Christmas

Christmas: A Change of Plans

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 19:48:18 +0000

December 16, 2016

Darlene R. Sredl, PhD, RN

Christmas: A Change of Plans

��Ƶ’s Nurses Christian Fellowship helps nursing students, nursing faculty, and nursing professionals lay a foundation for their life and nursing practice that is centered in the love and truth of Jesus Christ. Author Darlene Sredl teaches at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. The following story, like the original Christmas story, is about a baby, inconvenience, a change of plans, and God’s miraculous response. This account is a condensed version of a story which appeared in the April/June 2015 issue of the Journal of Christian Nursing.

Pulling into the hospital parking garage, I turned off the radio while hunting for a vacant spot. Reminded by the Christmas carols I had been listening to that this was the season of hope, I sent up a prayer, “Lord, put me where you need me, but give me your grace to do what needs to be done.” Help never more needed than tonight, I thought, rushing through the heavy doors marked “Neonatal Intensive Care Unit” (NICU).

Although I was what many considered a veteran pediatric nurse, transferring to the NICU meant learning an entirely new body of information on premature infant maladies, and assimilating it quickly. After an intense and grueling nine-week orientation, little did I realize, on this my first night working autonomously in the NICU, just how quickly I would apply my newly acquired information.

The assignment sheet revealed I had three patients but there were no acute life-threatening problems, just infants slowly gaining weight waiting for discharge. What a joy to have a chance to nourish these little ones while cuddling and loving them.

I looked up to see the charge nurse walking toward me. “There's been a change in your assignment,” she said, pointing to the name penciled over a scratched-out entry on the assignment sheet.

“Uh, okay, but just one patient?”

“This one patient will be plenty...but I know you're up to it.” She smiled reassuringly.

I donned the isolation gear then carefully slid past the curtains of the private isolation room. There, in the dim light, lay a huge baby. Unlike most NICU premature infants who were housed in clear Plexiglass isolettes, Marilee* lay on an Ohio table, which is used for larger babies attached to larger and more complex equipment. Marilee looked to be about six months old, bloated from steroids, no doubt, and sedated so that she would not inadvertently turn or pull out her tubes. A clear plastic extension connected her endotracheal tube to an angrily hissing and puffing oscillator positioned next to her bed.

I counted the drips, 11 intravenous pumps in one infant girl. Stroking her forehead gently I said, “I am going to take care of you, Marilee. It's going to be okay.” I begged then, “Lord, please, let that not be a lie!” In times like this I find comfort and strength in believing God's promise, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1, NIV).

As if on cue, Robin, Marilee's off-going nurse, entered the room. “Do you know this baby?” she asked, hoping for an easy report with someone who at least had a working knowledge of this infant's care.

“No, this is my first shift off orientation,” I explained.

“Your first shift off orientation and they gave you this assignment?” she asked incredulously, sighing. “Well then, we'd better get started.”

In a nutshell, Robin told me how Marilee had a problem called surfactant B deficiency and had been a patient since the transport team had airlifted her shortly after birth. “Pulmonary surfactant coats the alveoli with a Teflon-like covering that reduces the surface tension of moisture, thereby preventing lung collapse,” Robin began. “The only effective therapy in cases like this is lung transplantation. But this family has a strong faith in God. They are constantly at her bedside praying. Except for tonight.”

She continued, “Tonight is the annual lung transplant Christmas party, and every patient who ever received a lung transplant at this hospital, as well as all those waiting and their families, are invited. Even the cardio-thoracic surgical team is there! The staff felt it was important for Marilee's family to go to the party, partly for stress relief, and partly to engender new hope by seeing all the kids with new lungs acting and looking like normal children.”

“Don't worry,” Robin concluded, “New lungs will probably not be available tonight because of the party.”

Two hours into my shift, I was starting to get comfortable with Marilee's care requirements when her mother called. Yuletide carols blared in the phone's background, making it hard to hear. Marilee's family was at the party, but they were miserable. The past six month's routine of living near or at the hospital, taking vigil turns at her bedside, was not easily changed.

Although I was totally new to the case, Marilee's mom seemed to trust me, and we spoke with easy familiarity. She shared her frustration over the long wait and depletion of the family's financial resources, but spoke of her continuing faith and strength, believing in God's provision. I reminded her that Christmas meant renewed hope. Almost as an afterthought, I asked for her beeper number before we hung up. “You never know,” I said, trying to offer hope again.

Just 30 minutes later beepers started going off. A transplant was available. Debbie, the lung transplant coordinator told me to call Marilee's mom and get her in ASAP (as soon as possible)!

To me, ASAP means, “Always Say A Prayer.” I said a fast one as I dialed the beeper number. The promise of 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV) states, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, and of love, and of self-discipline.” Gradually, a steady calm replaced my anxious trepidation, and I knew with certainty that with God's help, I would be able to do what was required to give Marilee the best possible chance at life.

Marilee's family arrived a short time later. Julie, Marilee's primary nurse, also arrived. She lobbied the charge nurse, asking that I change assignments again so she could care for her primary patient. But the charge nurse gave the choice to me.

Although I was new to the NICU, I was not new to transplant nursing and had, in fact, just transferred from the cardiothoracic transplant floor. I knew I was probably the most comfortable with pretransplant requirements of any nurse there. Although Julie protested, the charge nurse backed me up.

I caught up with Julie a short while later and asked her why she didn't come in at 7 p.m. as she had been scheduled. Julie informed me that she'd been Christmas shopping and showed me two bags of colorfully wrapped Christmas gifts for Marilee and her family.

I reminded Julie that Marilee's family needed a friend as well as a nurse. “Why don't you be that friend tonight?” So, whenever her own assignment allowed a little slack time, Julie donned the isolation garb, came in and talked quietly with Marilee's family, pulling one Christmas present after another out of the bags to “oohs” and “aahs” of delight.

We got word that the transplant was a “go” and the moment came to transfer Marilee to the operating room. Before leaving the room, Marilee's mom asked for a moment of prayer with anyone who wanted to participate. She reminded us of God's promise in Matthew 18:20, “Jesus said whenever two or more of you gather together in prayer, I am with you also.”

Thus, fortified with faith, we sent Marilee off. Many hours, and much nursing care later, Julie and I met at the time clock, both of us exhausted. “Julie,” I stammered, “I'm sorry I didn't want to change assignments with you.”

“No, no, don't apologize,” she said, “You were right not to. I probably shouldn't have even asked. I was late, and I'd probably have been a basket case. I haven't worked up a transplant patient in years!” Her words reminded me of Proverbs 12:25 (NIV), “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.”

Marilee progressed well after the transplant. Although she would need to be on immunosuppressant medications for the remainder of her life, her parents were thankful to God, the transplant host, and all who had aided in her continuing quest for life. As for me, I regularly settled into one of the unit's comfy loungers, snuggling and loving Marilee up to her discharge. I contemplated the miracle of Christ's birth and the miracle of Marilee's transplant.

Posttransplant patients need a biopsy every three months, checking for organ rejection. Marilee and her family periodically came to the NICU to visit after the procedure. Seeing her thriving, I recognize that I was but an instrument of God's provision to use as he saw fit. I participated in one of the best Christmas gifts possible—utilizing my nursing skills in a procedure that helped to save a life! I thanked God and asked him to please bless the family whose own loss led to this miracle for Marilee.

* Patient name has been changed.

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The Season To Carry Each Other’s Burdens

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Fri, 18 Dec 2015 20:31:03 +0000

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December 18, 2015

Jim Lundgren, interim president, ��Ƶ Christian Fellowship

The Season To Carry Each Other’s Burdens

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” - Galatians 6:2

December is always one of the most demanding months of the year for us at ��Ƶ when it’s an Urbana year. Our Urbana student missions conference in St. Louis, December 27-31, 2015 is filled with all kinds of opportunities to challenge students and others to join God’s global mission. But it’s also a lot of work that comes at the time of year when we typically want to rest and celebrate.

When I face challenging times, or when I anticipate that an ordinarily demanding time will be even more demanding, there are several steps I have learned to take that make a challenging and demanding time an opportunity for God to work in me and in those God puts in my path.

Let me walk through a few of them with you and encourage you to join me in taking these steps together this December in the spirit of the one whom Christmas is all about. They aren’t rocket science, but if you will join me in taking them you may remember this December as one of your best ever.

First, let’s lean into our spiritual disciplines more purposefully than ever. God wants to do amazing things in and through all of us as we finish the year. Satan will want to do everything in his power to block God’s purposes. As Peter wrote: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” ( 1 Peter 5:8). That means:
- guarding our daily quiet time of prayer and Bible reading.
- praying regularly for ourselves and others.
- getting to church each Sunday to worship God with his people.
- reminding ourselves when we are tempted to feel overwhelmed of all the ways God has been faithful to us individually and as a movement.
Second, be slow to anger and slow to take offense. When I am tired and feel stretched to the limit I have a propensity to take something that someone else does or says as much worse than they intended. The author of Hebrews wrote: “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:15).
Third, let’s purpose together to outdo each other in the way we serve each other. When we see someone else not able to get all their work done, let’s find ways to help them rather than to criticize them. Let’s do it with a perspective that gives life and hope to the person we are helping rather than with a perspective of obligation or reluctance.

There is a section of the book of Philippians that’s easy to overlook, where Paul writes about his love and affection for Timothy:

I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon. Philippians 2:19-24

Timothy came into Paul’s life and ministry at a point of great sadness for Paul. He had just had a conflict with Barnabas that was so bad that Paul and Barnabas had separated over how to treat John Mark, who had abandoned them on one of their missionary journeys. Barnabas wanted to restore John Mark and Paul was not ready to do that. Barnabas had been the one who validated Paul’s conversion when none of the other Christians would accept it. Barnabas was Paul’s closest friend—his partner in mission. Now Paul was alone. He meets Timothy, invites him to become his partner, and Timothy jumps right in.

The circumstances were different, but I had a very similar experience this past June. I was fifteen minutes away from giving the closing talk at our Orientation of New Staff (ONS), sitting with our Cabinet, telling stories, and laughing.

My sister-in-law, Lois, called me on my cell phone. As I listened, she poured out the news through her tears that my only brother had just died after a yearlong battle with cancer. Somehow I got through that talk that night. But as I finished I realized I had nothing left, and I was supposed to give two more talks the next day.

I turned to Kim Porter and said, “This is not fair but could you do those talks?” Kim had every reason to say no. As vice president and director of Learning and Talent, this was an intensely busy time for her.

Kim immediately said, “Don’t give it another thought. I’ll take care of them. Go to Rockford and take care of your sister-in-law and your two nephews. They need you now and you need them.”

In that moment, I experienced what I am sure Paul experienced with Timothy. A burden had been lifted off my shoulders and was being carried by my sister-in-Christ, Kim. I could go to Rockford with Mary Beth, my wife, and know that everything else had been covered.

Let’s be like that for each other and for our Lord all through this month:

Let’s guard our disciplines as we head into the spiritual battle.
Let’s be slow to anger and slow to take offense.
Let’s be eager to pitch in and serve each other.
Let’s outdo each other in practical love and service.

As we do that, God will be glorified and his purposes will be served.

Merry Christmas!

^{This article is transcribed and edited from a talk given in a chapel service at the National Service Center. To listen to the entire message, subscribe to ��Ƶ's podcast, or download directly: /sites/default/files/podcast/15/12/2015-12-09jimlundgrentistheseason.mp3.}

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Advent Greetings

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 17:13:54 +0000

News

December 17, 2012

Alec Hill, President of ��Ƶ

Advent Greetings

Greetings from ��Ƶ as we celebrate Advent—the coming of Emmanuel, God with us!

As the president of a ministry whose staff daily continue to work out the plan that God set in motion with the arrival of His Son, 2,000 years ago, I am privileged to be surrounded by a great team of workers and associates.

Over the past dozen years, one of my greatest joys has been working under five ��Ƶ Board Chairs.* Their collective character, wisdom, and care has deeply impacted my life.

��Ƶ Legacy
Our new Chair Rudy Hernandez is a very familiar face around the Fellowship. In 1972, he joined staff and served as a Campus Staff Member in Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. He also planted a chapter at the University of Arkansas and revived a small chapter at University of Texas at El Paso. He also served as an Area Director.

For good reason, Rudy is informally known by many as the “godfather of La Fe.” He was ��Ƶ’s first full-time Latino staff. And our first Latino Area Director.

Long-time friend and recent Board Chair Dennis O’Neal reflects: “when Rudy was assigned to Oklahoma back in 1974, I easily found him in the Tulsa phone book, because he was nearly the only Hernandez listed. From there, the Lord led him to pioneer work at schools in the predominantly Hispanic South Texas, an area completely untouched by ��Ƶ.”

Long after he left staff in 1987, his informal influence upon the Fellowship continued. Orlando Crespo, National Director of La Fe, said, “Rudy means so much to LaFe. He has spoken at our conferences, served as a consultant on Daniel Projects, and been a mentor to many staff. I admire Rudy’s dedication, and I am excited to see how his new role will help our entire Movement grow.”

Beyond ��Ƶ
Post-staff, Rudy founded F.C. Financial. He is a Certified Estate Planner and has been assisting senior investors for many years. He is the host of the Safe Money Retirement Radio Show, a frequent seminar speaker, and an educator on retirement and estate planning and tax issues.

Rudy and his wife, Susan, are the proud parents of two daughters and live near San Antonio. He is active in civic and church activities in the Hill Country area.

Rudy is a dear friend and consummate trustee. When he shares his insider’s perspective at board meetings, his passion for campus witness, chapter planting, and multiethnicity is on full display. Our community is oh-so-fortunate to have him step up to play such an important leadership role.

*Past Chairs: John Sommerville (2001-02), Paula Fuller (2003-04), Don Kolowsky (2005-06), Ken Nielsen (2007-10), and Dennis O’Neal (2011-12).

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Advent