Debby decided to wait until the following Monday before being taken off of the vent so that her brother, Danny, and his wife could come in from Chicago to say goodbye. That last weekend of Debby's life was as unbelievable testimony to God's goodness and faithfulness. Even though we knew these were are last days with Debby, they were full of joy. Debby was able to say goodbye to each family member and many of her friends, and very few people get that opportunity.
While Tim and I were talking to her, she confessed to us that she was scared to come face-to-face with Jesus--she feared that she would hear from Him, "Depart from me, I never knew you" instead of "Well done, my good and faithful servant". At this point, even though we had the door closed to her room, several people entered the room. For the next 30 minutes or so, we could not keep people out of the room. Every time we got someone to leave, someone else would come in. It was obvious that Satan did not want us to finish our conversation. I kept praying that God would allow us to finish our conversation, and He finally did answer that prayer.
I asked Debby why she was fearful of hearing "Depart from me" from Jesus, and she said because she knew that was one of the two options. If you knew Debby, you knew that answer made a lot of sense--she was a very analytical thinker. So, I asked her if she believed that the only way into Heaven was through faith in Jesus, and she said, "Oh, yes!" Just the joy on her face alone gave evidence that her faith was real. Tim and I then ensured her that she had nothing to fear.
The greatest outcome of our conversation with Debby, was that she was then encouraged enough to spend the rest of the day witnessing to the other family members. While we've not seen any conversions to Jesus Christ yet, we are still praying that those seeds that Debby planted will grow!
The day that the medical staff actually took Debby off of the ventilator was full of joy, but also sorrow as we were saying our last goodbyes. They nurses started sedating Debby around 9:00 am, and it should have taken about 20 minutes for her to be completely sedated. But, Debby was never one to play by the rules--it took almost 8 hours for her to become completely unresponsive. We're not really why it took so long for her body to respond to the drugs, but I think that she was just enjoying as much time with her friends and family as she could. But, around 5:30 pm, they were able to remove her from the ventilator. In just 5 short hours, Debby passed away from this earth and into God's Heavenly Kingdom, where I know she heard "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Showing posts with label Muscular Dystrophy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Muscular Dystrophy. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Debby, Part II
As promised, here is Part II of my blog entries on my sister-in-law's final day on earth. The specific purpose of this entry is to communicate some of the personal and theological questions I encountered as I contemplated Debby's decision to go off of the ventilator.
From a human standpoint, I wholeheartedly supported Debby's decision. Many, many years ago, when there were no trach vents, Debby wouldn't have even had a decision to make. But now, the medical advances that we've seen, are actually forcing humans to play God with their own lives. So, from a Christian viewpoint, are we required by God to utilize every medical means available to prolong our lives as long as possible? Theoretically, Debby could have lived forever on a trach vent. I believe that our bodies are holy temples and that we are to take as good of care of them as is possible on this earth. But, does that mean living indefinitely hooked up to a machine?
As I struggled with these theological questions, I kept coming back to one thing--Why keep suffering on this earth when you can be in Heaven, in the presence of Jesus? However, my husband was of the viewpoint that, if it were him, and if being in a nursing home and on a ventilator indefinitely would eventually help bring his entire family to Christ, he would do it. And trust me, the 2+ months that Debby spent in a hospital bed were crucial for the cause of Christ, and all she had to do was lay in bed. By her being there, Tim was able to minister to countless patients, visitors, and hospital staff members that he would talk to while he was visiting Debby. And, I have no doubt, that if she had stayed on the ventilator and gone to a nursing home, that countless others would have been ministered to because Tim was there visiting Debby.
So, is there a right or wrong answer? Or, is it different for each person depending on what God's will is for that person? I came to the personal conviction that trach vents are great if they will enable a person to recover enough to be able to come off of the ventilator. With that said, there are patients with MD who live active lives on a trach vent. And, I praise God that we have this technology that enables them to do that. If Debby had gone on a trach vent years earlier, she would have been one of those people. But, at this point in her life, her body was way too sick to be able to live an active life with the trach vent.
The day after Debby's daughters shared her wishes to the family, I went to visit Debby. While I was there, she spoke with her case manager and the hospital pyschologist about her decision. Both of them noted that, while she had stated these same wishes before, her attitude had changed completely. There was joy and peace where there was once anger and depression. Debby asked me what I thought about her decision, and I told her that I supported her 100%. She said, "But . . . .?", and I said, "No but's, I support you 100%".
From a human standpoint, I wholeheartedly supported Debby's decision. Many, many years ago, when there were no trach vents, Debby wouldn't have even had a decision to make. But now, the medical advances that we've seen, are actually forcing humans to play God with their own lives. So, from a Christian viewpoint, are we required by God to utilize every medical means available to prolong our lives as long as possible? Theoretically, Debby could have lived forever on a trach vent. I believe that our bodies are holy temples and that we are to take as good of care of them as is possible on this earth. But, does that mean living indefinitely hooked up to a machine?
As I struggled with these theological questions, I kept coming back to one thing--Why keep suffering on this earth when you can be in Heaven, in the presence of Jesus? However, my husband was of the viewpoint that, if it were him, and if being in a nursing home and on a ventilator indefinitely would eventually help bring his entire family to Christ, he would do it. And trust me, the 2+ months that Debby spent in a hospital bed were crucial for the cause of Christ, and all she had to do was lay in bed. By her being there, Tim was able to minister to countless patients, visitors, and hospital staff members that he would talk to while he was visiting Debby. And, I have no doubt, that if she had stayed on the ventilator and gone to a nursing home, that countless others would have been ministered to because Tim was there visiting Debby.
So, is there a right or wrong answer? Or, is it different for each person depending on what God's will is for that person? I came to the personal conviction that trach vents are great if they will enable a person to recover enough to be able to come off of the ventilator. With that said, there are patients with MD who live active lives on a trach vent. And, I praise God that we have this technology that enables them to do that. If Debby had gone on a trach vent years earlier, she would have been one of those people. But, at this point in her life, her body was way too sick to be able to live an active life with the trach vent.
The day after Debby's daughters shared her wishes to the family, I went to visit Debby. While I was there, she spoke with her case manager and the hospital pyschologist about her decision. Both of them noted that, while she had stated these same wishes before, her attitude had changed completely. There was joy and peace where there was once anger and depression. Debby asked me what I thought about her decision, and I told her that I supported her 100%. She said, "But . . . .?", and I said, "No but's, I support you 100%".
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