A Freed Slave

I like keying in on the paradox of God's wisdom, and how to what we know and understand it is purposefully different, "confounding the wise." Well, today i found another one. What would you say if I told you that you are a slave, and to be freed from your master and your "slave-hood" you had to become a slave again? In man's mind, you'd think "That's nuts! if I'm going to be free, I want my own independence. Complete freedom." But then I add, "well, complete freedom's part of the deal." Dumb-founded, drool dripping from the side of your mouth, 'huh???'

Update on Justin (from Mrs. Killilay)

Please pray for Justin. For those of you who don't know, he got a respiratory virus right after we arrived in FL (a week ago Sat.) and with the rain and A/C it developed into pneumonia by the time we got home (last Thurs.) He was put on Augmentin and an inhaler but by Sat. morning his face had swelled and there were blisters all over his lips and mouth (Yes, I have pictures. No, I won't post them). The doctors thought it was a reaction to the inhaler so we stopped using that. However, Sunday morning it was much worse. A call to the doc said they think it could be a strain of virus, nothing to be done and let it run its course. Sunday night the pediatrician called me at home and said she couldn’t get the image of him and the stuff out of her mind so she’d done some researching and found a rare syndrome called Stevens-Johnson. It’s where the body decides to “become” allergic to a penicillin based antibiotic and/or an a-typical bacterial pneumonia. She asked that we come in first thing Monday AM so she could check some other things. Thirty min. later she called back and said we needed to take him first thing to the Children’s Hospital in Atlanta and that she would call ahead to let them know what was up so far. Here's what we know as of Tuesday evening--I'm supposed to be sleeping ;) A chest x-ray showed pneumonia and lesions within the esophagus all the way up to his throat/mouth that were consistent with Stevens-Johnson syndrome. We were admitted early Monday morning; he’s been put on an IV to keep up with hydration (he hasn’t had any solid foods since a week ago Sat.); he’s run a consistent temp between 101-103 for that same period of time, so he’s on meds for that as well as Loritab for pain. His body is still breaking out with skin lesions that look like popped pimples or bug bites. His mouth is incredibly swollen and the blisters are everywhere and honestly it’s not pretty. He’s coughing up mucus and blood which is unnerving but it’s thought that this is from those lesions breaking inside. Last night was worse in that he was more uncomfortable, so today they’ve put him on morphine. We've seen a dermatologist who checked on the lesions and they are putting him on an IV/IG (immunoglobulin) to boost his immune system and help him to start fighting this better. He's been upgraded to a more severe case due to increased lesion breakouts. His eyes are still clear for which we are thankful. He's worn down and discouraged. He is highly susceptible to germs and today they've really struggled getting IV's started--he has one in each hand now. He'll do 2 rounds of the IV/IG with time between each round for monitoring effect; so we're looking at least friday before there's even a chance of him coming home but at this point the doctor's aren't even guessing on a day. The pneumonia seems to be responding to the new antibiotic and he was taken off oxygen this afternoon.There are a few other things they are watching out for but they are certain he will recover fully with no scarring or negative side effects from this. He has been poked, prodded, gawked at and photographed due to the rare occurence. I'll be glad when he can be a little boy again...Interesting note: SJS affects less than 3 people per million per year and these are typically mild-moderate cases. The average age is 26 for females; mid-40's for males. Justin is 12. Wednesday AM: More tests ordered; another chest x-ray to be done. He got 4 good hours of sleep but his fever spiked probably a side effect to IV/IG, but he had to go back on oxygen @ midnight and then had a severe bloody nose. :(Saturday:I am home briefly to pay some bills (some things don't stop!). Just an FYI, the hospital computer network won't allow me to get on FB which is why the updates are spotty at best. I haven't really left sinced that night "out" on Tuesday. Justin slept for 4 solid hours last night. He is talking more which is a bonus. The dermatologists believe he has hit the plateau and today or tomorrow he will turn the corner. That being said, we will be in the hospital for the better part of next week. There are so many things that have to happen before he can be released. The pneumonia is rapidly improving and I almost forget we are battling that too in the light of the SJS and how difficult that has been. Justin has to work on learning to swallow again so we're trying a popsicle after he's had morphine. His spirits are improving and while he still is breaking out with new lesions, they are not as big as they have been and for that reason they think it is finally slowing down. Please pray for his throat, esophagus, and eyes. There are blisters now on his tear ducts but they will do another thorough exam early next week to see about any damage etc.Pray for me and Bill. He has to go back to work on Monday, so for me, it will be 24/7 alone and he needs to be able to concentrate at work while he's there and not be worried. We feel confident that Justin is improving! My parnents took Brendan and Jerrod and little Jumper to Chattanooga with them this morning and they will plan on keeping them for a week so I can concentrate on being with Justin especially next week.Thanks SO much for your prayers. Maybe next week I can respond to individual posts! :)

The good ole days are now

So i looked back at over about 300 pictures from the near and distant past; took a walk down memory lane. Friends, family, exciting times... high school, work, college, church, adventure... And seeing these I can think of the blessings of my life. It makes the hard times seem miniscule. Why do i deserve the free grace that I have been given? In case you are waiting for me to answer, don't because the real answer is that I don't deserve it. My life is pretty good. I do know that I have changed. Haha, not a change from A to B, but a series of changes. I wish i could say it was all part of my sanctification (and maybe from a bigger perspective it was) but i certainly went through some changes in the wrong direction. Thankfully, as part of my testimony I can say that God was rearing me all along and those poor choices are in the past. But yes, back to the idea of change... I have changed. Sometimes people liked me, sometimes they didn't (don't); sometimes i like/d me, sometimes I didn't (dont).

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A Twelve Year Old Named Justin

He's a rising 7th grader with a great attitude about life. He's always smiling, always talking, and always thinking. He's about as bright as they come. On our trip to six flags, Justin rode every ride, never missing a second of the action. He likes to draw comic book characters and cool gizmos and gadgets of his own mind's creation; he is quite the "inventor." If there's a story to be told, he'll be the first one to give you the straight story, including only the most important of details---which typically are all of them. His mind's library of jokes and fun stories combined with his desire to share them never allows for a moment of dull or awkward silence. This is once cool kid! He's fun to be around and always lifts my spirit.
He wants to be extreme. He talks all the time about his Dad (he really loves him) and all the cool stuff he does like sky-diving---I've heard tons of stories about sky-diving from him-- and how when he gets old enough that's one of the first things he's going to do. What a cool kid!
The coolest thing about him, though, is his desire to know and love God. His relationship with Jesus is so obvious, his Joy shouts God's praises. Blake Meyer (the other intern I work with) and I both see the work of the Lord in his life... Praise God for Mrs. Killilay (Justin's mom) and her persistence with raising her boys in the clear presence of the Gospel.

See what a cool kid Justin is? Well, Justin needs our prayers. I beg you for those prayers. Monday morning at 4 am he was admitted to a local children's hospital for Pneumonia (sp?). When they gave him his medication, his body rejected it (auto-immune). So far he has not gotten better, but seemingly worse. His body is fighting itself and the medication with all it has and the pneumonia only grows stronger. He is on morphine for his pain, which inhibits his breathing more. The doctors are confused and uncertainty fills the hospital room with fear. Please pray for Justin and his family. This is a trying time for him, his family, and our church. Pray that Justin would be healed. Pray that his family would be unified and comforted. Pray that God's sovereignty would be clearly seen and accepted in all of this. Please pray. Believe in faith. Claim it. Don't doubt your insufficiency to pray---now is not the time for that.

Of Noble Birth

This is my first blog- i ask myself what is a blog? Is it worth having? I'm a facebook addict so how is this useful to me?

1 Corinthians 1:26-29 "For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. "

That passage is the reason behind my name, the reason behind the name of this blog. Conisder this, You Christian are of noble birth. You were not wise, you were not powerful, and you were not noble- but now you are. A child of the king, should live nobly. Holiness is the mark of our God. * Notice to the reader, we must consider humility- no one has any right to boast- our nobility is not our own, but God's. Holy does not mean "holier than thou." Be Humble. Love People. Lose Self.
How do we follow his command "You Shall be holy for I am Holy" (1 Peter 1:16)... Well first off start with 1 corinthians 1- Wisdom. I think it is clear that holiness is arrayed in wisdom. Re-read those verse. "God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise." God's wisdom is not man's wisdom- they don't meet anywhere in the middle. What God calls folly, man calls wise; what men call foolishness God calls wisdom and that's right, confuses those very same men, putting them to shame.

So next time the world tells me to do something, I'll think twice and not jump right into it because to God it may be foolishness. And since we wear a noble title, let's not misrepresent our Kingly Father and Savior Jesus Christ.