Watching God Work

This weekend we had front-row seats to see God working miracles, but a miracle is always preceded by a need.  The short story is that our son Paul suffered a stroke on Friday, but God is quickly and in amazing ways healing him.  Here is the long story:
Last Friday we received a call from our daughter-in-law Kate.  Her voice was obviously upset when she said hello.  We learned that our son Paul was in the emergency room in Austin, Minnesota. That morning, he had been working alone in the Living Bible Church where he is the pastor, and got up to go to the bathroom.  As he was washing his hands, he felt strange and went to the next room to sit down. He reached for his phone and realized his right hand was numb.  He could see only half of his phone screen but with great difficulty was able to call Kate for help.  By the time she got there, he was lying on the floor so she called the paramedics who rushed him to the hospital.  There they told him he was experiencing a stroke.
Paul is only 39 years old, very young for a stroke victim.  His entire right side felt numb and tingly, he said, as if it had fallen asleep, much as a person's foot falls asleep. He could not see well out of either eye. The emergency staff was quick to assess him and since he had arrived within a short time after his symptoms began, they were able to give him the special blood-clot busting drugs for stroke.  They did advise him and Kate that there was only about a 30 percent chance it would help him.  Then they sent him by ambulance to St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota, just 45 miles away where Paul was admitted to intensive care. This is the main hospital of the Mayo Clinic, the number one rated hospital in the US. 
The time in intensive care was difficult for Paul.  They did tests and hourly checks on his vital signs so he got little to no sleep.  One of the tests required he neither eat nor drink for more than twelve hours.  The tests results were all good, so Saturday afternoon he was transferred to a regular room in the stroke care department.
We arrived at the hospital as Paul was being transferred to his new room.  It was comforting to see our son and give him a hug.  Mike had to leave a few minutes after we saw Paul.  We were scheduled to speak at First Church of the Open Bible in Cedar Rapids the next day, but Mike went on without me (Nancy) to handle the assignment alone.  I stayed to be with Paul and to help any way I could.  Kate had stayed with Paul in the hospital Friday night and was very tired, having had no sleep.  She asked if I would stay overnight with Paul while she went home to sleep and to go to church Sunday morning.  I was very happy to be able to help. 
Many others were of great help also. Countless individuals, prayer groups and churches prayed for Paul including our church friends in Hungary and Romania.  Bruce Pfaudenauer, Open Bible Churches Central Region Director, arranged for Herb Kenyon, a retired pastor friend of ours from Iowa City, to preach on Sunday morning. He gladly came and ministered in a powerful service to the congregation who were not only saddened at the sudden sickness of their pastor, but also had suffered the loss of a beloved board member just two weeks before.  Everyone in the church stepped up to help, doing tasks from visiting the sick to opening and closing the church doors.
Saturday night was a bit better than Friday night for Paul.  He was awakened only every two to four hours for checks and medications.  After a better night's sleep, a cup of coffee and a shower, he felt a little more like himself. Later Sunday morning, the specialist came to speak to Paul, accompanied by his assistants and interns.  He told Paul they wanted to do more tests since they had found no clear reason such a young man had a stroke.  The doctor told him that the numbness and tingling on his right side would probably subside with time and recommended two weeks of intensive in-hospital therapy, but that his vision was less likely to return to normal.  This was bad news for a man whose work involves much reading and driving.  Before they left, I was able to pray a short prayer with the cohort of doctors, asking God to help them and to heal Paul.
Sunday afternoon, after some visitors came to talk and pray with Paul, he said he could see a little bit of movement on his right side where before he could see nothing!

Paul was well enough by Sunday afternoon to get permission to walk around the hospital courtyard if he held on to a wheelchair.

On Monday there was more evaluation and testing.  Paul had improved so much that the therapists said he did not need in-hospital therapy.  The doctors agreed that he was well enough for out-patient therapy and follow-up, so they released him to leave the hospital. 
Today, Tuesday, Paul is enjoying being at home.  He is doing the exercises given him by the hospital and getting the rest required for his complete healing.  His vision is improving very slowly and the numbness and tingling on his right side is almost gone. We praise God for the surprisingly rapid recovery.
His recovery has involved many small miracles that will soon add up to the miracle of his complete healing. First was the miracle that Paul was able to dial his wife and ask for help even though he could barely see. Second, he was at the hospital in plenty of time to receive the clot-busting drugs.  Third, the drugs did him good and not harm.  Fourth, the stroke specialist was available by video right after Paul arrived at the hospital in Austin and also met him when he arrived in Rochester.  Fifth, he was taken to the best hospital in America to receive his care.  Sixth, people around the world heard of his illness, prayed for him and God heard their prayers.
Please continue to pray for Paul's complete recovery.  We thank God for what he has already done and look forward to reporting his total healing.