A Spring of Joy

I have written often about my dearest childhood friend, Monica. We met 30 years ago, and without her, I don’t know how I would have gotten through a lot of my life. In her blog Monica recently wrote this:

Oswald Chambers wrote, “Living a life of faith means never knowing where you are being led. But it does mean loving and knowing the One who is leading. It is literally a life of faith, not of understanding and reason — a life of knowing him who calls us to go.” Knowing a God who is unchanging and will do everything He says He will do is the only way I will navigate through the next weeks and months. I believe.

One of these days I’m going to have Monica share her story with you… it’s a story of life… a life she almost lost during her pregnancy with her youngest daughter. Her daughter almost lost her life, too.

Now that youngest daughter is 2 years old.

Danica. Sweet, precious, two-year-old Danica.

Danica is having brain surgery on Friday.

This sweet, precious, two-year-old. She has a chiari malformation.

What this means in simple terms is she has a gap where most people’s skulls are closed and so some of her brain is sticking out into her spinal column. Some people have this condition without symptoms, but in Danica’s case she is presenting many of the most severe symptoms very early on.

This is not a post about me, but can I just tell y’all how much it is KILLING me that I live 7 hours away from Monica and can’t be with her even just to sit with her while she keeps vigil for the next week in the ICU?

God knew what He was doing when He formed this sweet one in Monica’s womb. I often picture God’s smile as he formed little Danica. I picture His tears as He feels their pain in this fallen world. And I picture that one day when they will BOTH be pain free forever.

Please, friends, will you pray with me for my friend and for baby Danica? Will you pray for Dan & Monica as parents who must watch their child suffer? Will you pray for Delaney, her sister, who isn’t allowed in the ICU, will stay with grandparents and be away from her parents during this fearful time? Will you pray for the rest of their family, near and far?

And will you pray for faith to believe truth when life seems so brutal?

I know how much it would mean to me… and it would mean even more to my friend.

Thank you.