For February 15th

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

In March of this year, my husband had a heart attack at home. After calling 911, he was transported to the hospital and stabilized. The doctors determined he had a blockage in the main artery of his heart and needed a stent to open the artery. They took him to recovery and the doctor told us he was doing well and we could go see him in a few minutes. In a few minutes they called us back. We were expecting to be taken to recovery, but instead they told us he was having another heart attack. The stent had completely closed off - something that rarely ever happens. They rushed him back into surgery and within minutes had the artery back open and an additional stent inserted. They came back and told us he would be in the ICU and the next 12 hours would be critical. He did well and it appeared again all was going well. Then later that night they removed the catheter and he started to bleed out. They were finally able to get the bleeding stopped but he was very weak and in a lot of pain. We were able to go home in the next few days, both our minds and bodies exhausted and scared from the roller coaster ride we had been riding for the past week.

Once home, we were scared the stent would block again.  For the next two or three weeks we were tied to the hip, neither wanting to leave the other’s side. After several weeks, my sister asked if we could go shopping. He was in good spirits, so thinking it would be nice to get out of the house for awhile, I agreed. We had been gone 30 or 40 minutes so I sent Mike a text to see if he was okay. There was no response after 5 minutes, so I called his cell phone, again no answer. Then I called the home phone, no answer. I told my sister we need to leave. As we headed home, the traffic was terrible. I called our daughters to see if they had talked to him but no one had. So, I started calling continuously by hitting redial. Once we were at home, I was prepared to find him in trouble. Praise the Lord! He was asleep in his chair and his cell phone ringer turned off and didn’t hear the house phone. I quietly touched his arm. He awoke saying, “Oh hey, did you have a good time shopping?” I replied, “Why didn’t you answer your cell phone?” He responded, “Oh, did you call?” and I told him to look at his phone. “Oh, you called 42 times, I’m sorry I worried you.” I walked away completely spent, weak, and with shaking knees. I told my sister, “I can’t ride this roller coaster anymore. I’m completely worn out and weak.” She left shaken herself and I went to the bathroom - I think to scream or cry.

I was standing in front of the mirror and that’s when God spoke to me. He said, “Be at Peace. He’s going to live to be an old man.”  At the same time, a peace filled my body and mind and I knew not to worry anymore.  Mike has fully recovered from his heart attack without any damage to this heart. "I am filled with gratitude for peace and Mike's recovery."

Prayer: Dear God, help us not to worry but to trust you everyday, in every situation, realizing that You are in control and together we can handle anything. 

Beth Tribble