Extraordinary Reality

**This is the third post in the series, Holly's Healing. To start from the beginning, click here.**

Holly’s road to healing was a long and winding road. Her care at the hospital shifted dramatically as each expert came and gave their perspective. At one point the Lord spoke the word, “jibe.” I could remember from lessons as a child that jibing is a sailing technique in which a "zig-zag" pattern is used to sail downwind. Many sailboats are significantly faster using this technique, and it can be safer than running straight downwind. Although the path may seem longer from the vessel’s perspective, the increased speed more than makes up for the extra distance. Armed with this insight, my husband Casey and I were prepared to trust God’s care through the team of doctors at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. The Lord was teaching me to relax and watch Him direct Holly’s healing.

This insight helped us trust God the day of her plastic surgery. We had previously met with one surgeon who explained what she would be doing to reconstruct Holly’s nose and insert plates to hold the external bones of her face together. A few days after that consultation, we received a call informing us the surgery had been moved to the main hospital campus and a different surgeon would be doing the work. I believed this was by God’s hand. What we didn’t expect was a completely different approach. There was no time to question in the moments leading up to surgery; we were in God’s hands and had already decided to trust the surgeon God had chosen to do the work.

Walking through trauma into healing with Holly allowed me to see childlike faith in action. I watched and was encouraged as Holly released that which we as adults tend to hold on to and carry like a burden. I witnessed how she passed through pain, passed through fear and many other emotions, letting go of all things temporal like her appearance. When we brought her home from the hospital, our youngest son couldn’t even look at her. Jesus calmed my emotions by allowing me to see she wasn’t staying in those dark places, but walking through to freedom on the other side. In those moments of faith I could see her healing would be complete.

Sure enough, the outside healing was perfect. We had an exceptional surgeon who did amazing work. Six weeks after the accident I held a picture up to Holly and confirmed, aside from residual bruising, she looked exactly the same! This is stunning when you know she was unrecognizable after the accident. Two years later, her first x-ray was taken for orthodontic purposes. The orthodontist confirmed, the plastic surgeon did a phenomenal job. Today, there is no external trace a tree ever fell on her head!

Using ordinary doctors and hospitals, God caused us to walk in an extraordinary way. With tangible hope, hope that we could actually grasp and put into action, we were able to navigate a life-threatening situation with relative ease. When fear crept in, when Satan filled my mind with “what-ifs,” I was able to recall God’s personal Word and affirm my trust in Him. More than once I was tempted to worry and use the circumstances to support my fears. However, God had spoken directly to the situation, and His Word settled the issue. I chose to believe Him in those moments of fear. 

Through trust and obedience, the Lord taught me what it means for a Christian to “walk on water.” While our circumstances may be subject to the fallen nature of the world, God empowers His children to walk above the common pitfalls and valleys of the natural man. A child who experiences severe trauma or loss often carries emotional baggage for the rest of their life. The stress of the experience can even cause developmental challenges or delays. Because of this, many parents fear for their children which drives them to control their child’s life in attempt to avoid pain and suffering. But 365 times the phrase, "Do not be afraid," is written in the Bible. The extraordinary reality is that God’s children are enabled to walk through trauma without being traumatized.

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