TRIPS TO THE ER

This time the cry came from the bedroom. Jake was in pain. It had started the day he got back from Peru but steadily grew more severe as the week continued. Kev was just starting to feel better when Jake started to to complain of stomach issues. He went to urgent care and they gave him some medicines but didn’t really know why he was in pain. That night it grew worse. We took him to the ER near our home. With blood work and CT scans done they discovered he was severely constipated. It took two enemas and he was “cleared”. We thought it was over…until the next morning. At 5:00 am Jake called me in the bathroom. He was passing blood, a lot of blood. We thought it was due to the trauma of the enemas so I told him to just stay home and we’ll see how he feels in a few hours. A few hours later Jake called me at work only to say he was feeling a lot worse. A decision was made that he needed to go to the “ big” hospital ER. Kev took off work to meet him there with Nick. More tests, only this time he was doubled over. Hour after hour, more tests. I left work and met everyone at the hospital. With only one person who could come in, Nick and Kev left and I stayed for the rest of the time. He was hooked up to all kinds of meds but we were getting no conclusive answers. Finally, the doctor comes in…..his liver, pancreas and white blood cells were really elevated. The question was “ do you drink…a lot?” Jake and I just looked at each other. Seriously? The nurse also looked up wondering why she was telling us these results. “ You are Jacob? Jacob…something”. The doctor looked at the name tag and realized it was the wrong patient!!! A few minutes later the original doctor came in to tell us the correct information….nothing. The CT scan did show a lot of inflammation in the colon and elevated white blood cells. It was hypothesized that he might have caught a virus in the colon. But both of us believed it was possible he had a parasite. So, we stayed longer, and longer, to get those results. After Jake had been in the ER for ELEVEN hours the sample came back insufficient. REALLY? I began to feel so bad that I had chosen Peru. Have you ever felt bad about a decision(s) that you made that went south? Did you begin to doubt yourself or, if you do believe in God, God Himself? Is your life not where you had hoped it would be because of decisions you made? Maybe you’re having family problems, health issues, financial setbacks, career choice , and, dare I say it, doubt that you married the right person? As we were getting ready to finally leave the hospital , the Lord spoke this verse to me; “ Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand”. ( Proverbs 19:21 ). Take courage my friend that the path you are on is the right path. Nothing is a mistake. God uses everything for our good and to glorify His name. As for the health of my family? Kev is now on the mend and Jake…is feeling better but he will be seeing a specialist to confirm any parasites. And for our next family adventure? Helping Jake and Nick move into their new apartment next week!!! Oh boy…it’s really happening…