I know many of you are following and praying along with us so here is the latest. Cody is progressively doing better. His kidneys are slowly healing, so he is starting to feel better. He was able to get out of bed and walk around a little. There is still some pain in different areas that are unexplained but we hope with time they will diminish or we will find out what is causing it.
The team is coming down from Kotido to be here with us. I am really excited! I really miss the boys. Misty has been AMAZING in taking on the responsibilities (and craziness) for us back home.
I know I have said this before but it is worth saying again. Thank you for all your support. The emails, the FB postings, etc. It has been really encouraging to me. It is hard to have to be in a medical emergency in another country but everyone's help and support has made it easier. I really have an amazing family in Christ.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Cody's Progress
Just wanted to inform everyone that Cody is getting better! Hooray! This morning he woke up and was alert and talking. He was even able to eat a little. He is still very weak and goes through bouts of extreme weakness but comparatively it is much better. He still has a fever on and off so they are trying to find out where that is coming from. He is also having some pain in certain areas and his blood pressure is really low so they are still investigating that as well. Thanks again for all your prayers and support! I will continue to post updates.
Michaela
Michaela
Thursday, October 20, 2011
What's going on with Cody
Sigh....what a long day. Actually what a long week. More like 9 days. I will try to inform you as best as I can in my sleep deprived state. Last Wednesday Cody started to feel sick, but his malaria test came back negative. Cody still suspected it was malaria because his symptoms were similar to when he had it before. He decided to take some natural remedies to see if that helped and he thought it was. He would feel okay for a while and then would be feeling sick again. Saturday morning he woke up feeling pretty good so we thought it was all over. We suspected that maybe it was the flu as it had gone around our house. Sunday he took a turn for the worst, and I took him again to get malaria tested. It was plus III which means nothing to most of you, but it basically means the malaria parasites were numerous in his blood. He was also testing positive for typhoid. We were able to get him on meds and fluids right away. After a day and half things were not getting better and in fact he was really miserable and was not doing well. Couldn't keep anything down. Things didn't get progressively better so I decided that we would take him to the nearest hospital about 2 hours away. Once there they did some more testing to find out a whole lot of nothing. For me it was hard to see him in the state he was in. He was very confused, slept all day, and was in a lot of pain. One night he was having hallucinations. It was physically and emotionally demanding for me because here you take care of the patient and provide food for yourself. I was up with him all night making sure he didn't pull out his IV or fall out of his bed. I would also have to unhook him from his IV so he could use the bathroom, or vomit. I got 2 hours of sleep and 4 the night before. Again after finding nothing wrong, my heart ached. Really? After the doctor told me there was nothing abnormal I decided I wanted to take him off the quinine treatment, as it is really harsh and many of his symptoms sounded like a severe reaction to the drug. (i.e. chest pain, loss of hearing, deliruim, vomiting, diarrhea etc). When malaria is so severe doctors think that quinine is the best. I am not so sure for Cody. By this morning (Thursday) he was not vomiting, and I did get more sleep, but his fever returned, bring alarm to me. Why a fever? They were also giving him antibiotic for the typhoid so he shouldn't be having fever (not to mention the test for typhoid was not negative). At that point I decided that I wanted to take him to Kampala for further testing and to be at a more advanced facility. When morning broke, I started making arrangements to getting him to Kampala as quickly as I could. I knew driving was not an option. I called MAF (mission aviation fellowship) for an emergency flight and they were there within 3 hours. It was amazing. The emotion I felt when I saw the plane land on the dirt strip was indescribable. For Cody it felt like the longest plane ride but it was only 1 and a half hours seeming minute compared to the 12 hour drive. Once at the hospital in Kampala more tests revealed nothing was wrong (malaria and typhoid were both gone), but I knew otherwise. This is not my husband. He has been sick for 9 days. Hasn't eaten anything in 7. Hasn't had a legitimate conversation with me since Saturday. Why is his hand numb? Why is he swelling so? Why the fever? Why does he sleep all day? They ran more tests. The newest results are that he is having kidney problems similar to kidney failure. This is due to malaria and then the drugs on top of that. The doctors do not think it is severe enough to put him on dialysis but they are keeping an eye on it so that if it were to get worse they can take appropriate actions.
How am I doing? I am relieved to have a diagnosis, but now I pray he gets better because the pattern so far has not been in our favor. God has been so good to us in this whole process and I am so thankful for all that he has done. Thankful that we were able to bring him to Kampala.
It has also been a true blessing to see the body of Christ come together to help us in this ordeal. The prayers, the support. Misty is staying back with the boys and I have Janaya and Eliana with me. The Williams have been helping in lots of ways. Family and friends back home doing everything they can. It reminds me of the church in Acts. Truly a blessing. I will also add that I am tired. Taking care of Cody has been draining as it is like taking care of a dementia patient, but being in Kampala should lower the burden.
Now we wait for him to get better. Thanks for everyone's prayers. They have really meant a lot to us. We feel really loved and supported. I will try to keep updating the blog so you know the progress.
Michaela
How am I doing? I am relieved to have a diagnosis, but now I pray he gets better because the pattern so far has not been in our favor. God has been so good to us in this whole process and I am so thankful for all that he has done. Thankful that we were able to bring him to Kampala.
It has also been a true blessing to see the body of Christ come together to help us in this ordeal. The prayers, the support. Misty is staying back with the boys and I have Janaya and Eliana with me. The Williams have been helping in lots of ways. Family and friends back home doing everything they can. It reminds me of the church in Acts. Truly a blessing. I will also add that I am tired. Taking care of Cody has been draining as it is like taking care of a dementia patient, but being in Kampala should lower the burden.
Now we wait for him to get better. Thanks for everyone's prayers. They have really meant a lot to us. We feel really loved and supported. I will try to keep updating the blog so you know the progress.
Michaela
Friday, October 7, 2011
ONE YEAR!!!
Today marks our year anniversary for being in Uganda. Below you will find what Cody wrote for our newsletter.
Last year on October 6, we boarded the airplane in Denver, Colorado with 14 suitcases, 5 kids (with number 6 on the way), excitement, and fear. We were following God’s command for us to move our lives to Karamoja, Uganda. Our hearts were burdened for the desperate state of the Karimojong people. We knew there were risks when moving here. Those risks, though, could not keep us from obeying the voice of God. In Acts 21, the apostle Paul is warned against going to Jerusalem, but his response was a great encouragement to us. He said “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. . . Let the will of the Lord be done.” We did not know exactly what awaited, but knew that God would be glorified in our obedience to follow Him. Our journey differed from that of Paul because we did not come to Karamoja with the anticipation of death or imprisonment. We came here full of hope that God would speak bring the Karimojong to Himself. That they would become disciples of Jesus Christ and follow Him as he asks people to do in his word.
What We Have Learned
In our fist year, we have experienced much that has brought us great joy and also great pain. Our home sits in a community engulfed in a kind of poverty that is not present in the western world. People starve to death here. Babies are thrown aside by loving parents because they have no way to care for the child. In the midst of this all, the name of God must be glorified. We must treat Him as holy while living here.
The Torah
Our family, along with the Williams’ and Misty have read through the Torah in its entirety this year in house church. It has definitely been ordained by God for us. We started doing this because it was what Jesus did and all of Israel would do. It was in the Torah that people came to know God’s character, and in turn, Him. In the Torah, Moses struggles with a difficult people whom are sought after by God, but choose to prostitute themselves to other gods. Through Isaiah God says, “I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices.” We have seen how the human heart is rebellious, but God is showing us how he continues to pursue them. For us, righteousness is found in our obedience to God. This obedience is made possible through the blood of Jesus Christ, which reconciles a sinful world to a perfect God. But it is the obedience that God desires. Even Moses is found to be disobedient at times, but in humility returns to show the holiness of God through his life. Showing us this, God makes it clear that He is good and holy even if we don’t completely understand. He is God, after all.
Loving People
Through all we have experienced, the central theme here is that these people need to be loved. We have loved many babies and even brought them into our home to care for them. We have loved the alcoholic who was destroying their life. We have loved the terminally ill who was left in town to die. We have fed the hungry, given water to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger into our home, clothed the naked, visited those who are sick and in prison and we have loved them all. We have loved the unlovely. The thing they all need is God. We have loved an lost, loved and saved life, but are finally inadequate to make any lasting difference. Only God can save the soul and give them hope. We have therefore learned that our good deeds apart from obedience to God are as filthy rags. They will all pass away, but what God does will remain. MAY GOD REIGN IN KARAMOJA!
Last year on October 6, we boarded the airplane in Denver, Colorado with 14 suitcases, 5 kids (with number 6 on the way), excitement, and fear. We were following God’s command for us to move our lives to Karamoja, Uganda. Our hearts were burdened for the desperate state of the Karimojong people. We knew there were risks when moving here. Those risks, though, could not keep us from obeying the voice of God. In Acts 21, the apostle Paul is warned against going to Jerusalem, but his response was a great encouragement to us. He said “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. . . Let the will of the Lord be done.” We did not know exactly what awaited, but knew that God would be glorified in our obedience to follow Him. Our journey differed from that of Paul because we did not come to Karamoja with the anticipation of death or imprisonment. We came here full of hope that God would speak bring the Karimojong to Himself. That they would become disciples of Jesus Christ and follow Him as he asks people to do in his word.
What We Have Learned
In our fist year, we have experienced much that has brought us great joy and also great pain. Our home sits in a community engulfed in a kind of poverty that is not present in the western world. People starve to death here. Babies are thrown aside by loving parents because they have no way to care for the child. In the midst of this all, the name of God must be glorified. We must treat Him as holy while living here.
The Torah
Our family, along with the Williams’ and Misty have read through the Torah in its entirety this year in house church. It has definitely been ordained by God for us. We started doing this because it was what Jesus did and all of Israel would do. It was in the Torah that people came to know God’s character, and in turn, Him. In the Torah, Moses struggles with a difficult people whom are sought after by God, but choose to prostitute themselves to other gods. Through Isaiah God says, “I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices.” We have seen how the human heart is rebellious, but God is showing us how he continues to pursue them. For us, righteousness is found in our obedience to God. This obedience is made possible through the blood of Jesus Christ, which reconciles a sinful world to a perfect God. But it is the obedience that God desires. Even Moses is found to be disobedient at times, but in humility returns to show the holiness of God through his life. Showing us this, God makes it clear that He is good and holy even if we don’t completely understand. He is God, after all.
Loving People
Through all we have experienced, the central theme here is that these people need to be loved. We have loved many babies and even brought them into our home to care for them. We have loved the alcoholic who was destroying their life. We have loved the terminally ill who was left in town to die. We have fed the hungry, given water to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger into our home, clothed the naked, visited those who are sick and in prison and we have loved them all. We have loved the unlovely. The thing they all need is God. We have loved an lost, loved and saved life, but are finally inadequate to make any lasting difference. Only God can save the soul and give them hope. We have therefore learned that our good deeds apart from obedience to God are as filthy rags. They will all pass away, but what God does will remain. MAY GOD REIGN IN KARAMOJA!
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