Elaine's Testimony of Protection and Healing

I still remember the day leading up to my appendicitis surgery, and I know that if it wasn’t for God’s intervention at every stage, I wouldn’t be here today.

When I first felt the pain in my stomach, I wanted to tough it out, but my parents were adamant that I go to urgent care. At the clinic, as per the American hospitals’ routine, I had to get an x-ray, a urine test and then a CT scan, even though each location was at different floors and different ends of the building. By the time we were finished, I was exhausted. We waited for another hour before the doctor suggested that we cross the street and visit at the ER.

I begged Mom that I just wanted to go home, and she seriously considered it. However, we decided to get another doctor’s opinion just in case.

Whenever any doctor or nurse asked me about the level of my pain, my pride prompted me to answer with a 2 or 3. This greatly confused the doctors’ diagnoses. In the end, they gave us two options: have surgery that night or stay in the hospital for a week on antibiotics. Because they recommended the former option, we obeyed, even though we were concerned that we didn’t have the healthcare to cover this expensive surgery.

About two hours before my scheduled surgery, I developed a strong fever. My surgeon operated on me immediately.

I didn’t find out until one month later that my appendix had ruptured for over a day, meaning that additional delayed treatment would’ve greatly reduced the chances for me to live through the surgery.

Even though I was stubborn in my own ways, God was gracious, and His Spirit guided me and my family’s every decision.