Loading

Our purpose is to keep those who are praying for john updated on his progress visually. We want to thank you for your prayer support and encourage you in prayer and praise to God as we see God's hand at work.
We don't know how long before complete recovery or how much can be recovered but we're experiencing God's grace daily. Our hope is in God who knows the desires of our hearts and will only give good things to His children.
We don't intend to blog daily, probably weekly or alternate weeks.

Below is an article written by Bro. KS Gan for Emmanuel EFC bulletin......

Milestone of Thanksgiving
22 October 2008

“Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you
my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of
your wings until the disaster has passed.” – Psalms 57:1

Today marks a major milestone in the progress of John’s physical recovery. I remembered the
emergency call by Simon seeking the church prayers for John on that frightful morning. Simon
caught a glimpse of a boy with familiar spiky hair being carried into the lift, and he rushed forward to see who the boy was. His heart skipped a thousand beats when he realised that it was his beloved boy. Meanwhile hotel personnel had efficiently called Ruth in the hotel room to say that a man with red t-shirt is with the boy who nearly drowned and is in a van rushing to the PD hospital. Hoping against all hope, Ruth called Simon, to eliminate that red t-shirt man was not Simon. But it was Simon and it was John.

Simon related how the father of the 2 boys who swum together with John noticed that John was missing from the boys’ company in the pool and promptly ordered the boys to go into the pool to search for John. They found John lying on the bottom of the pool. The father jumped in to pull John out of the water, applied CPR, based on what he saw from TV. Later the hotel’s event manager took over to administer CPR under the watchful eyes of a doctor there who was a guest there. John’s fingertips, when pulled out, were already blue, but his arms and legs were
limp and not stiff. Stiffness would mean that one is out of oxygen for too long. Within minutes of CPR, John’s finger tips had turned reddish, amidst all the coughing out of water and fluid. Hotel had the van running already waiting for John and Simon. PD hospital is one of the most experienced hospital in Peninsular Malaysia to treat near drowning cases due to the frequent cases of drowning there.

John was transferred to Seremban Hospital as PD was not staffed with a fits specialist. Seremban Hospital is well equipped as it houses IMU medical students who do their clinical experience there. Hotel and medical personnel were helpful and prompt in their follow-up services. For 25 days in the Seremban Hospital’s ICU, we were acquainted with news of
John’s condition, battered, severe, grim, and grave. Helplessness descended on us.

John was fighting for his life and doctors told Simon and Ruth to prepare for the worst in the initial ordeal. Lungs were so cloudy on day one, when it would only be such on day three. In attempt to ventilate his lungs with oxygen punctures his lung, and the tube thrusted into John’s mouth broke his tooth. His livers were also infected, paracetamol could not be prescribed for fear of injuring the livers. On doing the MRI scan, we were unsure whether John could hold out breathing on his own for 45 minutes.

For 25 days we were treated to a wilderness experience. For 25 days we do not know when our drink for the thirst of asking “whys” would ever be quenched, nor do we know where our food to satisfy our worries, pain, frantic holding on to our faith would come from and be in sufficient quantities. We were afraid that the hotness in the wilderness day, would dehydrate our sorrowful souls and the coldness of the desert night would mercilessly drain our last bit of energy of holding out and keeping sane. We see desert and sand everywhere. We see lifelessness all around, ready to pounce on easy targets and we see vultures circling for the bodies of our grief. But we also see a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, all demonstrative of God is in and within our midst. Little did we know that the cloud also provided cover from a hot afternoon, and the fire at night keeps us warm. A wilderness experience exposes our weaknesses, it exposes that in all our technological advancement we are so vulnerable to even basic life issues, we are
helpless. Then the manna and the quail become agents of a trustworthy God, it increases our dependence on Him. Our weakness and His power and strength, a potent combination.

For the past 25 days we see the goodness and the hand of God, leading each step of the way, providing healing bit by bit, not more and not less, just as the exact sufficiency of manna for the day for the Israelites. We see the Hoos surrounded by angels. They have long and unique
names. Some angels are called ‘the father who jumped in to save’ and ‘one who
gives a kiss of life’. Some are called ‘Dawn who accompanies the girls by night’, while others are called, ‘neighbour who fetches to school’, and ‘Susan who does wet marketing’, while many are
called ‘those who prays, visits and encourages.’

Today is a milestone day. As surely as we cried our depths to Him, we shout our joys to Him today, always. Today, John moves out of ICU into the pediatric ward. Simon made acquaintanceship with a Malay father whose child is still in the ICU for more than 100 days. ICU is a depressing place, many come in and few leave alive.

We are grateful to a God who knows just how much we can hold on, who knows the right moment when there are no more tears left to shed before cynicism sets in, and who knows how close the dagger is put at our hearts. While we are barely holding our battered fort, tearing, and close to being pierced, He acts just in time, He saves. And His salvation is often like that provided for of the Israelites at the starting side of the Red Sea with the mighty Egyptian army menac
ing zeroing down. Jehovah told the Israelites to stand still, and see Jehovah’s salvation at work.

We are thankful to a God who requires us to do nothing but trust. Just as well, we do not know what to do. We are thankful to a God who preserves and ministers to Johnand the Hoos. We are a blessed community, because our Saviour is The Blessed One.

We have much to be thankful to God for. We remain prayerful and hopeful of a God who saves, who heals and who delivers, for John, for the Hoos, and for anyone who dares to put his or her trust in this God who appears to be silent, who appears to be aloof, who appears to be out of touch, who appears to not be in control, but acts and wills according to His good purposes, in the nick of time, in His own time.

We are at the river Jordan, awaiting to go into the promised land. As God continues his work of healing on John, all that is demanded of us is to be faithful and march across that Jordan river. A river that separates what was and what is to be, that separates what was promised to us and the promise received. It’s a river that helps us to remember His covenants. We call Him, Lord and He calls us His children. By calling Him, Lord, there is a covenantal relationship that He obliges to honour with us. We leave the healing to God, that is His job, our job is to be obedient and having a posture of prayer and dependence on Him. For even in thedesert of lifelessness, he provides nourishment.
May the Lord grant us a good gift and complete the healing of John he begun and bring him back to consciousness and awareness.
The Lord be with us all.
“In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever.”
– Psalms 44:8