Leaving For Surgery in Birmingham

I continue to thank each one of you for your prayers for Caelan and our family. We are sending the older kids to different homes and families for the week and Erika and I are about to leave Montgomery and take Caelan off to Birmingham. We have a consultation with the surgeon late this afternoon and the surgery will be early tomorrow morning. I'll post an update here tomorrow regarding how the surgery went. We will be in the hospital with Caelan for 3-5 days and he will have a drainage tube inserted in him to make sure that fluid does not build up around the surgical cavity.  I hope to return for our church service on Sunday, but that is a bit up in the air right now.

Overall, we are doing well. God has been so faithful. Fear has subsided and it is being replaced by faith in the One who heals, saves, and restores. Although I love my son deeply, I can truly say that I am holding onto God tighter than I am holding onto Caelan and that is making all the difference. That is exactly where God wants me, and I am not ashamed to confess that I was not in that place last week. But, God is faithful and He pursues us even when we don't know how to get to Him.

I took my eight year old daughter, Ashtyn, to her ice skating practice last night. She has a big program on Saturday that one of us will come back to attend. After practice, she and I had dinner together and we went to get a donut at Krispy Kreme (her choice). I wanted to talk with her about what she thought about all of this regarding Caelan and her words stunned me. Ashtyn has always been very wise and perceptive and has had a quiet, yet strong walk with the Lord for some time now. She is a deep thinker and she keeps her own counsel on big issues. But, when she speaks about things that she has thought a lot about, I am often taken aback. She told me that she was concerned about Caelan dying if they did find cancer (we had never spoken with her about that possibility), but she felt good about the idea that it could very well be an infection. She was praying that God would heal Caelan and that it would only be an infection. She said that if the worst happened, it would ultimately be okay because she knew that God would have a reason for it. She could trust God in all of this because she knew that He would have a reason and a purpose in whatever happened to Caelan. I was blown away. Ashtyn has been praying for Caelan's healing, but she also knows that God is trustworthy and can be trusted with what happens to her little brother, whom she loves very much. I whispered a prayer to God that I could have the simple, yet profound faith of my eight year old daughter. I felt like God was speaking to me and teaching me through her. What a blessing my children are. I do not deserve them.

I'll continue to update through the blog and Erika and I will be able to continue to receive emails and read comments here. I got a Blackberry a month or so ago, so communication will continue even though we will be up there. So many of you have emailed me and I have not written you back, but please know that all the emails have been read and greatly appreciated. I'll be going through a difficult part of the day, and I'll look on my phone and read where someone that I don't even know in a place that I have never heard of is praying for my son and my family. What a blessing the Body of Christ is.

We are in a very difficult part of our journey here on earth, but even though we walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, we will fear no evil, for God is with us. This life is not all there is and what we see is not all that is true. God is real and His mercies endure forever. We appeal to the mercy of the Living God.   

Comments

[Kevin Bussey]

Lord,

We are praying for healing. We know you are the Great Physician and we are pleading on behalf of your child Caelan. Protect him and give the Doctors wisdom and guidance. We pray expectantly that You will heal him. Please give Alan and Erika the peace of God that transforms all understanding. Protect them as they travel.

In Jesus name,

Amen

[Doug]

Our Men's Bible Study and Prayer Group in Coffee Springs, AL prayed specifically for Caelan this morning. We have seen God answer prayers in so many wonderful and amazing ways, and expect the same in this case. Caelan is God's child. In the end, that is all we need to know.
God bless!

[Todd]

Praying

[Misti]

You know that I love Erika, you, and your babies -- all 4 of them. And my heart aches deeply for E, you, and the little one.

God is amazing. Ash is just evidence of that. Thanks for sharing her conversation and the wisdom that God shared through her.

With all my heart and love (and the continued offer of my spare bedroom),
M

[The Collins Family]

O Father God, we come to you today, we have no where else to turn, please heal Caelan Cross.

The Cross family waits in hope for you Lord; you are their help and their shield. In you their hearts rejoice, for they trust in your holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon them, O Lord, even as they put their trust in you.

O Father God, please heal Caelan Cross in the power and the authority and the victory of our Lord and Savior we pray.

Amen.

[The Roses]

Lord,
We commit Caelen and the rest of the family into your hands. Do what you do best...prove yourself to this family! We know you are with them even as they read this email. Let them know your peace and comfort and strength to face whatever comes their way....
Amen

[Igor Pashchuk]

Alan,

I just received an email with the good news from the surgeon. I'm giving our Father thanks through Christ Jesus for the good report and praying for His continued grace upon Caelan.

As a side note, are you journaling the events? It would be very beneficial for Caelan when he grows up...

Grace and peace,
Igor