Sunday Night - A Josiah Update

Hello

We break the pause with prayer requests. Josiah's heart isn't getting better.

The doctors had to give Josiah 2 half doses of the 'vitamin m' diuretic this weekend because mid-week his lungs filled up with fluid (poor heart circulation means his body retains water, even in his lungs). The diuretic has helped, but it's not something the doctors like to prescribe because it depletes the body of sodium and potassium. We'll check Monday morning to see how Josiah's levels are, but unless God intervenes they will be poor again and we'll have to avoid 'vit m' for a while. Now Josiah has a fever again, or a really hot temperature and isn't really himself.

This is Josiah's last stand, so to speak. Every critical point he has reached along the way he's been able to get out of by man's expertise in medicine. The reason that the doctors haven't run any major heart tests on him is because they don't like his chances (Josiah's heart problems are frightfully complex and the tests alone are extremely dangerous). It feels like we've finally hit a point where if God doesn't do something, Josiah will die. If Josiah gets these heart tests in the near future (and if he survives them), we may have a clearer picture. The doctors may be able to do something, but their hesitancy and everything else points to a different outcome.

Pray with us. We want the heart tests soon. We want Josiah to be strong and healthy leading up to those tests. We want his sodium and potassium levels to be good. We want God to do something. If surgery cannot fix Josiah (since the medicine isn't doing the trick), we're most likely looking at palliative care and doing our best to give Josiah a good death - unlike his respiratory issues, this heart condition is not something Josiah can grow out of (in fact, it gets worse with everyday).

It's hard to gather my thoughts here, but I think you get the point. We'll try to keep you posted on specific prayer requests along the way but we can't make any promises. Marie and I are ready to say good-bye to Josiah if this is going to be our slow parting, but of course we don't want to and we're hoping for something to hope for. We know our God is in control, good, and loves us, but it's a now-or-never point for God to act. His silence is deafening. It's like he's biting his tongue and sitting on his hands while crying beside us.

God's.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah