Getting Back to God's Work

​Hello, neighbors.
To say that October was a strange month would be an understatement, considering the year as a whole. We
were starting to get into some things and then life throws us a curveball. At least it threw one at me! The
last couple of weeks have been an experience for me and my family. Thankfully with God in our lives,
dealing with what has happened was a lot easier to handle.
Let me take a moment to make sure everyone is in the loop. A couple of weeks ago, I started to experience
some pain in my lower abdomen. After a visit to a local walk-in clinic, I left thinking I had a kidney stone.
Then a couple of days later, the pain was not getting any better. So, after service, the pain returned and was
not going away. My wife, Melissa, took me to the ER at St. Joe Mercy Hospital to see what was up with me.
They ran a CT scan and found that it was not a kidney stone. Instead, I was told I have a tear in my aorta or
what is medically referred to as an aortic dissection. Thankfully, this tear is not by my heart, but lower in
my abdomen. Are you with me so far?
This led to me being admitted to the hospital for the next 10 days. They spent a couple of days deciding
whether or not I should have surgery. Then they were working on treating my issue medicinally. The idea
was to get my blood pressure down and then see if we could keep it low. Once they figured this out, we had
to move from the medication being given to me via IV to taking them orally. From there, I had to see how
things went to figure out when I could go home. For some, 10 days may not seem like a lot of time, but this
was the first time I had ever been admitted to a hospital.
Now, I move forward and give thanks for each day I am blessed with to serve our God and God’s people.
Thank you for all the cards, prayers, and support you have shown my family and me these last couple of
weeks. We are so appreciative of the love the neighborhood has offered us during this time. Thank you to
everyone that helped make service possible these last couple of Sundays and a couple more to come. God is
good all the time.
Moving forward, I will slowly be working my way back into a routine at the church. Pastor Matt’s
Neighborhood will return, but it might be next week before I go back to recording shows. My prayer is that
this life event does not change who I am, but only alters what I do or how I do things in the future. Please
know that God loves you, and nothing can change my love for my neighbors. Again, thank you for
everything and we still have work to do to build God’s kingdom here on earth!