My Son Jessey

“It’s like watching the stock market,” one of our members texted referring to my son’s platelet count. As you may know, Jessey is in the hospital due to dengue since Wednesday (August 19). His platelet count seems more like the prices of oil, only this time in reverse. It goes down fast but goes up ever so slowly. From 200,000, it slid down to 93,000 then 73,000 till it crashed to 33,000 low before stabilizing at that number. Then, it inched up to 43,000 the next day. As of the last blood test result Saturday morning, it went up a notch higher at 46,000. The doctor assured that it’s a positive trend though it is an uphill climb. God willing, Jessey will be released from the hospital soon, the earliest would be Sunday afternoon.

On behalf of our entire family, allow me to appreciate all of our brothers and sisters for your overwhelming support in prayer. It is an opportunity for us all to trust God. Our cell phones kept on ringing due to encouraging calls and text messages. My Facebook wall got a lot of reassuring posts. We also received so many visitors in the hospital. There are those who even brought a lot of herbal teas and Chinese medicine. As Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 1:3, “We ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith flourishes more and more and the love of each one of you all for one another is ever greater.” (NET Bible) My mother who kept vigil in the hospital with us saw it. She was so touched and impressed with the outpouring of love and faith. She even said, “Iba sa inyo.” (“It’s so different with your group!”) I told her it is what the Lord commanded us. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35, NIV)

Thank you very much! These words echo now in my heart and mind, “This is church!” Bill Hybels coined that phrase and he wrote this in his “Axioms” book, “Christ said he was going to build ‘his church’—a community of real people with real, beating hearts that would be attentive to each other and responsive to each other and quick to extend mercy and grace and love.” This spells out the difference between being the church and doing church. Let us keep on being His church. I pray that our hearts would always be attentive and responsive both in good and bad times so that seekers would exclaim, “Iba sa inyo!”

 Brethren, thank you for your love.

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