Isaiah 9:6b--And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
This is Lisa again . . . In my last post, I explained to you the medical details of our visit in NY. I touched on God’s goodness and the people we met along the way. In this post, I want to share with you how God was with us every step of the way. He is so good, and I promised Him I would tell you about it . . .
On Tuesday, as Mackenzie was having her radiological studies done, a sweet family walked into the imaging center. We were about to leave, so our conversation was limited to hello. Well, the next day at The Chiari Institute, there sat the same family! Will (dad, who has Chiari malformation), Claudia (mom), and Gerson (pronounced Herson, 10 year old son). We were in the same waiting room all day, and by the end of the day we shared e-mail addresses, hugs, and promises to pray for each other. God binds our hearts with other believers in ways we cannot explain; we love this family and ask you to pray for them as well. Will is going to have surgery at some point in the future—I will let you know when.
I told you already about Emmanuel coming to take Mackenzie to surgery on Thursday and how that blessed our hearts. God truly was with us every step of the way!
On Friday, the day of my last post, I told you a winter storm was bearing down on NY. We left the hotel about 10:30 am as the snow began to fall. Remember, I am driving in Long Island back to the airport! We get packed, and Willie the door man comes up to help us, even laying down on Meghan’s suitcase so he could zip it for her. He told us how he had two daughters, same ages as our girls. He was so kind. He walked us downstairs and loaded up the car. The girls had made fast friends with Willie, so they said their good-byes. He asked if he could take our picture, which he did. Then I asked if I could take his picture with the girls. I thought he would cry. He was so concerned about us driving and flying in the snow. He said he would pray and did as we drove away. God heard and answered him—we are home safe and sound.
We are home, but not before we had another adventure! Imagine the three of us going through a NY airport in the snow, three suitcases, three tote bags, and a wheelchair. It was quite the sight! We boarded the train to the terminal and, of course, our gate was at the very end! We got down there, and the monitor said our flight was on schedule.
They called us to board, even though the snow was coming down sideways and sticking to everything. We were in line when the announcement came that our flight had been canceled. You have to know that we are all basically homebodies. We were so homesick at this point that even though we were in NYC, the thought of not getting home was very disappointing.
I left the girls at the gate and headed to the line of about 300 people where they were rebooking and giving hotel vouchers. While in line, I began talking to the couple in front of me. They were from Asheville and had been in the city for the weekend. They asked me why we were in NY, so I gave them the short version of our story. The wife asked me Mackenzie’s name and promised to pray. While we were standing in that line, Meghan called—our flight had been reinstated! As far as I know we were one of the last two flights out that day.
Now the challenge was that the plane had to be boarded outside in the snow. Remember, I have all this baggage! Well, the wife from Asheville grabbed one bag, the husband took another, I wheeled Mackenzie, and Meghan had the last bag. Once we got to the plane, we had to ascend metal steps covered in snow. Mackenzie struggles with carpet-covered steps; we had never tried snow covered ones! The husband from Asheville took Mackenzie’s arm and practically carried her up those stairs! God is so good! I hope they read this so they can know how much love God showed us through them that day.
We finally took off after an hour on the runway for de-icing and arrived in Charlotte around 6 pm. After a long drive home, we were welcomed by Mitchell, Michael, Morgan, and the dog, Molly! We were also welcomed by a hot meal prepared by a friend along with pound cake, muffins, and homemade bread prepared by another friend. (Thank you, Eileen and Debbie.)
So please know God hears and answers prayers! He is so good and faithful. Although He is taking us through a very difficult time, He is near. He is refining and growing our faith. He is using this struggle in the lives of others who are praying for us. You can be sure that your struggles are in His hands as well. He is trustworthy. I pray that all of you find rest in His loving arms today.
We love you all and hope to be able to thank each of you individually someday (maybe not this side of heaven, but someday).
This is Lisa again . . . In my last post, I explained to you the medical details of our visit in NY. I touched on God’s goodness and the people we met along the way. In this post, I want to share with you how God was with us every step of the way. He is so good, and I promised Him I would tell you about it . . .
On Tuesday, as Mackenzie was having her radiological studies done, a sweet family walked into the imaging center. We were about to leave, so our conversation was limited to hello. Well, the next day at The Chiari Institute, there sat the same family! Will (dad, who has Chiari malformation), Claudia (mom), and Gerson (pronounced Herson, 10 year old son). We were in the same waiting room all day, and by the end of the day we shared e-mail addresses, hugs, and promises to pray for each other. God binds our hearts with other believers in ways we cannot explain; we love this family and ask you to pray for them as well. Will is going to have surgery at some point in the future—I will let you know when.
I told you already about Emmanuel coming to take Mackenzie to surgery on Thursday and how that blessed our hearts. God truly was with us every step of the way!
On Friday, the day of my last post, I told you a winter storm was bearing down on NY. We left the hotel about 10:30 am as the snow began to fall. Remember, I am driving in Long Island back to the airport! We get packed, and Willie the door man comes up to help us, even laying down on Meghan’s suitcase so he could zip it for her. He told us how he had two daughters, same ages as our girls. He was so kind. He walked us downstairs and loaded up the car. The girls had made fast friends with Willie, so they said their good-byes. He asked if he could take our picture, which he did. Then I asked if I could take his picture with the girls. I thought he would cry. He was so concerned about us driving and flying in the snow. He said he would pray and did as we drove away. God heard and answered him—we are home safe and sound.
We are home, but not before we had another adventure! Imagine the three of us going through a NY airport in the snow, three suitcases, three tote bags, and a wheelchair. It was quite the sight! We boarded the train to the terminal and, of course, our gate was at the very end! We got down there, and the monitor said our flight was on schedule.
They called us to board, even though the snow was coming down sideways and sticking to everything. We were in line when the announcement came that our flight had been canceled. You have to know that we are all basically homebodies. We were so homesick at this point that even though we were in NYC, the thought of not getting home was very disappointing.
I left the girls at the gate and headed to the line of about 300 people where they were rebooking and giving hotel vouchers. While in line, I began talking to the couple in front of me. They were from Asheville and had been in the city for the weekend. They asked me why we were in NY, so I gave them the short version of our story. The wife asked me Mackenzie’s name and promised to pray. While we were standing in that line, Meghan called—our flight had been reinstated! As far as I know we were one of the last two flights out that day.
Now the challenge was that the plane had to be boarded outside in the snow. Remember, I have all this baggage! Well, the wife from Asheville grabbed one bag, the husband took another, I wheeled Mackenzie, and Meghan had the last bag. Once we got to the plane, we had to ascend metal steps covered in snow. Mackenzie struggles with carpet-covered steps; we had never tried snow covered ones! The husband from Asheville took Mackenzie’s arm and practically carried her up those stairs! God is so good! I hope they read this so they can know how much love God showed us through them that day.
We finally took off after an hour on the runway for de-icing and arrived in Charlotte around 6 pm. After a long drive home, we were welcomed by Mitchell, Michael, Morgan, and the dog, Molly! We were also welcomed by a hot meal prepared by a friend along with pound cake, muffins, and homemade bread prepared by another friend. (Thank you, Eileen and Debbie.)
So please know God hears and answers prayers! He is so good and faithful. Although He is taking us through a very difficult time, He is near. He is refining and growing our faith. He is using this struggle in the lives of others who are praying for us. You can be sure that your struggles are in His hands as well. He is trustworthy. I pray that all of you find rest in His loving arms today.
We love you all and hope to be able to thank each of you individually someday (maybe not this side of heaven, but someday).
Mackenzie is very encouraged by all of your comments. If, however, you would like to send her a private e-mail, please do so (mackenziemathis@bellsouth.net). She would love to hear from you.
Keep praying . . . we will keep you posted.
Love,
Keep praying . . . we will keep you posted.
Love,
Lisa
