There is a Redeemer

Please look on the tributes page for the videos of the services (links from YouTube) are now on the front page.

Thanks again for your continued prayers for our family. This weekend is not only Easter but we get to celebrate a wedding of granddaughter, daughter, and niece. 

We are also celebrating Jesus who died so our parents can be with Him in paradise. He rose again so that the Holy Spirit is left behind for us to continue living here on earth. 

There is a Redeemer ... And leaving your Spirit here 'Til the work on Earth is done.

Thank you again for your support

We appreciate again your support and prayers during the funeral of our Dad. To those who braved the winter storm we are grateful for God's grace and safety that brought you to the funeral safely. We thank those who tried to come but had to turn back because of winter roads. 

 We have laid our parents' bodies to rest in Boissevain. We pray that God was honored in all that was said and done. It was a time of memories and blessings.

Dad's Funeral

It was good for us siblings to get together and talk as we plan for Dad's funeral and both our parents' interment. All are tired, all are spent, and yet we wish to honor Dad and give God the glory for a life that was well lived.

Dad truly believed that "There is a Redeemer" who was the Son of the God who created us to  share His love. So to honor God for the life of our Dad who was loved by God, all are welcome to the following services held: 

- On Friday evening @7pm.  There will be a viewing for our Dad at the Whitewater Mennonite Church.

- On Saturday afternoon @1pm.  There will we a funeral service for our Dad at the Whitewater Mennonite Church.

- On Saturday afternoon after the funeral service.  There will be a short interment service for both our Mom and our Dad held in the Boissevain Cemetery. Refreshments will be served after the interment service.

Just thanks again for your prayers

As we plan a second service in as many weeks, this one for our Dad we ask for your prayers. This time we are more scattered in our separate homes not all gathering at Dad's hospital bed to visit anymore. Pray for continued unity as the same Holy Spirit leads and guides all of us in this time to honour our Dad and lay both their physical bodies to rest. 

We pray as family is again arriving from BC and AB (Ruth's family) and on the road (Jo's husband Mark) and even a mission's trip in Mexico (Irene's husband Pete). At the present time plans for the service are Saturday early afternoon. It again gives those from farther away time to get to Boissevain and return home again safely on Saturday.

Dad has gone to be with Mom

We are praising God and crying. He passed surrounded by his children. He was not in pain and was very peaceful. Please pray for Ruth as she will be flying out today and will be here early tomorrow.

Dad is struggling

Keep us in your prayers as you have been, we know and are grateful for your support.

Still waiting

Dad remains in the burn unit H5, but continues to be very weak and often short of breath There were some good things that happened with Dad, he tried to pull himself over on to his belly after being on his right side for a little while. He again spent a lot of time sleeping. His shortness of breath is about the same and that makes it difficult to talk. Dad is being read the cards he received and he brightens up whenever he recognizes a name. But after a reading of 5 cards or so he becomes tired. We do have access to internet so Dad is able to look at the blog, but right now remains almost too tired to read the posts/comments that have been written. 

.God knows Dad and like Job knows that Dad has lived his life in a way that honors and pleased God, to the best of his ability. Dad is God's child and we give him daily to God's care. At night we pray for a sleep that would restore. Although we are now free to visit Dad much of his time is spent sleeping. His heart continues to be weak, as the burn consumes a lot of his energy in its healing.

God I pray that tonight again Dad would have a good sleep, comfort Dad as only the Holy Spirit can. Minister to Dad's soul and ours please, as we continue to wait on your will in this situation. 

Continuing to Wait on God and His will

Dad has been transferred out of SICU to H5 the burn unit again. He is happier to be there, yeah! God continues to be with Dad as one sister puts it. We continue to pray for an increase in strength as God continues to heal Dad. May God's Spirit continue to rest in Dad's room as he sleeps tonight. So Dad can meet his visitors again but remains very tired as his body struggles to heal from his burns. As we wait for the  will of God to be done in Dad's life we pray for a continued awareness of God's presence as He works out that will in Dad and our lives.

Some good things to praise about.

Praise the Lord! The infection control is lifted. Dad's open wounds are now 15% and the risk of infection has decreased. The glass door is opened. Of course Dad slept away the opportunity to enjoy the fresh air and chances to finally see his visitors without masks, gowns or gloves. We are still using good hand-washing technique of course!

We are grateful for all the staff who have been caring for Dad to this point, for the doctors who patiently answer all our questions over and over again.

Some of the family again had a good meeting with the doctors to express some of the wishes Dad stated yesterday. We continue to work out Dad's care and what is best for him with many prayers to God who is in control. 

God we pray for continued waiting on your will to be done here, that You may be honored and glorified in this situation. We pray for Dad's continued awareness of your presence in his room as we trust God for continued healing and comfort in this situation. 

Peace in the Muddy Waters

Not sure what to post today so we will post these scriptures that have come to us throughout the day. Please continue to pray for us all as we walk this journey with our Dad. 

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. (2 Thessalonians 3:16) 

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Co. 4:16-18) 

I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. 20 I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. 21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: 22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” 25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; 26 it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. (Lamentations 3:19-24)

From a card: The storms of your life will NOT overwhelm you, His LOVE will. 

"He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace be still" And the wind ceased and there was a great calm" (Mark 4:39)

God right now we pray for peace in the heart of our Dad, in the room where he is sleeping tonight, set your four angels as guards over his room. We know your Spirit is there with him. We know you love him. God we pray against any wrong spirit or desire that would keep Dad and us from not letting your will be done in this situation. God we pray for peace in the muddy waters that would cloud Dad's brain so that through this all, You God would be honored and glorified. 

God's presence

Just a short note for now.

The sickest part of Dad is his heart. He is very weak because his healing is pulling all his nutrients from his muscles(even his heart) Dr Locksetti is starting blood thinners( risk of bleeding to death) outweigh risk of heart attack and they will not operate - therefore there will be a longer healing  time and risk of infection remains through out that time. God is still in control.

Dad had a tough day yesterday as after the dressing his pain and frustration levels increase. He continues to attempt to bribe the nurses and family to buy him pants and help him get out of the room. But that is part of his disorientation, pray for patience in those who are at dad's bedside both staff and family as we pray for continued healing and God's presence to be felt in Dad's room,  

Our Days are in God's hands

Pete here, Okay where to start. Since going back to ICU dad has sort of plateaued. His heart and lungs are continuing to give him trouble. They did an echo cardiogram on him and it looked not bad, but yet enzyme levels are up in his blood. This signifies weakness (damage) or at least that the heart muscles are significantly stressed. His breathing has been laboured and shallow again the last few days. The cardiac doctors have been saying that his heart will not be strong enough for additional surgeries. 

Tomorrow - There will be a major dressing change and the head plastic surgeon will take a look at Dad's wounds to decide whether that is required. Dad is still hanging on to the rope but it looks like he is starting to slip. Pray for peace and wisdom as the next few days may be crucial. 

On a praise note.

The last few days we his family have noticed that Dad's spirit has been more at rest and at peace with his Lord. Lately when someone comes to do morning devos with dad he has started praying as soon as you finish reading the passage. He also has started to think of others. eg. Amanda came to do devos with me one morning and dad says "Well look who's here. How many days?" Amanda answered "23". (days until her and Jordan's wedding. One night he got his nurse to read scripture for him. One morning the nurse asked "Wally do you know where you are?" Dad's answer "Yeah, right here beside you". 

And another positive note. Dad no longer has the BiPap machine on to help his breathing as he did last night. Margaret had just been in with Dad and she watched as he had the most "Dad" kind of sleep she had seen in a long time. 

Lord send your Spirit to continue ministering to Dad's spirit. He your child needs the comfort that comes from knowing You. 

Thanks for all the love and support that you all have shown to us. 

Continued awareness of God's presensce

After reading the devotions, Dad started the prayers for the family on his own. It was so good to hear that Dad is praying and initiating prayer on his own. This is a good sign, it is a good indication that the Holy Spirit that we continue to pray into his hospital room is prompting Dad's heart to pray. It also indicates that no drugs are clouding that prompting. His character is shining through as he starts to joke with the nurses.

Pray that he gets a good night's rest tonight. Dad continues to improve medically, despite his Hgb being low and needing a unit of blood; other indicators show he may be able to move back to the burn floor in a few days. We pray that his heart will be strengthened to be able to withstand the work of healing.

We covet the awareness of God's presence on this part of the journey in Dad's life and ours as He works out the healing of Dad's physical body and spirit.  

May God be glorified

Lisa's Report

Romans 12:12   "Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer."

quote from the Daily Bread today which Dad really liked -
 "Our prayer...may not necessarily rush God into action, but..places us before Him in fellowship."
  The most important thing we can do is to be in fellowship with God - like Dad says God created us so He could love us.

   Dad's day was pretty quiet.  Early this morning He was excited to see granddaughter Amanda and asked her, "how many days?".  Her answer 23 surprised her dad Pete, who was in there as well till he remembered it is 23 days till Amanda's  wedding. Later for most of the day Dad was sleeping.  Recovering from a busy day on Thurs of dressing changes and all.  In the times he was awake we read the Bible and prayed.  Dad is continuing steadfastly in prayer and often instigates the prayer times.  Last night he also asked his nurse to read the Bible to him.  May God be glorified and may He draw many to Him through this situation. 

  So I will end with prayer - a prayer that Dad & Mom often loved for us to pray together as a family.

   "Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.  For Thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever Amen.

Day by Day

This was the message in the devotions that we read to Dad this morning and again later in the afternoon. It was a dressing day again, so that means a fair amount of discomfort---pain for Dad.

It has been tough to see him frustrated with being in the fishbowl room again. We thank God for the opportunity to talk with staff a little bit about his frustrations. Each day we have new things to think about and we are only to think about each day as God gives us them. So as we daily give God our concerns and cares, we give God the care of our Dad daily into his hands.

We left Dad peaceful again this evening. He had settled and in a wee moment when he opened his eyes we prayed and said good night. Then when he appeared to be settled again we went to sleep ourselves knowing God is in control and daily taking care of us and Dad.

(PS. I, Ruth am going back to BC tomorrow, but there will be someone keeping up the blog for those who continue to pray for us as a family and in particular those who are praying for Dad in a special way. {I will be one of the readers now}. There continues to be a long journey ahead of us but we know God has been faithful to us in the past and continues as we move forward.)

How Great is our God

Thanks so much for all your prayers. For those who stayed with Dad. For all those who attended the memorial. For all those who watched the memorial. For all those who participated whether in food preparation or service.. For pastor Wes who gave a great message on: Zephaniah 3:17

For the Lord your God is living among you.
    He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
    With his love, he will calm all your fears.
    He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

.We were able to honor and give thanks to God for our Mom, Grandmother and friend as we committed her to be enjoying everlasting life in heaven and at peace with the God who remains here with us.

Update from my brother: Dad is fine. Heart and breathing better. Sleeping like a baby.

Dad spent the evening with the pastor who was with him during the service until my brother was able to be there again after the service. "God is great", and we can say, "All the time"

Just another spiral

Message from Pete at 1:23pm:

"Okay, so I don't know what to say or pray right now. Docs just came to check Dad out and at 2pm he is going back to ICU. There is still a big risk of infection (his temp was up again this am) and there is continued concern over his heart and breathing."

This message leaves those of us already in Boissevain preparing for Mom's memorial very torn. We want to be in Winnipeg with our Dad but at the same time we want to honour and remember Mom with the community where she was so loved. 

Continue to pray with us as we leave Dad in God's hands as we gather this evening and go to to Mom's memorial tomorrow.

Moving upwards

The train is slowly moving upward at this point. Dad was moved to the burn unit H5 in Health Sciences Centre, It was a busy day for Dad. Not only did he have one of his biweekly 2 hour dressing changes, the change included removing nearly 300 staples around his graft site. One of the doctors (his surgeon is on conference right now) was less positive about the healing at this point, We knew that there will be a long time of healing for Dad. We continue to ask God for miraculous healing.

Dad continues to work against some of the odds that make this healing difficult. He went into this journey with heart issues, diabetes, some arthritis in the hip which is the donor site and a larger size than your average bear. Please pray for healing in these areas as well so the miracle that caused him to escape from the fire train experience where Mom got out at the first stop. 

We continue to plan and many of us will be gathering tonight in Boissevain area for Mom's memorial. We pray for a safe journey for all those making the trip from far and wide. Thanks again for your support.

A Positive Move

Dad will most likely be moved to the burn unit tomorrow, H5 at the Health Sciences Centre. He still is in bed and moved with transfer sheets to a chair. He is no longer medically unstable although he will continue to be in isolation until the healing of his burn graft site and other wounds only cover 10% of his body. It would be good when they can start to get him up walking but that opportunity was not given to him in SICU. It has been a month since he last stood or walked. We pray for continued strength and healing as Dad moves to the next phase of this journey.

As you note below my brother has posted a link for those of you who because of work or other reasons are unable to attend the memorial for Mom there will be a live stream happening. We have set this up so that Dad is able to watch from his room in the hospital. We pray that there are no glitches, a granddaughter and her techie husband as well as a friend will be with Dad in the room when the feed is happening.

We praise God for bringing us this far and trust Him as He carries and leads us through the rest of the ride he has put us on.

Live Stream of the Memorial for Mom

Moms memorial will be held at 1:00 PM Central Time on Wednesday March 26th.  We will be streaming it to Dad in the Hospital.  The stream will also be available here.   It will be embedded in the page called Video of Mom's Memorial.  It can be access from the menu bar along the top.