Our Greatest Need

Dearest friends,
I am writing tonight to ask you to join us in praying for a miracle for our sweet Jude.

Tonight I am not going to go into all of the details of why we know Jude's condition is serious but we simply want ask you to join us in praying specifically for a miraculous healing of Jude's little body. We know that the Lord is able to heal Jude and save his life. And we know that only HE can determine what Jude's path will be.

Later this afternoon, Brian and I met with the doctors one on one about Jude's condition. Essentially, Jude is still a CDH baby...but right now his biggest battle is with several things:

1. Sepsis has made his entire body extremely ill. Sepsis alone is life threatening.

2. Jude's body is extremely swollen and is holding a lot of fluid as a result of ECMO circuit change, his surgery, and his sepsis. Because of this extra fluid Jude has a lot of weight on his lungs and heart. Therefore his lungs and heart are struggling to function or improve. (and his lungs and heart are already struggling because of his CDH)

3. Jude's pleural effusion is back and is also keeping his lungs (particularly his right lung) from working at their full potential. Today the doctors mentioned the possibility of putting in a tube to try to resolve this problem, but this is also a life threatening procedure for Jude because Jude is on an anticoagulant medication (which is needed while he is on ECMO) which could put him at risk for major bleed.

4. Jude has been on ECMO for 18 days. Being on ECMO for so many days is not ideal. There are many serious risks and complications that can occur from being on ECMO for long periods of time. Frankly, the risks frighten us, but Jude needs ECMO right now because he is unable to carry himself. Even so, we know his time on ECMO is running out.

There are many other small medical issues going on in Jude's little body but these are the main concerns. We need a miracle for Jude. Medically, the odds are stacked against him right now. But we are going to the Lord constantly and asking Him to heal Jude. We are asking Him to give Jude the opportunity to come off of ECMO. We are asking Him to give Jude the opportunity to have surgery to repair his CDH. Mostly, we are asking our Lord to save Jude's life.

Today I was spending time with Jude at his bedside and I was praying for each little part of his body. I was praying that the Lord would heal each part of his body and I felt led to ask the Lord to heal all of the problems that are keeping him from coming off of ECMO and getting his repair surgery. And I felt led to ask the Lord to do this in two days...meaning I am praying for amazing healing by Monday. Realistically and medically, this is not likely. But I know that the Lord hears our prayers. Will you join us in praying for Jude to be healed of the problems I mentioned by Monday?

Over the last few days I've had a song stuck in my head (from Psalm 18) that I remember learning in Kids Klub at First Presbyterian Church in Florence when I was young. It has given me great comfort and I thought it was appropriate for today:

I will call upon the Lord
Who is worthy to be praised
So shall I be saved from my enemies
The Lord liveth and blessed be the Rock
And let the God of my salvation be exalted
Please let us know that you are praying....please share our request for prayer with your friends, family and church...please continue to pray for Jude as often as you think of him. We are trusting in the Lord and we know that He may not answer our prayers in the way we hope He will, but we know that He is good and that He loves us.
-Rose
P.S. Many of you have asked us for tangible ways to help us and there is a blog that was set up to guide people with ways that they can help our family. You can find this blog by following the link to Manna for the Moment on the right hand side of the page. But right now, most of all we desire your prayers for Jude's health.