Month of Miracles

Sometimes God is preparing us for the unexpected. Sometimes our faith is tested. Everytime, God is faithful. A few weeks ago, my wife and I decided that it was time for us to draw closer to God–get to know Him better. John Ortberg in his book, “If You Want to Walk on the Water, You Have to Step Out of the Boat,” said something like this: “The best way to have your faith increased is to get to know God better.”

When I was praying, studying, meditating and depending on God’s Word, I was thinking more about the economy, relationships and starting a new church. The idea of being faced with the big “C” word never crossed my mind. Nevertheless, it happened! I want to tell you about a series of miracles in the month of June that will forever change my life.

Miracle 1: For some reason, I had recently studied and meditated on scripture like never before. My prayer life changed drastically. It was no longer ritualistic prayers. It was no longer floweredy words. It was simply talking to God–sometimes for almost an hour at a time. As the old-timers used to say, “We prayed through!” God knew what was coming, and He was preparing me.

Miracle 2: Over the years, I have been bugged by a persistent Urinary Tract Infection. I would go to my family doctor, he would prescribe an antibiotic, and it seemed to go away. This went on for eight years or so. Not once did my doctor insist on me seeing a urologist to check it out further. In May and early June, the UTI showed up again, but the antibiotics seemed to do no good. On a Wednesday, I called my doctor, and asked to see him. “This is his ‘admin’ day,” I was told. Several times I tried to convince the staff that if they just mentioned my name to him, he would make an exception and see me anyway. They wouldn’t cooperate, and set me up with the doctor on call, Dr. Ziegelmann. When I went in, he took one look at my records and said, “You’ve been dealing with this some time, so we need to get you to a specialist.” He referred me to Eastern Urological.

Miracle 3: I got a quick appointment–quicker than I had hoped. I knew what they do at the urologists, and believe me, I was not looking forward to it. They set me up with a woman physician’s assistant. Now, I’m not against women doctors, but I am from the old school, and very private, so I called to request a male doctor. They found a slot for me with Dr. Reeves, a very knowledgeable doctor… and, as I found out, a dedicated Christian who is not afraid to pray!

Miracle 4: It began with a shock. I went in that morning, had a CT scan, took my one valium pill for my afternoon session and “invasion.” Dr. Reeves was serious. He said, “Mr. Atkins, we found a very large tumor in your bladder. It needs to come out. Then, he said the “C” word! I don’t know why, but I remained calm. He sent me on that afternoon to pre-op. There was no waiting around for this. Why do I call this a miracle? Because if I had seen my regular doctor that Wednesday, the outcome could have been much different.

Miracle 5: The next day, Rennie and I spent the entire day reading scripture and praying. The following day, I was at the hospital. They took me in right on schedule. Incredibly, that day, I had the opportunity to talk to 20-30 people about the Lord. A few minutes before the surgery, I asked to see Dr. Reeves.  He came in. “Dr. Reeves, I want to pray for you,” I said as I extended my hands to him. He held my hands and I prayed, “Father, I want you to be with Dr. Reeves today. I want you to anoint Him with your presence. I thank you for his talent, his commitment, his education and the abilities that You have given him. I am asking that you allow his hands to be instruments of Your amazing healing powers, not only on me, but upon everyone he touches today! In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.” It was an awesome moment!

Miracle 6: I was out like a light. When I awoke, I had two “bags” attached to me, one of which was attached to a tube in my back to my right kidney. The other–well, we won’t talk about that. The tumor proved to be large, one of the largest that Dr. Reeves had ever removed. While I was in recovery, Dr. Reeves prepared my wife for what might happen–it wasn’t good. Depending on the test results, he said he probably would have to remove my bladder. A day later, I went home, bags and all. Rennie withheld the bad news. On the following Monday, I went in to have the catheter removed at Dr. Reeves office. Dr. Reeves was not there–it was his week to be at the hospital. As we were about to leave, Dr. Reeves called. “Are the Atkins’ still there?” “Yes, but they are about to leave.” “Let me speak to one of them.” Rennie took the call. The first words out of Dr. Reeves’ mouth was, “God answered prayer!” Hallelujah! He said, that the test results came back “low-grade, non-invasive,” which he said was the best news we could ever hope for! “Tell Steve he will be fine, and will be able to keep his bladder.”

Praise the Lord! The miracles continue, and I will continue in my next blog.

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