One year ago today I was sitting in the hospital getting ready to undergo surgery. I knew God to be a healer because I had seen Him heal countless people before me, but yet, I was about to go under the knife at the hands of a Doctor.

I had been building myself up for this day the better part of the year. Around May of 2018 I started burping really bad and getting excruciating heartburn. A few months later, I was upchucking everything I put in my mouth to eat even water. I didn’t know what was wrong with me, so I went to the doctors for teat after test. After some tests they found out that I was diagnosed with a rare disease when the nerve that controls your swallowing dies and it doesn’t let food into your stomach, you upchuck it, thus creating a sensation like heartburn that mimics GERD.

I was devastated. God, why me? I do the right thing, I treat people right, I do not make a practice of any particular sin… these were all the thoughts going through my head. The only option was two types of surgery. The only two doctors that perform the surgery in my region just so happened to reside in my city.

For the next few months I prayed for miraculous healing and it did not happen. I had to cry and question and condition my faith to believe God even when healing didn’t come the way I thought it should; thought it would.

Much prayer, 40 lbs down later, and with mustard seed faith, there I was in the hospital at 5:45am, first surgery on the docket. As the time approached, I had a conversation with God. I told him, if I make it, thank you. if I do not make it, please usher me into life eternal in peace. I told Him I loved Him, and i trusted Him. My Elizabeth was there with my family, having to take God at His word herself because her mom had just underwent open heart surgery earlier that year. She said to me, sing, “It is well with my soul,” before you go under. Fear gripped me. Was I singing myself to sleep and into that great by and by? No. I was singing my confidence in my Great Physician.

A peace I never experienced in my life fell over me, and no matter what, i was ok. I repented of any unconfessed sin, prayed with my close family and friends, and went back to surgery. The doctor told me to count to 10 and I started singing, ” It is well, with my soul. It is well…” and I was out.

Part one of the testimony is that I woke up. I was high as a kite off the anesthesia, but the words that came out my mouth made me happy because they revealed the God who was in my heart. A male nurse was standing over me, waking me up, and I said, “Are you my brother?” He laughed a little, I am black and he was white. He asked me to please clarify my question. I said, “Is Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior of your life?” He said, “Ahh, yes, yes He is. Yes, I am your brother.” I smiled so big, yet so high, and in a louder than restaurant appropriate voice said, “Brother! You’re my brother!” All the nurses around smiled and laughed a little. He returned the smile and said “welcome back.” My heart was so happy. People wake up swinging, cussing, and fussing, but I woke up concerned if the man before me was my brother in Christ. You can’t lie coming down from anesthesia! I was godly proud that that was what my response was.

I was greeted in recovery by my sweet and supportive mom, who I texted every time she left the room, and my Elizabeth. They recorded me mistaking the garbage man for a doctor and telling him that he was the most important man in the hospital and that he changes lives. LOL, hey, it made his day!

Part 2 of this testimony is what floored me and FURTHER showed God’s unexplainable love for me. There was a couple at my church that I knew and loved. I solicited them for prayers the day before my surgery so they knew about it. While I was in surgery, they had come to the hospital to see me, and when I was knocked out in recovery, they were there. It meant so much. After getting home to recover, they came and visited with me for just the right amount of time, and they brought homemade apple sauce (so good) and soup. Little did I know, they had talked with My Elizabeth and she shared about the financial burden the surgery and recovery would cost me. Then something amazing happened.

They told my friend to tally up all my medical bills because they wanted to help. At hearing this, all i could do was bow my weak head and cry. I cannot remember how long I cried and thanked God for. My Elizabeth had been saying with every bill I lamented in getting and starting payments on that God would pay my bill for me. I had a 3,500$ deductible to meet and I was only 1,000$ in that I had paid. I tallied up the remainder of my bills and they came to 2,500$ almost to the cent. In fear I shared this number with the couple, and they said they would pray about it.

That was a long week. I was so terrified they would not help. I said God, “Your will is your bill, and you would not have brought me this far and given me this much hope if you did not intend to keep your word.” So a week later I was at My Elizabeth’s house and the husband of the couple asked to meet me that Sunday. We arranged a time and set a plan. As he pulled up, I stood outside, my heart beating out of my chest. He walked up to me and said he loved me and God loved me and though it is not all of the bill, it is a number God put in his and his wife’s heart to bless me with. With shaky hands I grabbed the check he extended to me and I think he caught me before I hot the ground. I cried and cried and cried and said thank you to him and God about 20 times. (I’m totally crying while writing this) He said to me, “You owe us nothing.” I cried and cried and cried some more. He gave me a fatherly hug, patted my back, and told me, “Have a wonderful day kiddo.”

I got into My Elizabeth’s car because we were on our way to drop me off at home. I showed her the check. She gasped and cried too. The check was for 2,000$. When I got home, I showed my mom the check. She cried and thanked God so much, then, she said, “I have the 500$ balance.” YALL! All I could do is thank God with all my heart. HE paid for my deductible. He sent HIS children to care for me, feed me, and bless me financially. This type of stuff NEVER happens to me. It did this time last year.

I share this testimony to encourage you that God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ever ask and imagine according to the power at work in us.

²⁰ Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, ²¹ to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21 (NKJV)

God blew my mind this time last year, and one year post-op, he continues to amaze me still. I am so grateful for his love. And to this I say, welcome to the launch day of Refresh Her Course Blog! Be blessed 🙂