Why I Will Never Forget this Thanksgiving

“It’s not a kidney stone. I think it’s Diverticulitis or an obstruction in the colon.” As my husband, Jeff, writhed in pain on Thanksgiving Eve, the doctor’s diagnosis didn’t sound good.

An obstruction?

My first thought was the “C” word. I tried to push it out of my mind but the worry kept creeping back.

How would we handle a serious illness?

Would I need to go back to work to cover medical bills?

How advanced was the disease?

I thought of my husband’s dear mom, Sally, who was diagnosed with Lymphoma Cancer when she was Jeff’s age. Would history repeat itself?

Have you ever been through those “what if’s?”

Because it was a holiday, the doctor suggested we head to the Emergency Room to have blood work and a CAT scan done. That would answer all our questions. Despite the way it looked, I still asked God for a Kidney Stone. It was something I never thought I’d pray for but it would be the best-case scenario.

I now realize why someone who needs medical care is called a “patient.” It takes lots of patience when you are sitting in an Emergency Waiting room. One hour became two, then became three and there were no Lazy Boy’s to recline in. When Jeff was finally placed into a bed and I was still sitting upright in a hard plastic chair, there was an even longer stretch.

However, I am thankful for the doctor and nurses’ great bedside manner and also thankful for the two nurses’ hunch about Jeff’s situation. Both were certain he had a kidney stone even though doctors didn’t paint that picture. One nurse confidently said, “Us nurses are pretty smart.”

We entered the ER at 3:00 p.m. and what seemed like an eternity later, at 10:00 p.m., we had our diagnosis. The scan showed a 7 mm kidney stone. Those nurses were pretty smart after all.

Every ounce of tension that had been building up in my body began to dissolve and I realized God answered my prayer and the prayers of those who walked through the scenario with us.

Things aren’t perfect. The kidney stone is too large to pass. Jeff is still in some pain and will need outpatient surgery, but as I think about all this, I am extremely thankful for a kidney stone this morning. I am also praising God for his Thanksgiving mercy on our family.

The gifts of Thanksgiving don’t always come in the packages we imagine.

What are you thankful for?

We need to praise God for the simple things we often take for granted.

Another breath of life.

The aroma of a turkey baking in the oven.

The laugh of a loved one in the house.

A 7 mm kidney stone.

And I am thankful for the LORD who is still a healer and a restorer of lives.

“Your righteousness, God, reaches to the heavens, you who have done great things. Who is like you, God? Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again” (Psalm 71:19-20).

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I am thankful for you all and am praying that God will show you something new in your personal Horn of Plenty, something you’ve never seen before, one of the daily gifts of love from Him.