Jesus Wins Again!

What do you do when your plans for the future get cancelled before they even really begin? I was forced to confront this question at the age of seventeen.

Days away from graduating from one of the most prestigious prep schools in New York City, having been accepted to the college of my choice, and with the whole world ahead of me, I received news that would alter the course of my life. During a routine physical exam in advance of college registration, a routine blood pressure screen measured a life threatening blood pressure of 240/160 – a stroke was imminent. We caught it in time – God intervened and said it wasn’t my time yet. Jesus wins again!

Further exams, blood tests, and a biopsy revealed further devastating news. The diagnosis was end stage kidney failure – requiring rigorous dialysis treatments three times weekly for the rest of my life. How could this be? This wasn’t the plan. The enemy had a plan for the purpose of my destruction, but God’s plan was to frustrate the enemy’s plan and to bring glory to His name.

Less than a year later after beginning dialysis, finally, some good news. Perhaps things were starting to look brighter. The medical team notified me that a kidney was available for transplant. I quickly went to the hospital to prepare for transplant surgery when I was told that I would not be able to have surgery that evening because I had contracted the flu or a virus and had a fever. More devastating news. However, the next day, the fever subsided and the transplant proceeded as scheduled with great success. Jesus wins again!

One month later, another fever. This time, an examination showed that the recently transplanted kidney was starting to reject. I returned to the hospital and despite the several medications pumped into my system and despite the best efforts of the medical team, the kidney rejected after only one month. As a consequence of being inundated with powerful anti-rejection medications which weakened my immune system, I contracted a severe case of pneumonia which placed me very close to death. The prayers of loved ones and saints around the world, the grace of God, and the healing stripes of Jesus defeated the pneumonia and brought me back from death’s door. Jesus wins again!

So now here we are, 30 years from the initial diagnosis. This year will mark 29 years of dialysis, approximately 4,500 treatments – still standing as a living testimony of the miracle working power of God. Most dialysis patients will have a life expectancy of 10-15 years, but by God’s grace I have doubled that and continue to thrive. Jesus wins again! Real talk - it is not easy. Every single day I suffer pain and weakness in my physical body. I mourn the fact that because of my physical limitations, I cannot provide for my family everything I hoped to provide, or be to my family everything I hoped to be. But I thank God that His strength works best in my weakness. He turns tragedy into comedy. What you’ve once cried about will be your launch pad into laughter. I believe that this is not the end of the story, but there is yet a complete miraculous healing yet to come.

To those who believe that healing and miracles are not for today, I stand as living proof that God continues to heal and perform miracles. Because Jesus wins, I win! We all win!