Day 19 : Hope in the Lord

'But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; 

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

 they shall run and not be weary,

 they shall walk and not faint.'

 (Isaiah 40:31) (NKJV).

It seems I got side tracked the other day talking about music. Let’s try again ..

That moment

 When you think

 Things are settling down

 And life will return to normal,

But instead it gets

Amped up

 Again.

My pain seemed to be ebbing, so we began working to decrease my steroids. They had to be decrease very slowly so the pain would not come screaming back. I did decrease it to about half before my knees began to swell and the pain began to increase.

 Some Thoughts While I Wait

Primary Care Visit ~ "Here I am  ..again"

Orthopedic Center .. X-rays 
"Wow, that was easy.. x-rays while I stand.. no extra pain"

MRI of knees
"Close your eyes and sing or quote scriptures"

Surgery for torn meniscus
"What? My surgeon prays with me before the surgery? How awesome is that?"

Consult with surgeon
"So my joints look gnarly? Hmmm....."

Back to Mayo Clinic 
Diagnosis ... severe osteoarthritis
"I dawns on me that my grandmother must have had bad arthritis in her knees. I'm moving a lot like she did."

On a whim, my doctor decided to check my blood work again.

Diagnosis … Rheumatoid Arthritis (R.A.)
"My heart is sinking. I did NOT want to hear this."

As I had feared, the actual problem had been concealed by the steroids The R.A. into a false remission all this time. At least now we could finally treat the “real” issue along with the fibromyalgia. The doctor seemed to be pleased to find the problem and felt confidant that we would be able to easily get things under control. I however was troubled about those words .. "rheumatoid arthritis". I had visions deformed hands. What about playing the piano, that is my greatest stress releaser?

The doctor said I was in the early stages and that we could easily get this under control. He prescribed therapy and more medications. My heart was somewhat lifted and we were encouraged that our waiting was coming to an end. We had some hope that I would once again "walk and not be weary".

CHALLENGE:

I’ve been reading 3-5 Psalms and 1 Proverb every day. I challenge you to give it a try.. Try this one today:

Psalm 19                                   My Joy Dare

Psalm 49                                   1. MRIs

Psalm 79                                   2. Wisdom of doctors

Psalm 109                                 3. excellent surgeons

Psalm 139

Proverbs 19

Waiting & Hoping!