An answer...a change.

Well,the doctors have decided that what Alex experienced was a full Lupus flare. That is an autoimmune disease that is brutal on your organs. She has been extremely uncomfortable, a little confused, but she is alive and is going to stay that way!!! You know how after the storm passes people start saying things and you hear more of what was going on? Here are two things that struck me. 1. On Tuesday morning the nurses said, "If you don't get that breathing tube in, we're going to code her." That meant that they were going to pronounce her dead. WOW! The other thing was on Thursday the kidney specialist looked at her kidneys and said to my mother, "Today she is stable, yesterday she was dying." We just believed that this wouldn't end in death. In fact, we believe that it will result in life...new lives all over. There was a young man that she used to date that didn't leave the hospital that has decided he wants to be a better man and has decided to attend a local church. Alex says, "that's good." She knew before she was this sick that she wanted to live differently...no time like the present wouldn't you say? My brother was awesome this week, I believe he might want to turn around as well. It was a long, hard week. We cried, we laughed, we prayed, we believed. It could have gone another direction, it almost did. I believe that our faith was challenged and it felt good. When she was in ICU we decided that nothing would change the goodness of God...nothing. My sister, Ashley found a fabulous verse in Hosea 2, so I read to her (she was a captive audience)one night, we had steady traffic back to her room for people to pray for her. Now that she has come around she has been amazed at the people who care about her. I'm a little sad about that...so many people have loved her for so long, I'm sorry that it took this to show her. She has to have a biopsy done on one of her kidneys as a precautionary measure to be sure that they are in good working order before she goes home. The biopsy is Monday or Tuesday...so hopefully she'll be home next week. Over the next month she is going to be on a ridiculous amount of steroids that will make her hungry, thirsty and moody. If that's not enough she will have a tough time sleeping. Obviously she'll gain a ton of weight because of that...so pray that she'll be patient with this process. Also, pray that we will be compassionate as we care for her. Thank you for checking in, for praying, for loving us so beautifully. I'll let you know when she comes home, but you can expect some regular programming here at a Cup of Cold Water soon. Thank you for being my tall refreshing glass of ice cold water...I was so thirsty.