Update - Sunday, October 21: My dad died this morning. He was at rest and my mom kept repeating the promise of 2 Corinthians 5:8 while we stood there beside him, about how Dad is now in the presence of Jesus - (as complex and mysterious as some of the afterlife sequencing is). But he is now gone. It is Sunday. Resurrection Day. It is extremely sunny in New Jersey right now as I sit in my backyard and type this. Very surreal. Jesus. Jesus.
Update - Thursday night: After taking a scan and doing another test, the doctor told us today that my dad's internal injury is not changing and it now looks certain that his life on this earth is over any day, perhaps tonight, tomorrow, the next day... So we still just sit in the hospital room, pray and wait. It's been 6 very long days now and reading your prayers are appreciated more than you can ever realize. I showed my mom them too. Thank you......
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I am in New Jersey at a Barnes and Nobles right now - I am here as we got the ominous phone call at 4:00 AM Friday letting me know that my dad is in critical condition in the hospital. He was at a Yankee game last week and had a fall outside the stadium (he still went into the game and watched the whole thing) but unknowingly beneath the surface the fall caused an internal injury to build for several days, and it suddenly then resulted in a severe brain injury occurring - and he is about to die.
100% out of the blue, something like this comes. He was healthy. He and my mom have been married 52 years. I love my dad a lot and this is a very horrific and difficult time, I would say the hardest thing I have ever had to be going through- and it is still in process now as he is still barely alive and we are basically waiting at this point. I am extremely thankful that he put faith in Jesus and and I am so thankful I got to spend time with him in August when I stopped back in Jersey and we went to the New Jersey State Fair together and saw Jerry Lee Lewis and had a wonderful weekend trip, which is the last I saw him (the photo above is from that trip) - although we talk weekly on the phone.
If you have emailed me or called me the past couple of days, I don't have internet access and I am not sure how long I will here. So please excuse me not answering during this time. I also had to cancel speaking at the Emergence event in Austin later this week and at the Youth Specialties Convention in San Diego on Sunday.
Life is fragile. God gives us each day as a gift. I cherish the days God gave me with my dad. If you read this, and can say a prayer for my mom especially (and dad) in this process of his last days it will be appreciated.
