More than we could ask or think

Dear friends, my sweet husband is a walking answered prayer!  There are hardly words to describe.  First, they said today would be his most painful day - he was dreading that.  You know that 1 to 10 scale?  He never ranked his pain above a 1 today!  The nurses couldn't believe it - so they gave him the pain meds anyway!  How in heaven's name do you get your breastbone filleted and ribs and all that stuff and not experience pain, except by the grace and mercy of the Lord!

THEN Dr. Swanson, the surgeon came in.  I asked why Tom had TWO pacemakers hooked up - all the nurses wanted to know why, they'd never seen that before.  He said that (as well as I recall through the fog) "well, you know when I said his ekg was a little slow after surgery when I came to you in the waiting room?  It was actually zero.  We could not get his heart to beat after we took him off the heart-lung machine, not a single beat.  So we quickly hooked him up to a pacemaker.  My mentor in France had a saying I live by:  "when life hangs by a thread, use 2," so I hooked up a second pacemaker to back up the first!  So for Tom to go from THAT to where he is now, I am just thrilled!  Tom, your heart is doing fabulous.  I may even send you home Monday."  YAHOO!!!!!!!!!!  PRAISE GOD!!!!!!!!!

Then he sent in an Electro-physiologist to see if Tom would need to have that second procedure and have a defibrillator/pacemaker put in.  Dr. Garvey is a kind-hearted doc that took a ton of time to study Tom and answer all our questions, then gave his conclusion:  "Tom, I see no indication whatsoever that you will need a defib. put in.  You are at a very low risk of having any problems from here on out.  As a matter of fact, you're going to live a good long life!"  Dr. Garvey seemed to know exactly what to say to assuage any of Tom's fears.  He said that he, as a matter of fact, was at a VERY low risk of ever having a heart attack AND that the work Dr. Swanson had done had taken so much tissue out that Tom could expect to feel so much better (it had been one of his big fears, that he'd get to the end of all this and not feel any better).  It just hit every one of Tom's "hot buttons" - he is sleeping quite peacefully tonight.

This has been an experience where we have palpably felt the prayers of the saints.  THANK YOU so much for being one of those praying friends.  I know it has SO motivated me to be faithful in prayer for others.  We love you!  We thank you!

For those of you who want to come celebrate with us Sunday, please come at either 2pm or 7:30pm so he can rest the rest of the time.  He'd LOVE to see you - you know how social he is - and have you sign his pillow (wait 'til you see what HE wrote on it).  If he is released Monday, it will be in the morn.  Give us Monday to get settled and then check in.

Blessed is the heart that hangs its hope on God!