What Difference Does a Hamburger Make?

My oncology nurse friend is all about bringing sunshine into the world. What a joy it must be for her patients who face a riveting cancer diagnosis. Her bright light intersects their darkness with hope. In addition to her nursing job, she is also a volunteer at a charitable organization that is truly a "back-up resource" for families who have a loved one dealing with cancer, and if that's not enough.....she goes to hospice facilities to cheer up the families and their loved ones. I couldn't resist sharing the following story with you. It touched me so much.

Jodi was headed to a hospice facility to visit a patient there. As she approached the facility, a 93-year-old man was sitting on the porch. She greeted him with “How are you doing today?” He responded, "Good -- and I'm working on the pretty!" She remarked that he was a delight and just had to sit down and visit with him a while. They carried on a long conversation and he mentioned “I’d love a hamburger.” She didn’t hesitate to say: “I’ll be right back” and went to get that burger for him. There wasn't a question about whether it was good for him or not -- she knew her attention to him WAS good for him. She came back with the hamburger and a strawberry shake. The dear man had a chair pulled up right next to him for Jodi to sit by him. Jodi said he ate every bite and drank all the shake. She spent over two hours with him. Jodi was beaming as she told me this story. The dear man passed away a few days later.

What makes someone go the extra mile to bring a ray of sunshine into someone's life? Especially when that someone is close to leaving this world anyway. What difference does it make? Here's the difference: Jodi was serving a sweet man that was getting ready to leave this world. I told her she was his midwife -- giving him a sweet, comfortable and beautiful time as he was transitioning to "going home". But, more than the sacrifice of her time for this sweet man, this was about Jodi. She was so grateful for those two hours.

Helping others makes us see what we have.....and makes us even more grateful for it. Helping others makes us happy. There is so much joy in giving. She was grateful. When we help others, it makes us see what we have and makes us more thankful for it. Jodi's acts of kindness are seed planting times. She is already enjoying the harvest of her acts as she experiences such overflowing joy and happiness. “Give….and it shall be given back to you!” Luke 6:38

What difference does it make? Maybe our solution to complacency, boredom, loneliness and sadness is to find some-one or some-place where we can make a difference in someone's life today. It just might be the last act of kindness they will receive, but it will be an act of kindness that will change us FOREVER.

Pay Attention to Those God Nudges

It’s not that I don’t have enough on my plate daily to keep me busy, but when a God nudge comes along; I know I better act on it. Yesterday I started my one half-day a week volunteering at the Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital here in Frisco. I watched this hospital being built and every time I drove by it, I sensed a little nudge to be there to love on those precious children. It’s quite the vetting process to go through to be a volunteer in a health facility, as well as the immunizations and training required. My fellow volunteer, Paz, and I were assigned to the surgery area where we were on hand to serve the families while their young ones were in surgery. We also helped sort medical supplies in the surgical area – thus our trendy surgical scrubs!

What blessed me the most about the morning was being teamed up with Paz, a bilingual teacher who gives time to volunteering at the hospital. Right away, our faith connected us as we talked about God’s goodness. I witnessed how God orchestrates sweet divine appointments as my sweet bilingual friend was able to interpret the surgeon for this young child’s Latino grandmother. I could sense a “divine” connection between the two ladies.

While there, I was reminded of my young self at 13-years-old being a Candy Striper volunteer for Baylor Hospital in downtown Dallas. The unique job title represented the candy cane look of the red and white-striped pinafores we wore. We assisted the nurses by serving the patients in basic ways (i.e., taking them flowers and mail, refilling their water jugs, carrying specimens to the lab, etc.).

Maybe it was because I had a very sick daddy and would have to hang out at the hospital with my mom I acquired the love of serving at the hospital. The notion of wanting to be a nurse started way back then. It didn’t happen in the professional sense, but I sure “nursed” some precious loved ones, especially my mom, my sister, dear friends, and my own children. I was put into the throes of nursing as I cared for my husband in our make-shift “home” hospital, giving him an infusion three times a day. I’ll admit my hesitancy to take on such a role that I only witnessed Registered Nurses performing in the hospital. It did seem overwhelming at first with so many sterilizing techniques, flushing the lines, clamping and not clamping, and calculating the drip timing, but like a good student who practices and prepares, I got it down pretty good:6 am – 2 pm – 10 pm. I was “nursing”!

I shared my “nursing” and “volunteering” story to you today to show you how God brings back some of the most incidental moments of our lives for cultivating heart desires and eventual opportunities to give back the blessings of what we’ve received. It’s a matter of staying on point and being present for God’s sweet nudges that lead to our cups being full and overflowing. A friend of mine kept feeling the nudges to assist in hospice care. Today she joyfully gives of herself in such soothing and heartfelt ways to patients and their loved ones. I have another dear friend who was a teacher for many years. Today she teaches religious education at church. Then there’s my friend who played baseball in college and today he uses his abilities to coach boys’ baseball.

Is there somewhere that you could give a few hours out of your week to help others be the best they can be because you care? Maybe God has given you talents and a desire to be a big brother or big sister, a mentor, or a caregiver just because you want to pay back the blessings you were given. Start by being sensitive to God’s little nudges. I promise you – when you step up to bless others…..you’ll be the recipient of the most blessings.

Proverbs 11:25 “Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”

Infusion in the Body, Spirit, and Soul

Infusion -- To fill or cause to be filled with something. That word has resonated within me several times in the past couple of months when I heard about dear friends who were having to have PICC lines or ports put in because they need frequent intravenous medicines which are so much more comfortable for the patient than multiple needle sticks. I know from experience. Infusion is a word that my Sweetheart and I became all too familiar with during the course of his battle against cancer. He had his share of IV infusions for hydration, nutrition, medication, blood transfusions, antibiotics, and chemo. My childhood dream of being a nurse was somewhat fulfilled as I became well versed in giving him many infusions from the comfort of our home. Thankfully, no more infusions, of that sort, needed. He’s healed, whole and cheering us all on from heaven’s grandstands.

During that season, so many people asked me, "How do you cope with the ups and downs of your faith journey?" I'll tell you how we continued to believe we were "winning" no matter what we faced. When Ron and I first talked about that word, infusion, we looked at it two-fold: one, in the medical sense, but then we started saying….."We are also being 'infused' by God's Word as we continue to trust in His many promises." Psalms 119:130 says "The entrance (infusion) of Your words gives light." When we meditated on God's Word, it brought light and life. As everyone knew, that was the source of our strength, as we meditated, trusted in, and placed our hope upon the infallible Word of God. We believed it was crucial for our success.

Today, in my own journey of faith, I continue with daily “infusions” of God’s Word. Here’s a verse that explains my quest. "If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction" Psalm 119:92. That is so true. It has been my lifeline. It has been my strength. Many times during the faith journey with my husband, and now as a widow, I’ve been literally squeezed, but that's why I want to be so filled with the Word of God that when I AM squeezed – when I am facing a challenge, or when I am at a loss for human understanding, or when I am faced with situations in life over which I have no control, I know that I MUST be so filled with the Word of God that I pour out faith and hope and trust in the midst of the storms. That was our mainstay and continues to be my "shelter in the time of storm" today.

In the Catholic Church, when scriptures from one of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are about to be read, we do the sign of the cross on our foreheads (indicating "May this Word be in my mind"), on our lips (indicating "May this Word be in my mouth") and in my heart (indicating "May the Word be in my heart"). How do we actually get those words into our minds, our mouths and our spirits? By meditating on those words, reading them and speaking them consistently. Being as intentional with believing, trusting and speaking -- taking in God's words, as much as we would take prescribed medications.

So whatever the “issue” is that we may be facing today and whatever the outcome, we know God’s Word that says "with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26)! We are INFUSED with those words. That Word alone is in my mind, my mouth and in my heart. How did it get there? By daily “infusions”.

God Has a Plan -- STAND!

At age 14, I was a volunteer Candy Striper at a Dallas hospital. The unique title went with the candy cane, red & white-striped pinafores that we wore. In those days, I aspired to become a nurse, so I took flowers and mail to patients, refilled their water jugs, and other incidental duties. But, those plans were dashed when I married my handsome 18-year-old sweetheart when, at 17, I graduated high school. I became an office clerk to help put him through college. The next year, I gave birth to our son. If I had it to do all over again -- I’d do it all over again -- because that was the journey that God destined for us! Looking back through the rear view mirror and living with “if only” thoughts does not serve us well. God always tells us to press on, go forward, rise and shine, and "remember not the former things" (Isaiah 43:18)!

Unexpectedly in our journey of faith, I did become an “unofficial” nurse – not as I had dreamed it to be, but one God called me to at the time. My husband had a severe staph infection that required 8 weeks of antibiotics by I.V. After brief training, I was able to give him the I.V. three times a day. I’ll admit my hesitancy to take on such a critical responsibility that I had only witnessed the "pros" (RN's) perform in the hospital. At first, it seemed overwhelming, with so many sterilizing techniques, flushing the lines, clamping and not clamping, and calculating the drip timing, but I got it down quite well.

The challenges we faced were often daunting, and Nurse Donna continued to be on duty until my sweet man graduated to heaven. But, we never wavered from our STAND of faith. God’s Word was our surest foundation in every turn of the road in our journey. We knew our faith, as well as the prayers and support of friends and family, gave us the tenacity to "STAND" and press on to the finish line. These lyrics of gospel recording artist, Donnie McClurkin, “Stand”, undergirded us. I give these words to you to encourage you in whatever role you may find yourself in -- as someone’s nurse, caregiver, companion, friend, or, even to be the one that is the recipient of the love and care - wherever your journey takes you, today, or in the future, let these words resonate within you and encourage you to keep STANDING!

“STAND”, by Donnie McClurkin
Tell me, what do you give when you've given your all,
And it seems like you can't make it through?
Well you just stand, when there's nothing left to do.
You just stand, watch the Lord see you through.
Yes, after you done all you can, you just stand.
You just stand, and endure,
God has a purpose, yes, God has a plan.

Don't you dare give up through the storm, stand through the rain,
Through the hurt, yes, through the pain,
Don't you bow, and don't bend, don't give up, no, don't give in.
Hold on, just be strong, God will step in and it won't be long.
After you've gone through the storm, after you gone through the rain,
After you done all you can.....you just stand.

Nurse Donna On Duty 24/7

At age 14, I was a Candy Striper at a hospital in Dallas. The unique job title represented the candy cane look of the red and white-striped pinafores we wore. Back in those days, I aspired to one day being a nurse, so, like other teenage girls, we volunteered to assist the nurses at the hospital by serving the patients in basic ways (i.e., taking them flowers and mail, refilling their water jugs, carrying medical specimens to the lab, etc.). But, those plans were dashed when I married my handsome 18 years old sweetheart when I was just out of high school, and just 17 years old, and then worked as a receptionist and bookkeeper to help put him through college. Then the next year, when I turned 18, I gave birth to our son. If I had it to do all over again…….I’d do it all over again……..no changes, because it’s been the journey that God destined for us! Looking back through the rear view mirror and being constantly living in the “if only” stages of our lives does not serve us well. God is always telling us to “press on”, go forth, rise and shine, and "remember not the former things"! And, that’s what we’ve been doing for 44 years now.

Fast forward to August, 2010…..after 3 weeks and 2 days in the hospital and the fifth surgery in 3-1/2 months, we are so thankful to finally be at home. Aw…home sweet home…there’s just no bed like “our bed”. But “home” has become somewhat of a make-shift hospital as here I am, at last, being a nurse, but not exactly as I dreamed it would be. Though the severe staph infection has been cleared up per the negative lab reports, my Honey must still be on antibiotics by I.V. for 6-8 weeks to ensure the infection is long gone. So, with a brief training program from our Home Health Care Nurse, I am officially giving him the antibiotics by I.V. three times a day. I’ll admit my hesitancy to take on such a role that I only witnessed the professional Registered Nurses performing in the hospital. It did seem overwhelming at first with so many sterilizing techniques, flushing the lines, clamping and not clamping, and calculating the drip timing, but like a good student who practices and prepares, I’ve got it down pretty good – 6 a.m. – 2 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Pressing through the intense back pain that has continued throughout our journey, and now having to use a walker to assist him in regaining strength to his legs that were so affected by the tumor that had compressed his spinal cord, Ron has prevailed as the known optimist that he has always been. His ability to smile in the face of overwhelming personal challenges has been amazing, not to mention the fact that his work abilities have been affected. Trusting God for provision has been another huge portion of our faith journey. But we continue to insist that our soul (our will, our mind and our emotions) prospers and is in great form! We realize that maintaining a positive and peaceful attitude (soul prosperity) is key as in I John 3:2 “Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.” Physical Therapists will be starting to work with him this week to further assist him.

Today was one of those roller coaster days again as we went to two doctors: the urologist and the oncologist. Neither gave us favorable reports and I’ll confess that I’ve had one of those days where the tears flow in unbelief that in such a short time that we could be faced with so many complex health issues. As reported by the oncologist today, “Because of the fast growth, we must begin chemo treatments immediately.” So we are scheduled to start chemo this Friday (via I.V. in the oncologist’s office for one hour) for the next 12 weeks. We were told “chemo doesn’t cure, but it does slow down, and many times remission takes place”. We’ll believe for that!

So Nurse Donna is on duty, and it’s about time to give my patient his next I.V. We are no less in hope and faith, because God’s Word is still our surest foundation in every turn of the road in our journey. We are strengthened and encouraged by the continuous acts of love and support that is coming our way from our wonderful and dear friends and family. We know your prayers are giving us the tenacity to "STAND" and press on to the finish line. I’m reminded of the words of a song of one of my favorite gospel recording artists, Donnie McClurkin, “Stand”. I leave these words with you to encourage you on your faith journey wherever that may be for you today. Much love to you all! Ron & Donna Wuerch

“STAND”, by Donnie McClurkin
Tell me what do you do when you've done all you can.
And it seems like you can't make it through
Child, you just stand. You just stand. Stand.
Don't you give up!
Through the storm, through the rain.
Through the hurt, through the pain.

[Chorus]
Well, you just stand,
When there's nothing left to do
You just stand.
Watch the Lord see you through.
Yes, after you've done all you can,
You just stand.

Don't you bow, don't bend.
Don't give up, don't give in.
Hold on, just be strong.
God will step in and it won't be long.

Child you just stand!

Aboard Our Hospital Cruise Ship

Several years ago, while we were on the 2nd day of a cruise to the Southern Caribbean, we were just about to retire for the night, when all of a sudden, the lights on the ship began to flicker and then we heard, and felt, the engines come to a fast stop. It was a dramatic sight as people ran to their cabins to get their life jackets. Fear seemed to permeate the passengers. We know many were thinking…. "TITANIC!!!!" On the other hand, Ron and I, completely calm since this was not our first cruise, moved through the passengers to encourage, settle down and help the crew bring peace to the situation. Yes, we had alarming news and even the loss of many vital necessities aboard the ship became cause for anxiety and discouragement. Sparing the details, I'll tell you our cruise ended the next day because the ship's engine had caught fire and as the ship was towed to Montego Bay (150 miles away), several 747 jets awaited to take the 1,500+ guests back to our home destinations. Many people were so upset about the inconvenience and that their cruise had ended so abruptly, but Ron and I kept thinking "something good is going to come out of this". And, indeed it did -- not only did we obtain a full refund for that cruise, but we were given an 8-day cruise for free on the ship and time of our choice. In addition, when we took the next cruise, our flights were overbooked on both legs, so we chose to receive the flight dollars to delay to the next flight -- we received over $1,800 in flight dollars.

So here we are aboard our "Hospital Cruise Ship". When Ron had his back surgery in April, we took ourselves out of the "hospital" mindset while he was recovering, and let our minds imagine ourselves on another cruise. When Ron's dinner tray would come to our room (which we called "our cabin"), we'd have soft music playing and we would share the meal at a table in the room….and later we'd imagine walking the "Promenade Deck" as Ron needed to get his strength back by walking the halls of the hospital. But this trip to the hospital has been very different. One of the nurses, who was our nurse previously, remembered us and asked if we were on the cruise ship again, and my response was "No, not this time -- the waters have been way too rough and the storms have been raging way too much!"

We were admitted to the hospital last Wednesday, July 14th, because of the severe back pain that Ron was experiencing. He began to run 104 degrees temperature and the next day we found out that he had a serious staph infection coming from the original surgery site that would take weeks of treatment. But that was only the beginning. As the tests started to come back that the infection was improving, other symptoms and concerns began to arise, and the pain still continued to increase. As Ron would walk to the wash room, we noticed that his legs had weakened and became rubber-like -- and on three occasions he crumpled to the ground. Immediately, the neuro surgeon scheduled him for a milogram to determine if he had spinal cord compression again (as was in the first surgery in April, yet without neurological symptoms). In addition, lab tests came back showing his creatinine level (which measures the kidney function) was at 4.9 -- our physician came in and said, "He is in kidney failure!" And to add to the negative news, that evening we were told the results of the milogram, "Indeed his spinal cord is being compressed by a tumor that has reappeared on the T-11 vertebrae and there must be immediate emergency surgery to prevent paralysis." Suddenly, we were hearing…."TITANIC!!!" In the natural, it would be so easy to run to get our life jackets and be overcome with panic and fear, because, after all, his body is not in the same strong physical shape that it was in during the first surgery in April. Now, he has only one kidney, no gall bladder or adrenal gland; he is recovering from staph infection and we have been told he has signs of anemia. But, we continue to refuse to live in a state of alarm -- instead we dialed 9-1-1 (that is: Psalms 91:1 -- "He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.") We find that place by our trust and confidence in our Maker -- knowing that He has a plan in place and our part is to seek peace in the midst of the storm. The neuro surgeon left our room, fully expecting to perform the surgery the next day (yesterday -- Friday) if the lab reports were good, and we told him we would know the next morning what God's plan would be by the peace in our hearts. As a family, once again, we prayed, we worshipped God, we sang, and we celebrated the gift of knowing that tomorrow morning, we'd be right in the middle of God's plan. Friday morning came -- Ron's legs were stronger, he looked good, but lab results were not in yet that tell the team if he is ready for the surgery. The doctor's schedule was full with a surgery at St. John's at 7 a.m. and a day of patients to see coming in from all over the state. So the delay and the schedule were our first signals that haste should give way to rest in peace this weekend and get stronger to take on the surgery next week -- especially since our primary neuro surgeon will be back to Tulsa after being out of the country for two weeks. So that's what will happen….and oh, by the way, the lab work did come in and his creatinine level was down to 1.6 today -- normal!!! Thanks be to God!

Today, Saturday, is our son's birthday -- what a great surprise we received when, flying in from Seattle, Ryan, Shawntel and the boys walked into our room last night. Ryan said "There's no place I'd rather be on my birthday, than with my Dad". God did have a plan for this "hospital cruise" -- He knew our children and grandchildren would be here today to enjoy each other, laugh and celebrate. Yes, our "hospital cruise" continues for an extended voyage next week when we will move forward to another phase of our faith journey. Please pray for God's wisdom to our medical team, Ron's body to be fully capable of handling yet another surgery, and that all issues that have shown up in his body become normal. Thank you so much for your love and prayers. Your words of encouragement, your offers to help, and your sincere best wishes have been a true source of comfort to us! Happy sailing and cruising to you and we look forward to seeing you all very soon when we disembark at our Home Port of Call!