Prayers for Joshua

I have never met this little guy. Maybe I met one or both of the parents I don't know. Graham and Myrna have been dear friends for the last 13 years. Breaks your heart to read this. This is not a chain letter . Do not forward or anything. Just a little prayer every time you think of this will be fine. I read the parents plea and they are leaving it to God's will. Their faith is strong. People like that deserve our thoughts and prayers at this very trying time .

Ed

Hi everybody,

After a couple of weeks of ups and downs for Joshua, it had seemed he was slowly starting to improve but today a series of serious setbacks have left Joshua in gravely serious condition. Below is a letter from his Mom and Dad to go to everybody who has been praying for Joshua. He and his parents desperately need our prayers and any other sacrifices we can make for them. Thank you everybody for your faithful prayers.

Graham and Myrna

Here’s the letter from Brenda and Arnel, Josh’s Mom and Dad…

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We received disheartening news today. The past few days, Joshua has been stable and it seemed that his lungs were showing some improvement. They tried to wean Joshua off the life support machine on Monday but it was unsuccessful. When they reduced the blood flows from the machine to allow Joshua to oxygenate his blood by himself, he couldn't cope. This is due partly to the pulmonary hypertension that Joshua developed and mostly because the lung tissue is still diseased. They put Joshua through a CT scan today and it showed that there are some improvement in his right lung but the left lung showed air pockets in all the wrong places. They thought that his left lung was improving because his X-rays showed that there was air entry when there was none before. However, the CT scan showed that even the little air pressure from the ventilator that they were giving Josh to keep his lungs open, has torn through his left lung. The doctor who told us this news says that he is losing hope that Josh will be able to get off the machine. They have exhausted whatever they can do to treat his lungs. They will give him seven days on ECMO to wait and see again, if his lungs will heal itself. Today would be his 25th day on the machine. The longer he is on the machine, the more likely complications will arise.

These next seven days are crucial. If a complication arise, ie. bleeding or infection, they might have to take Joshua off the machine and given that his lungs are not well, yet, he will not likely survive. If after seven days, he remains stable and without complications, then the doctors will reassess what to do next. Maybe they'll leave him on the machine again, maybe his lungs are strong enough to be weaned off the machine again. Only God knows. We are still hoping that God will intervene. He can heal Josh, if he wills it. We are praying for a miracle. God may still show his glory in Josh these next seven days. It could, otherwise, also mean our last seven days with Josh. Please pray for Arnel and I, that we may have the courage to walk this path and the strength to carry this cross, regardless what the outcome will be. The doctor made it sound like we should start making arrangements for his funeral. Our hearts are heavy but we will hope against all odds because we believe that God will work everything out for the good.

Thank you for your prayers and support in this most difficult time.

In Christ,
Arnel and Brenda