First Vision Mission July Report "Open Hearted Praise"

Dear Pastors and Churches,

Open Hearted Praise instead of Open Heart Surgery

This is our update to all those you who have been faithfully praying for my heart valve replacement. By now many of you have heard that I did not have to have the surgery. It was close, as in on the table in the OR, shaved, prepped and knocked out but something stayed the surgeons hand and I woke up without a permanent zipper on my sternum.

Since I was a child I’ve had a rapid heartbeat, over time the extra beating of my heart has caused the aorta side of my heart to enlarge. Once this happened it became muscle-bound. (I know the idea of any part of my body being muscle-bound is making many of you smile.) Anyway the extra muscle was preventing the blood from other side of the heart entering the chamber and causing it to look like my heart valve was at fault. In preparation for surgery my Doctor put me on a beta blocker which was designed to reduce the rapidity of my heart. After a few months of being on that medication that side of my heart shrunk and the blood flow came back to an acceptable rate. Though I do have a congenital defect in my heart valve, it does not need to be replaced yet. Praise the Lord, greatly.

For anyone who might not see this as an answer to your prayer let me go over a few things.

First, Originally I was supposed to have the surgery just two months after arriving in the emergency room in Feb. had we secured the money, or had insurance I would have had the surgery and probably got a new valve or at least a big nasty scar before they saw my heart was okay. The beta blocker had time to work because the surgery was delayed. Second, I went into the hospital a full 24 hours before the surgery was scheduled. They took me off all medication for about 36 hours had they not done that my heart would have still been under the influence of the medication and they would not have thought that something else was happening when they took me into the operating room. Third, they didn’t have to do another echocardiogram. One doctor has already told me that is not a standard procedure. If they hadn’t taken just one more measurement, my heart would be part pig and I’d be looking for another valve replacement in only 10 to 12 years.

I call these “Miracles of Coincidence.” An atheist wouldn’t see these as proof of God’s existence but a Christian sees the providence of God in every step. Just one step of these “coincidences” missing and the outcome would have been so very different. The steps along this process whether we see it or not are directed by God and initiated through prayer. Thank you so much for your initiative and Praise the Lord for His miraculous providence in all our lives, whether we see it or ignore it still it works in all our lives.

Our plans now are to make up some of the appointments we had to cancel and see if we can schedule a few more along the way. We had hoped to be in Flagstaff this fall, but we have been delayed by the medical close call. Our plans now are to get there in the spring as the snow begins to melt. Moving there in the winter simply is asking for problems with a travel trailer and 3-4 feet on the ground. The Lord has been gracious and we have picked up 4 churches during this time. We will be praying for a few more to bring us up to near $2000.00 a month. In the meantime we will both be looking for jobs in Flagstaff that will allow us to plant the church while providing money for a place to live and other personal necessities. We hope to use most of the support money for mission related costs such as rent, publicity, training materials, etc.

In His Service,

Kris and LeeOra Minefee

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