Our Story, Part Forty-Eight (Pick Up Your Sword)

"Take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit
which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions,
with all kinds of prayers and request.
With this in mind, be alert
and always keep on praying 
for all the Lord's people."

Ephesian 6:17-18

This has been a very difficult blog for me to write, and often times when this happens, God has something He needs to show or remind me in order to help me move forward.  The comforting part about this is that I truly cannot move forward in my writing without God.  All last week, I struggled to even be able to formulate a sentence.  Finally, last Saturday, I did begin to make a little progress. Later that morning, however, everything came to a screeching halt when my son, Brady, told me that he wasn't able to eat.  He went on to explain that this has been coming on for some time now, and that he hadn't had much of an appetite in the last month. It was then that I noticed he looked like he had lost some weight.  He also looked a little pale and weak in his eyes. I asked him to go weigh himself, and we were both shocked when the scales showed he had dropped 15 lbs!   

For most anyone, unexplained weight loss, of that amount, in someone who does not have any extra weight, would be a cause for concern.  But for me personally, this triggered a much deeper level of fear. The last time mysterious weight loss had occurred in one of my children, it had resulted in an emergency helicopter ride to Children's Hospital and a diagnosis of chronic disease.  I tried hard not to let my thoughts go there, but as the day progressed, Brady continued to get worse.  By Saturday night, he felt horrible and hadn't been able to eat all day. Here we were, less than two weeks out from his high school graduation, and to make matters worse, because of a recent change in jobs, we were without medical insurance for the next two weeks.  I had just been informed of this temporary lapse in coverage a few hours earlier. 

Although I tried to fight it, by the time I got in the bed that night, I was overcome with fear and anxiety! Was God really going to allow something like this to happen now?  Somehow, I finally managed to fall asleep, but as it often goes, I woke up in the wee hours of the morning with my thoughts going to the absolute worst case scenario: What if this is auto-immune disease?  Rapid weight loss was the first sign that something was wrong in both Kaylee and Barret! How could I possibly take on another battle right now? Are any of my children going to be spared?  These anxious thoughts continued on for hours.

Even as I am in the middle of sharing our story about Kaylee's healing, and trying to encourage people not to accept disease as God's will or plan for their lives, it is still my first inclination to question God when things go wrong.  I suppose that this is because I am fully aware that He does allow bad things to happen when He has the power to stop it!  I mean, after everything I have already been through, don't I deserve some kind of "protective bubble" or something, at least concerning my children's health?  I began to question God, and as I did, feelings of hopelessness and despair began to overtake me. I didn't want to question God. I didn't want to revisit that dark place; but in that moment, I felt so weak.  

Fortunately, I had informed my mother about what was going on with Brady, and while I was having my "meltdown", she was praying!  All throughout the night, while the fear had weakened my ability to fight, she stood in the gap for me.  To my surprise, when Brady woke up, on Mother's Day, he was able to eat again. By the next morning, I was feeling stronger as well (even without much sleep). God began to bring things to my mind that would help Brady.  I went to the health food store and picked up some Primal Defense (probiotics) and digestive enzymes.  I loaded him down with supplements, and by that night, he was able to eat a full meal without any of the problems he'd been having the day before.  He is not fully recovered (and I would appreciate any prayers) but I believe with all of my heart that God touched Brady's body as my mother prayed that night.  I also believe, as a result of these prayers, I received strength so that He could then lead me in what I needed to do for Brady.  He has continued to improve throughout this week.  

Ryleigh, my youngest daughter, has been reading the book Heaven is For Real. For anyone who may not know, this is a true story about a little boy named Colton who took a trip to heaven while he was on the operating table, close to death.  During this trip to heaven, Colton's father had been in another room in the hospital praying (and having a "meltdown" which sounded similar to my own).  Colton later told his father that, before he went to heaven, he "went up out of" his body and saw him (his daddy) in a room praying. This was the beginning of many experiences Colton would go on to share with his father about this time. There is a movie out, based on this book, and if you haven't seen it yet, it's a must see!  It is a very fascinating and touching story. I personally love it when God uses innocent children to bring us powerful messages!  

After Ryleigh finishes reading a new chapter, she will come tell me about it.  Monday morning, she told me that she was so shocked by what she read that she dropped her book.  "Mama!" she came in the room to tell me.  "Did you know that Satan is not in hell yet?"   

I hadn't really thought about it like that before, and apparently neither had Colton's mother.  One night, after watching the movie, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, she said to Colton, "Well, I guess that's one thing you didn't like about heaven - no swords up there."  

"There are too swords in heaven," he quickly corrected her. 

Surprised by his response, she questioned him as to why they would need swords in heaven. 

"Mom, Satan's not in hell yet," he said, almost scolding. "The angels carry swords so they can keep Satan out of heaven!"  

As Ryleigh was enthusiastically sharing all of this with me, it suddenly hit me: If the angels have to continue to stand guard with their swords IN HEAVEN, why should I expect it to be any different for me here on EARTH?  I then had a funny thought. What if one of the angels, assigned to guard heaven's gates, was to have a "meltdown" the way that I did the other night?  What if the angel suddenly dropped his sword, started to cry, and began to question God as to why Satan was continuing to come after him?  Can you even imagine something like this?  I was reminded, again, that God never promised us it would be easy. But He has equipped us with a powerful sword (the word of God). And although he may not give us a "protective bubble", we have our shield of faith with which we can extinguish those flaming arrows the enemy shoots our way! Saturday night, I put my shield down, and when I did, Satan had full range to come after my thoughts and fill my mind with fear. Thankfully, I had a mother stand up and take over the battle for Brady that night!

God brought me the reminder I needed, and it came from Colton, through Ryleigh: Satan is not in hell yet! As long as we are here on this earth (and apparently even in heaven), we will continue to battle against evil!  God has always been very merciful with me in my times of weakness, but it makes things much harder on me when I start to question Him. It makes me weak.  

On another note, what if one of the angels was to lay down his sword and say, "God is in control." This is another common mistake that Christians are making these days. We have been called to be an active part of the on-going battle! We will continue to encounter evil on this earth.  We will continue to struggle with sin and disease. As I have continued to say, disease is NOT the calling God has on our life.  But if we lay our swords down and begin to believe this lie, it can greatly impact or hinder the greater plan God has for our lives. 

It wasn't long after I met Mason for the first time that I talked Michelaine into coming to visit us in Auburn.  Mason was in-between hospital visits to Cincinnati, and although Michelaine had found a place for them to live temporarily, she wasn't very happy with these new living arrangements.  Among other things, she felt that the environment was not good for Mason.  I convinced her that it might be good for them to get away for a bit and to come spend a little time with us. I was very excited when she accepted my offer.

It was the summer of 2011, nearly three years since Kaylee had received her healing, and although I felt God leading me, my confidence had been seriously shaken in that three year period. If Mason's healing had been dependent on my faith or prayers at the time, we would have been in big trouble.  But I wasn't really thinking that far out yet. I was just hoping that I could build a relationship with Michelaine and establish some trust with Mason.  I was counting on God to take over from there. 

With my limited, human vision, the circumstances surrounding their lives appeared insurmountable. But God certainly appeared to be at work, and even the fact that Michelaine had gone from not responding to my messages, to making a trip to my home, was evidence of God's involvement. Following Kaylee's healing, I had felt a calling on my life to share our testimony, and God seemed to be giving me a perfect opportunity.   

Although I knew that Mason was very bad off, it was still overwhelming to see all that Michelaine was having to do just to keep him alive. I didn't even realize that it was possible for someone to live in that condition without being hospitalized. I had planned out meals for them, but Mason was not able to eat.  He had to be hooked up to a feeding machine so that he could receive his nutrients for twelve hours every day.   

In addition to a large backpack Michelaine had to bring with her to carry this feeding machine, she also brought along a large diaper bag which contained numerous other medical supplies.  I was shocked when she pulled out two gallon size bags full of maintenance medications. I had never known of any adult to be dependent on that much medication. I couldn't help but think about all the possible long-term side effects he was facing if this continued. But this was the least of their worries at that time. Every day that Mason was still alive was only because of all the medical intervention he was receiving. It was a very different reality than anything I had ever faced with Kaylee.  His reality helped put our miracle back into perspective for me.  

I couldn't even begin to imagine all the effort it had taken for Michelaine to make this short, over-night trip to my house.  She had two 8x11 sheets of paper on which she had written down all of Mason's medications and doses just to keep track of it all. Along with these medications, he also required a bi-weekly shot of Humira to help control the inflammation in his body.  These shots, which cost $80k per dose, were the only success they had seen in controlling the symptoms of this extremely aggressive disease.  The doctors had warned Michelaine that they weren't sure how long this would continue to work for him. I will never forget the sound of his scream the first time I heard him inject himself with this shot!  

Other than all the medical supplies (which included the bag attached to his abdomen for the elimination of waste) and his frighteningly, thin stature, Mason appeared to be a completely normal 13-year-old boy. In fact, it wasn't until he walked through the door that I began to consider that I knew very little about him other than his illness.  Naturally, it is always concerning, as a mother, to bring a young teenager, whom you know very little about, into your home when you have younger children. But within moments of these concerns hitting me, I felt a peace. I sensed the strong presence of God shortly after Michelaine and Mason arrived at our home. I could instantly feel God's intense love for Mason.  

During this first visit, I was able to share more of the details of our testimony and the things God had taught me throughout that time.  I wanted to encourage Michelaine to fight this disease and not to accept the lie that it was God's perfect will or plan for Mason's life.  I explained to her how this had been the first obstacle I had to overcome before God could teach me how to fight her disease. I didn't have to do a lot of convincing. Michelaine had already seen this for herself.  She described to me the times when Mason had died in the hospital and been brought back. There was no doubt in her mind that spiritual warfare was surrounding his life. On those occasions, she had sensed the strong presence of evil in his hospital room.  

Michelaine was very open and receptive to everything I shared with her this first visit.  God had most definitely already been working in her life to bring her to a place where she could now receive what I had to say. As I explained all of this, I could also feel my strength and confidence coming back. I was ready to do whatever it took to fight for Mason's life! 

It wasn't until after they left that I started to have doubts again.  I became overwhelmed by the seriousness of Mason's condition. I began to worry again about the possible negative influence Mason could bring into our home. I could see the anger in his eyes. I began to worry about what would happen if he wasn't healed.  I even began to fear that he might die. Fortunately, I was able to recognize what was happening and bring the thoughts captive. It was a situation that required me to keep my eyes on Jesus every minute.  If I removed God from the equation, all of the circumstances surrounding Mason's life would flood my mind with fear and doubt. 

On their way home, Michelaine and Mason also began to experience what she later described to me as "Satan trying to enter into their thoughts and feelings in the car."  She said that she could sense a strong feeling of evil the closer she got to her apartment.  Once they returned to their apartment, things began to unravel there. I am not going to get into the details of what came against them in this blog (that's Michelaine's story to tell) but I will tell you that it was so intense that Mason called me crying hysterically and asking for prayer. This was a pivotal moment for the two of us. Mason had said very little to me during their first visit, but somehow I had managed to establish trust with him. During this phone call, I was able to see a different side of Mason.  Behind all the anger, he was a terribly frightened child.  I prayed with Mason on the phone, and I had the opportunity to talk to him about God's love for both of them.   

After their return home, Michelaine knew that she couldn't stay in that environment much longer.  If they were going to have any kind of chance to get their lives headed in the right direction, she felt that they had to remove themselves from that negative atmosphere. We helped them get a hotel room for the night, while I prayed further about what God would have me do.  After praying, I told Michelaine that they could come stay with us as long as they needed to. Once again, I felt God was giving us an opportunity.  The more time we could spend with them, the more we would be able to encourage them and pray with them during this critical time ahead.    

Things were moving quickly, and Mason had a major surgery coming up.  Michelaine told me that the doctors could not guarantee that he would survive this next surgery.  Although Mason had become more open to hearing about God, he was not yet saved. With his life hanging in the balance, this became a top priority.  I felt strongly that on their next visit, (before they moved in for good) I needed to get Mason to church!  

At the point when God brought Michelaine and Mason into our lives, I had been attending the church where Kaylee had received her healing. However, I was still not feeling comfortable. Although I was trying hard to keep my focus on the messages and on worship, a church is also a place where you should feel loved, encouraged and supported, especially when you do not have a husband around. Yet regardless of my personal feelings, I felt strongly that this was the church Mason needed at this time. If he had any hope of being healed, I knew that he had to be in a church that would encourage him to believe he could be healed.  This had been the church that had given me this truth when I needed it. It was a great church. When I first mentioned this church to Michelaine, and told her that Kaylee's healing had taken place there, she told me that God had been pointing her to this church for a very long time.  I knew that I couldn't allow anything to interfere with what God was doing in Mason's life.  

Although many of the people who had been a part of Kaylee's prayer service had turned against me, there were still a few at the church who had not. Among these people was a man name Bob. If God had allowed me to pick one person to stick with me after that night, I can honestly say that it would have been this man! Now that I felt this sudden urgency surrounding Mason's life and salvation, God had been faithful to leave me with this one person (two including his wife) that I could call on for prayer and support.  

Even as I think back to this time, my heart is leaping for joy knowing what God was about to do to show Mason how much He loved him!  But before we could even get to that point, we had to stand directly against the evil that had established a hold on Mason's life.  We had to confront the enemy with prayer!  I didn't even fully understand this at the time when I called on Bob to come pray for Mason before we headed to church. With Mason's eternal salvation on the line, and life hanging by a thread, Satan did not want Mason in church on this night!

After Bob and his wife arrived at my house, we all circled around Mason and began to pray.  I can't remember the exact order or every prayer specifically, but I remember being so touched by Brady's prayers for Mason.  Once again, it was a beautiful reminder of how God had been able to shape and mold Brady's heart throughout our hardships.

We continued to go around praying, and I remember that when it came to my turn, I was overcome with emotion and began to weep (just as I had when praying for the teenage girl). I truly felt as though Michelaine's burden was transferred onto me in that moment. It was almost more than I could take! 

I don't remember every word I prayed, but I remember, through my tears, these words coming out:

"Father, I know that You wouldn't do something only for my child. I know that you love Mason no less than you love Kaylee." 

Right or wrong, this was the earnest prayer of my heart. This was the heavy burden that I had carried since Kaylee's healing. 


Before Bob prayed for Mason, he talked to him a little about how he was going to pray.  He prepared him that he was going to be very bold and that he wasn't going to hold anything back.  I remember glancing up as he was talking and noticing that Mason appeared to be very tense and uneasy. I became a little worried about how this was going to go, but Bob didn't seem affected by his response at all. He began to pray, with power, concerning every aspect of Mason's life. I could feel the powerful presence of God with every word.  Yet at the same time, in a way I had never witnessed before, I could also feel the resistance as I sensed a strong presence of evil.  I truly believe we were seeing spiritual warfare take place right there in my living room that afternoon!  

After we finished praying, Mason got out of there as quickly as he could.

When Michelaine went to check on him, he was intensely angry!  "I want to go home!" he told her. "Get me out of this house now!" 

I am so glad, coming off of that powerful time of prayer, Michelaine had the strength and presence of mind to get the control back from Mason.  She remained calm, but firm, as she told him,  "I promised Laura that we would go to church with them, so that's what we're going to do. If you still want to leave after church, I will take you home."

This was how Mason's turnaround began, as we came together, picked up our swords, and declared war with the enemy concerning his life! The results were not instant; Satan doesn't give up very easily. But we had begun the fight. We were about to see God enter in and take over, not only inside of Mason's physical body, but most importantly, inside of Mason's heart!  

"And he replied, 'I saw Satan fall
like lightening from heaven.
I have given you authority
to trample on snakes and scorpions
and to overcome all the powers
of the enemy; nothing will harm you.

However, do not rejoice that
the spirits submit to you,
but rejoice that your names
are written in heaven.

Luke 10:18-20