tough times

As I type this, my brother, Chris, is laying in the Cardiovascular ICU unit in Flagstaff, AZ. He was in a terrible car accident last Monday night and has suffered multiple injuries including a broken neck, several fractured vertebrae, broken sternum, broken hip, several fractured ribs, and broken pelvis. Along with 1 fully collapsed lung, 1 partially collapsed lung, a bruised heart, and a staph infection in his lungs. My stomach turns everytime I think about his injuries and how much pain they must cause. At the same time I stop to thank God because it's nothing short of a miracle that Chris is even still with us today.

I was able to fly to Arizona last week to be with him. There was nothing I could do other than sit with him, hold his hand, or wait in the ICU waiting room with my family. It is very devastating to see your big brother lying there, helpless, in pain, and not knowing what is going on. On the day I left he was more alert than usual. He was trying to move his mouth to talk and opened his eyes. I will never forget that look in his eyes. A look of total despair, confusion, pain.

Right now he is sedated due to the pain and the fact that when he is more alert, he panics and becomes agitated. He is on a ventilator and will probably need some sort of breathing assistance for 2-3 more weeks due to severe chest trauma.

Please stop for a second and say a quick prayer for him. Pray for wisdom for the doctors, pray that his pain is eased, and pray that his lungs heal quickly.