Indigestion - Day 47

Today at 4 a.m. I woke suddenly, then fell back asleep. Jim also woke up, went potty and came back to bed. Then he got up again (something I didn't realize) and moved to the recliner, where he managed to fall asleep. When I got up at 6:30, I discovered all this and that he took a pain pill for back pain and indigestion.

I told him he needed to tell me when things were not right, rather than just think he could deal with it himself.  We can pray together.

He had several BMs yesterday and one was loose, so decided last night not to take any Senna.

I called his sister, Dianne, the nurse. She said he needed to take 1 Senna nightly and that a call should be made to UIHC on-call. After all he has had 2 surgeries. Jim didn't want to call. He didn't want to return to the hospital. But he finally agreed to let me call.

In talking with the thoracic fellow on-call, we have come to find out that foods with red sauces, like pizza or pasta with tomato sauce or red wines (that's not a problem with us, considering we don't drink alcohol) can cause more indigestion.

He asked if Jim was taking omeprazole. Well, he was taking pantoprazole before surgery, but was taken off it and had not resumed it. The doctor said he should be on it, as it helps with acid.  He was taking 40 mg twice daily, 30 minutes before breakfast and supper meals.

So, we found a bottle and he has taken a pill before breakfast. It's 7:30 now, and he has had another BM, which is good. He feels a little bit better.

Yesterday, he was hoping to make it to Sunday School today, but now that today is here, that appears very unlikely. His goal is church.

He has been resting since 8. It is now nearly 10. We will leave soon.

I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU UNTIL ... 
Yesterday's devotional writings were a result of readings in Psalm 143:8 and Genesis 28:15.

Psalm 143:8 says ...
"Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning
For in You do I trust;
Cause me to know the way in which I should walk,
For I lift up my soul to You." 

Genesis 28:15 says ...
"Behold, I AM with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to the land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you." 

This last part particularly caught my attention - "I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you."

I thought on it yesterday periodically and again last night when we watched the Christian movie, "End of the Harvest."  God said this to Jacob in a dream. This is a promise made. ...

Is this also a promise to those of us who follow His Son in the current age? What do you think it means? Does it have to do with callings received from the Lord ... like being called to write a book,
to be a teacher, to preach His word ... in season, out of season, when it is convenient, when it is not. Or is it something else?

Today's devotional read was a reminder from Isaiah 55:8 -- "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord." 

and my writings ...

Do not doubt
Do not give in
to "me" thoughts and "me" ways
Do not give up
being aware of Me

Along every road block
I AM with you
whatever this life throws at you
I AM your protector
your refuge
your confidante

See Me
in the midst
of your pain-full days
and pain-free days
I will bring you
through it all

My Ways, My Thoughts
Do not doubt

Live and Love
and Proclaim My Truths
I WILL guide you.
(c) CMOL

GOD'S SIGN
I return to Saturday's devotional reading and read it again.

Rest in the Lord for a while
for you have journeyed along a path
steep and rugged
in days not long ago.

The days ahead,
the way,
is covered with uncertainty.

Wow, it dawned on me -
God was giving me a sign
we, Jim and I
we were to rest in Him
and not get caught up
in all that which draws us down
and away from Him.

The indigestion -
all the discomfort it brings -
and whatever else in its wake
is the uncertainty.
Trust Jesus in every step
He will lead us
through the valley
up and down the hills.
Pick us up Lord
Pick us up and carry us.
Give us strength
through every life moment.
Come to his aid Lord.
In your name I pray.
(c) CMOL

FIFTH SUNDAY FELLOWSHIP 
Through the Lord's intervention, I managed to get done with work shortly after 4:30 p.m., so Jim and I could go with friends Bob and Lorraine to the Fifth Sunday Fellowship at First Baptist Church, Dunkerton. We hadn't been up there since mid-February. The program started at 5 and we arrived at 5:30 p.m. Many FBC members we'd hoped to see were absent, but it was good to visit with those present.

Tummy ache problems erupted again for Jim and he wanted me to call UIHC on-call around 10. The doctor said he needed to give the pantoprazole time to work - a few days.

Jim also is having urinary problems again - not voiding very much and not getting intended results when self-cathing. The UIHC doctor said to drink water more frequently throughout the day.

And, when getting ready for bed, taking out his hearing aids and contacts, he had problems again with the left contact being up high behind his eye. This problem arose the last day he was in the hospital - June 17 - and was corrected with a visit to the eye clinic. This time, he went to sleep with the problem, hoping to get it corrected in the morning.

On the Road - Day 39

Jim slept pretty good, I woke intermittently. We got up around 7 a.m., did Bible study, had breakfast, and then then fell back asleep.

A Scripture verse Janice gave me last night - Zephaniah 3:17,  I re-read, including previous verses. It says -- 

"Sing, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem! 
The Lord has taken away your judgments
He has cast out your enemy.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
You shall see disaster no more.

In the day, it shall be said to Jerusalem;
Do not fear;
Zion, let not your hands be weak.
 The Lord your God in your midst;
The Mighty One will save

He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love;
He will rejoice over you with singing."
(Zephaniah 3:14-17)

I write --

Our God is faithful
He seeks our faithfulness
our trust
in Him, The One
who never leaves us
nor forsakes us
The One who saves us
who rejoices over us
with gladness, with singing
The One who quiets us
with His Love

The Lord, our God,
is in our midst
We have no reason
to be fearful
when it is His Army
we are surrounded by
in front as we move forward
in back as we fall
to the left and right
as we change direction

Be glad and rejoice
with all our heart
as He, The One,
who is glad and rejoices
over us
When we are one in The Spirit
One in The Lord.
(c) Cathy Orrick Luders

Reminds me of the song,  "We are One in The Spirit," written in 1966  by Peter Scholte.  Here are the lyrics:

verse 1
We are One in The Spirit,
We are One in The Lord.
We are One in The Spirit,
We are One in The Lord.
And we pray that all unity may one day be restored

Chorus
And they'll know we are Christians by our love,
By our Love,
Yes they'll know we are Christians by our love.

verse 2
We will work with each other,
We will work side by side.
We will work with each other,
We will work side by side.
And we'll guard each man's dignity
And save each man's pride

verse 3
We will walk with each other,
We will walk hand in hand.
We will walk with each other,
We will walk hand in hand.
And together we'll spread the News
that God is in our land.

A version found on YouTube.com

We have come so far.
Let us not forget from where God has brought us
and where He will have us go
Let us always look to Him
Let us make every effort
to seek His will for us
before we seek our own.

Saturday was a most restful day. Jim and I did things that were not on a must do, have to do list. And we did it at our pace. After lunch, we headed to Quincy, Ill., and shopped at Big Lots! and Kmart, two stores that are no longer part of the Cedar Rapids scene. I found skirts, Jim found a pair of lounge pants (look like torn jeans) that are much easier on his incisions, as the waist band on his regular jeans is too tight. We bought a few other things too, including a DVD of country western movies for he and Larry to watch. It was such a peaceful time, I could have done with 10 more Saturdays just like this one. We watched movies, or talked, or napped, or read, or had mini-massages.

Thunderstorms and tornado watches ruled the night hours. It was so still and humid beforehand, with temperatures in the 90s during the day.

Jim's pain is still present; he takes one pill in the early afternoon and then two at bedtime. His back hurts frequently when we're in the car, so he has a backrest, and he puts a pillow between him and the seatbelt to make the area of the incisions less painful.

We went to bed at 10 p.m.