fats and digest them.
- First thing in the morning can be the hardest time physically, so that's also a great time to pray! :)

I look forward to sharing with you all what God brings about in the days ahead. I do not know where He is taking me, but I know He is good. And I need Him in every moment.

I am overwhelmed by your care and prayers. Thank you.

The Lord looks down from heaven; He sees all the children of man; from where He sits enthroned He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, He who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds. The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,on those who hope in his steadfast love, that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in Him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in You. - Psalm 33:13-22

Prayer Request

Hello friends,

I'm sorry to keep you in the dark for so long. I haven't been feeling as well of late, and it has been difficult to do updates.

My parents and I are going down to Georgetown Hospital this morning so I can be evaluated for potential nutritional support. The possibilities include TPN or a feeding tube, but the latter will likely require some additional testing be arranged first. You can pray that God would guide us through the right doctors and nurses (even in the ER), the right nutritional support, protect against infection, and give me grace and strength to go through any procedures and treatment.

I am functioning fine mentally, am still eating and drinking, and am not dehydrated. My last bloodwork from a week and half ago looks good, but I just haven't been able to get my weight to stabilize, and we don't know that waiting through the holiday weekend is best.

I have heard from so many of you that you are praying for me, and most of you didn't even know how I've really been doing. I have felt those prayers in incredible ways. I cannot thank you enough!

We will keep you updated via this blog, and I look forward to sharing with you all of the faithfulness of our great God in the days ahead.

I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! - Psalm 27:14-15

You are a hiding place for me; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with shouts of deliverance. - Psalm 32:7

If You Lost It All…

I wanted to introduce you all to two dear people who are incredible living illustrations of joy and hope in their Lord in the midst of physical suffering far greater than I have known. Erin Leach has suffered from epilepsy for the past seven years, and John Spiro suffers from ALS and has daily watched his ability to live a "normal" life slip away with each passing day. If you have not already watched these testimonies please take a few moments to do so. And if you already have, I'd encourage you to do so again. It will remind you of what lasts and matters eternally and give you perspective and joy for the trials you may face today.

Their unshakeable faith, enduring hope, and deep trust in God's perfect wisdom and steadfast love has challenged me immensely. As you listen, watch for the joy and hope that shines forth from their faces and overflows from their hearts. And pray that God would continue to uphold and encourage their hearts.

If I lost it all
Would my hands stay lifted
To the God who gives and takes away

If You take it all
This life You've given
Still my heart will sing to You

When my life is not what I expected
The plans I made have failed
When there's nothing left to steal me away
Will You be enough for me?
Will my broken heart still sing?

- Kutless

Light and Momentary

"So we do NOT lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being RENEWED day by day. For this LIGHT MOMENTARY affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of GLORY beyond ALL comparison, as we look NOT to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are TRANSIENT, but the things that are unseen are ETERNAL." – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

What precious words of hope these are! Our afflictions here are but "light" and "momentary" ones when held next to the incredible "weight of glory" that awaits us in eternity. How amazing it is to be a child of God, to belong to Him, and to know that His sacrifice

Thank you all for being patient with me in the face of how infrequent my updates have been. I continue to feel your prayers and am excited to share some praise reports with you!

• The virus I was fighting is almost gone. I only have minor lingering congestion which is on its way out and no signs of a secondary infection. Praise God!
  
• Nathan has had fewer seizures since you began praying.
  
• My weight remains stable.
  
• My symptoms have worsened over the past few days just as my doctor told me they could which is a good sign that my treatment is having a good effect.
  
• Acupuncture and PT continues to go well.
  

Prayer Requests:

• For endurance and strength as I press through the intensification period of these symptoms.
  
• For my faith and joy to abound in the love of my Savior.
  
• For wisdom for my nutritionist and my doctors.
  
• For strength for my family as they care so faithfully for me each day.
  

I am so grateful to God for each one of you. Keep looking at Him. He is ever faithful to us.

Streams of Mercy Never Ceasing…

…call for songs of loudest praise. This line from the old hymn, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," has been running through my head as I contemplate all the Lord is doing. He has constantly been at work to provide and care for me in so many ways. I am going to do my best to give you all a summary.

Last week, I had my first session of acupuncture with good results. The primary benefits I noticed were increased motility within my GI system and improved sleep that night. My acupuncturist especially hopes the treatment will stimulate the strengthening of my immune system. It looks like I'm going to continue with a few more sessions to see how my body responds, and I actually just returned from my second session this afternoon.

God is continuing to "turn the darkness before [me] into light." This past Monday I saw a new doctor who has a good deal of confidence that I will see significant improvement through my treatment with him. With each of these steps, I perceive the kindness of the Lord and can see His hand leading, providing, and guiding. Regarding Dartmouth, I am still waiting to hear back from the doctor there. He has my medical records and upon reviewing them, will determine whether he can squeeze me into his packed schedule before the fall. Apparently, he receives hundreds of requests like mine, and it does take some time to sort through them all. My dad is also looking into the Mayo Clinic.

Prayer Requests:

• For physical strength as I begin a new treatment. I've been told to expect that my symptoms may worsen significantly following the first week and then begin to level out and improve somewhere around the end of the second/beginning of the third week.
  
• For healing from a virus/sinus infection I came down with yesterday.
  
• For continued guidance and wisdom from the Lord regarding my nutrition, supplements, schedule, etc.
  
• For my joy and faith to increase daily that I might be a blessing to others and know and do God's will during this season.
  
• For my brother, Nathan, who continues to endure severe seizures, sometimes on a daily basis.
  

Thank you all again. I can't stop saying it. You are incredibly kind to pray for me. I know it is not easy to keep walking alongside of those with chronic health conditions because their situation does not typically change overnight, yet you all continue to do this for me. I cannot tell you how grateful I am.

As God continues to bring together various pieces of the puzzle, greater clarity is emerging, but the ability to restore proper function and healing to my body rests in His hands. He is so wise, and He alone, as Nathan's nurse likes to remind me, is "the Master Doctor." We can trust Him as I continue to walk out the things that have been given me to do. Thank you for being such faithful friends.

When you stop trying to control your life and instead allow your anxieties and problems to bring you to God in prayer, you shift from worry to watching. You watch God weave His patterns in the story of your life. Instead of trying to be out front, designing your life, you realize you are inside God's drama. As you wait, you begin to see Him work, and your life begins to sparkle with wonder. – Paul Miller

Praises & Continued Requests

Friends, I have been overwhelmed by your care for me. I have truly been upheld by your prayers. And He has answered them in so many ways!

Praise reports:
· Over the past few weeks, I have noticed a marked difference in my overall strength and well-being. Experiencing a greater intensity of chronic fatigue symptoms a few days ago only served to highlight this for me, and my strength has improved today.

· My weight has been stable. I even added on a few pounds!

· I’m still able to eat every day, and in particular, I have been able to eat beef each day this past week for the first time in a few years! We hope it will help provide my body with some of the things it most needs right now.

· I have also been able to take in several sources of fats, a big step, as my digestive system doesn’t do well with these.

· God has been teaching me so much, especially that all this is resting safe in His Hands. I truly have no strength of my own.

What’s next?:
· The specialist at Dartmouth has received all my records and this Monday will be considering whether he can fit me in sooner, rather than at his first available appointment which would be in the fall. We will consider other specialists if this one doesn’t come through.

· I am continuing to work with my wonderful nutritionist and have been consistent with several new supplements that I recently introduced.

· I am continuing to see an incredible physical therapist.

· I am considering trying a few sessions of acupuncture to see if it will help with my GI motility and digestive issues.

Prayer requests:
· That my weight would remain stable at minimum and for the ability to continue to add on weight and hold onto it.

· That the foods I take in would begin to nourish my body and be assimilated rightly.

· For daily grace and strength to build a better & consistent routine.

· For wisdom as we pursue these next steps with the specialist, along with the present treatment I am under. The variables are too many for any of us to sort out, but God knows perfectly what is wrong and where to take me next.

· That I would learn better how to lean hard on my Savior and trust Him to carry me through each moment of my day.

· That my joy and peace would only increase and that God’s “good, acceptable, and perfect” will would be done.

Thank you for standing with me and helping uphold me when I am weak. It is incredibly humbling to be on the receiving end of such care from people like you. I look forward to sharing more soon!

Your present condition is from the Lord. He has not given you a stone, a serpent, or a scorpion. What He has given may seem hard, but it is for your lasting good. Trials may surround you, but God will bring good out of the apparent evil. Even now, infinite wisdom is fulfilling your wish. – C. H. Spurgeon

“Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s.” – 2 Chronicles 20:15