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March 26th – Faith in God or Man?

A few years ago, this day started like any other day, little did we know, our lives would not be the same again faced with a dilemma…Faith in God or Man!

The morning routine included dropping off our kids to school and then heading out to our respective occupations. I had a longer drive, so usually was the early bird. In no time, we were out and about. A special part of my morning included morning worship. Later in the day, our daughter had to take a physical for she was poised to have one of the most remarkable summer sports camp ever.

Her mom took her to the pediatrician. She called and indicated that the pediatrician had a hard time getting her heart beats and blood pressure. Consequently, she sent them to the ER to get the results and then revert back to her. It was no big deal; our daughter was very active and healthy. We would crisscross at the gate as they drove to the ER, and I was just getting home. This was about 6pm

About 4 hours later, her mom would call me and say, “I think there’s something wrong!” She would explain that they had done the ECG more than 5 times… I was still calm and relaxed…until she said… “I think you need to come to the hospital.” I protested saying, just get the ECG and come home. She retorted, her voice sharp and piercing, certainly alarmed…

I will cut the story short. Apparently, our daughter who had spent a whole day in school, was walking, talking and doing everything a normal human being would do…had NO heartbeat…Let me repeat that…NO heartbeat! Not only that, but the ECG’s were basically noise and not the sinusoidal wave of a functioning heart.

Immediately I got to the hospital, my mindset was, ‘THERE’S GOT TO BE A MISTAKE.’ However, there wasn’t. I was shown the results, and for sure, they differed so much from what a normal heart would read. I was not shaken, while the doctors sort means to transfer her to a specialized children’s hospital… I was besides her mom telling her not to worry. When we saw the diagnosis, ([withheld]/heart failure), I looked at my partner and said, “She (nurse) made a mistake.”

What happened next, you can only imagine it in the movies…an influx of people, unknown to us start streaming to our daughter, giving her gifts, hugs and more… Forget HIPPA rules, word travels first in a hospital. It was a last rites impromptu ceremony. We just stood there, transfixed and unsure of what all this commotion meant.

To be continued. This is what made the difference for us. The doctors spoke what they saw based on their observations. We the parents, spoke what we knew and wanted for our daughter based on our FAITH. We did not belief that our girl’s heart had failed, nor that she would need another one. For in our thoughts, we know we serve a God who says, ” I have plans to prosper you, not harm you.’ (Jer 29:11). I have heard people who were given 6 months to live. However, only God knows when one’s time is over. However, often not, we believe the doctor more than God.

In this case…who would prevail?

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One Year Later…

“As He passed by He (Jesus) saw a man blind from birth.

 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” USCCB Bible, John 9:1-3.

It is one year to the day since our oldest daughter had a life changing diagnosis ‘Death/Heart failure.’ What started out as a routine sports physical turned out to be a nightmare. I remember getting home from work around 6pm and meeting my darling and daughter on their way out to the ER since her pediatrician had referred us there to get an ECG. The reason for the referral was since her pediatrician could not obtain a blood pressure reading due to a non-consistent heart beat on our daughter. What was more surprising, was that our daughter had no complaints or signs of distress. She was behaving ordinarily and looked normal. She had come from school and everything was normal as usual.

Upon arrival to the ER they had to wait about an hour to be served. However, when the nurse assistant performed the ECG, what she saw made her doubt the results. So, she reattached all the leads again, did another ECG and still got the same ‘weird’ results. At this point, she disconnected the leads, wheeled out the ECG instrument and got another one. She repeated the procedure all over again and long and behold, the results were the same. Bewildered, she left the room, only to return with a colleague. The two rechecked the leads, the ECG instrument and ran the procedure again. THE RESULTS WERE THE SAME! Upon taking those results to the doctor on duty, she sent them back to redo the test since she suspected the leads were mixed up.

The results were similar. The doctor herself made her way to the room and performed the ECG herself. No one could really believe what they were looking at. By this time, my darling had sensed that something was amiss. It did not take long before I got that phone call that sends shivers down the spine. I picked up the phone and she said, “Honey, you need to come to the hospital.”

“Darling, just get the ECG and come home, I answered calmly since I mean, they had gone to get an ECG. What was the big deal!

“Anthony, you need to come to the hospital now! She insisted. More so I thought I heard her call me by name…something that rarely happens. In addition, the tone in her voice spelt trouble. A quick look at the clock revealed it was a little after 10PM. I quickly made sure the other children were asleep and notified a friend to keep an eye on them since I had to run to the hospital.

At the hospital, the look on my darling was enough to say it all. Our daughter on the other side was not really concerned, she was feeling well. In an interesting twist of events, I got to the hospital the same time as the cardiologist. Among the first words from his month was “I usually do not come back to the hospital after I go home!” However, when I got the results, I had to come because of what I saw. I need to send you to a more specialized hospital since your daughter needs specialized cardiac care which we cannot do at this facility, he added. At the same moment, my daughter went on to introduce me as a biochemist – PhD. The cardiologist seized on the moment and pulled me to the side.

He knew the easiest way to connect to another scientist was to ‘show me the data’. Subsequently, so he did. I could not deny the fact the data was disturbing. The heart function of our daughter was certainly far from the norm. Indeed, it was downright “unimaginable!” I slowly put two and two together and realized why he had come back to the hospital from his home. He insisted he needed to send us to another facility to take care of our daughter because he felt she might even need a heart transplant. Initially, I had asked that the referral be delayed to Spring Break which was 3 days away. I sensed the urgency in his voice too. Back in the examination room, he briefed us on what the next steps were going to be. We (my wife and I) agreed to the transfer to another hospital (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia). I offered to go with our daughter. My darling drove home to get us some clothing and necessitates while we waited for the ambulance. It was already 1:AM on 3/27 when the ambulance arrived….To be continued.

News about our daughter had spread like wild fire in the hospital. We noticed many personnel just come by and look at her (us). As she walked to the ambulance…people started running to her, giving her hugs and gifts as if to say…GOODBYE… Her mum and I stared on with disbelief, for when we saw the diagnosis written on the transfer paper, it read ‘Death/ Heart failure. We looked at one another and said, SHE (nurse) MUST HAVE MADE A MISTAKE! Mistake or not…everyone was giving our daughter their last affectionate acts…the news about her condition was ominous…

But surely, were they wrong…Our daughter has the same heart, same irregular heartbeat and more…but has continued to live her normal life just like anybody else. You may ask why such a condition that has baffled doctors and experts alike. The answer is simple… Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” Thus, is God glorified in the life of our daughter…