Still in one piece!

Having to face major surgery is never pleasant. It can make us seek God, as never before, in prayer.
As a result of a spate of health problems associated with Crohn's disease (inflammation of the intestines), I was granted early retirement in the summer of 1995.
I had thought that by having a complete break from work, I ought to be feeling much better by the New Year. It was, therefore, quite a shock to be back in hospital at the end of the following January.
In addition, unlike my previous hospitalisations, a fortnight of intensive treatment plus a liquid diet was not producing the expected improvement.

Devastating news

After a thorough examination, it was decided that the only solution was to remove my large intestines. Sylvia, my wife, and I were pretty devastated by this news but, humanly speaking, we could see the logic behind the decision - there seemed no alternative.
My surgeon normally operated on a Friday, but as he was unavailable on the Friday of that week, I was allowed home for seven days. It was Valentine's Day 1996, a Wednesday. My instructions were to eat as much as I could to build up my strength for the operation on the Friday week.

Praying friends

Of course, many friends had been praying for me throughout this time. However, it was on the Saturday that one particular friend came to see us.
He had been the first pastor of the church plant we belong to and so knew our situation very well. He told us that he had been praying for me a great deal and had been particularly burdened about what had been planned. He shared at length with us and we agreed to meet that evening for a time of prayer.
It 'just happened' to be a Saturday when all our children were out for the day. This meant that Sylvia and I could spend much time in prayerful preparation for the evening.
During the evening itself, we prayed through a number of issues that may have been an influence on my situation - any unconfessed sin, any unforgiveness I may have had towards another, possible occult influences from past generations - and then for healing.
By the end of the day, I realised that this had been the first day for many weeks that I had only visited the toilet once.

Something significant

The same was true on the following day, Sunday. By Monday, I decided that something significant had happened. I contacted the hospital to say that I wanted to put off the operation. We had no reply that day or the next. Then on the Wednesday, the day I was to have returned to hospital, the surgeon telephoned and agreed to our request.
Some weeks later, I saw the same surgeon in Outpatients. He had a look at my back passage and commented: 'Too good to touch!'. We were so pleased to hear this but also so grateful to all those who had prayed for me and to God for his mercy in answering those prayers. It is great to still be in one piece!

Mr Malcolm Krohne

© Evangelicals Now - December 1997
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