Incredible news about Madilyn

Dear Friends and Family,

I’m so excited to write this post! It has been a long time since I’ve been able to post such great news about Madilyn.

Last week, we had our check up with the kidney specialist Dr. Simon.  We had been waiting for two months for this appointment, and didn’t know what to expect.  During the week I was studying Isaiah 13, and this passage stood out to me: 

Isaiah 13:4 - 

“Listen, a noise on the mountains, like that of a great multitude!

Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations massing together!

The Lord Almighty is mustering an army for war.” 

This verse is in the middle of a prophesy against the Babylonian Empire, who was attacking, terrorizing and taking Israel captive. In the middle of this war, Isaiah gives this promise that God is mustering his forces for battle. What I took from this passage was a stark reminder that no matter what our circumstances, God is working, and moving in ways that we can’t see or even imagine.  

At the time I was studying this passage, I didn’t know that God was in the middle of healing Madilyn’s kidneys even more.

How is Madilyn Doing?

When Dr. Simon read the results of Madilyn’s latest blood work, he was surprised and said that her kidney function was above 95%, and that her Creatnine level had come down to 0.47.

This was not a result we expected, and we are so excited to see her little kidneys healing.  Praise God, and thank you so much for praying for her!!  On the car ride home Madilyn was so excited and just shouted out “Thank you Jesus.”

How can you pray?

Pray for her potassium level to improve.  

Madilyn’s potassium level was near normal, but not quite where it needs to be.  So, Dr. Simon reduced her medication, and we will go back for blood work this week to see if it holds steady.  If it does hold steady, then there is a chance she could be off the medicine for good.

Pray for her red blood cell production to improve. Madilyn’s red blood cell level is close, but not quite back to normal.  This is one of the last areas to recover with this disease so it may still take a few more months, but please pray for this to improve.

Thank you again for praying, we have been overwhelmed with joy over Madilyn’s progress!

Love,

The Rascos

New Year update for Madilyn

Dear Friends and Family,

We hope this holiday season was restful and that you were able to take some time to reflect upon the gift of redemption that came through Jesus Christ. As we begin the New Year, we wanted to post an update on Madilyn, to remind you to pray for her and us, and thank God for the healing she has had so far.  (This post is a little long, but I pray it’s worth the read).

Over the holiday break I was studying Isaiah 7.  In this passage the King of Judah was facing a war against two larger nations that had conspired against his people.  God sends Isaiah with a message of hope. Isaiah says to the king “keep calm, don’t be afraid, don’t lose hope because God has your back.”  Then he finishes this poetic passage with this statement:

Isaiah 7:9 - “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.” 

When I read that verse, I had to take a second look - what exactly is God saying through Isaiah here?  Faith is one of those words we hear a lot, but we don’t always think about what it means. Hebrews 11 defines faith as having confidence in the thing you are hoping for.  So, here is another way of saying this verse -  

“if you do not stand firm in the confidence of what you are hoping for, you will not stand at all”.

What’s amazing about this passage, is that faith is not something we can manufacture. Faith comes from the Lord - through the Holy Spirit.  Whatever you are facing, your first step needs to be praying and asking God to increase your faith! God, increase my confidence in your goodness…increase my confidence in your provision…increase my confidence that you love me as your own son.  

This year, will you begin by begging God to give you confidence in his character, and in his promises!

How is Madilyn Doing?

At our last appointment with Dr. Simon, Madilyn’s kidney function came back at 75%.  This test was the third test in a row that came back at that level. So, this tells us that her kidneys will likely stay at 75%.  This is not the news that we wanted to hear, we were hoping that her kidneys would continue to improve to 100%.

We are thankful that she is stable, and at 75% function Dr. Simon’s main concern is to protect the remaining 75% from stress or future damage.  No transplant, no dialysis, but we will have to keep a close eye on her kidneys from here on out.

We are thankful that we don’t have to return for another blood test until 1/18.  When Madilyn first left the hospital we had to go back every other day for blood work, now we go back every other month!

We are so thankful to our Missional Community, and other friends and family who set up a Gofundme page and gave sacrificially to help cover our expenses from Madilyn’s illness.  It was an amazing blessing to us, and an answer to prayer!  Thank you so much. 

How can you pray?

Pray for her potassium level to improve.  

Your kidneys are responsible for removing excess potassium in your blood, and this is an area where Madilyn’s kidneys have had trouble.  We are praying that this improves on 1/18 so that she can stop taking the gross medication called Kayexalate every day.  

Pray for her red blood cell production to improve. Kidneys control how many red blood cells your body produces, and this is one area where Madilyn is close, but not quite back to normal.  Please pray for this to improve again.

Pray for her kidneys to show even more improvement - the number 75% is not necessarily locked in.  Dr. Simon said there is no way of knowing if she’ll improve some more, so we are praying that we would be surprised and she’d show even more improvement!

Pray for us to be steadfast as we serve the Lord. We want to trust the Lord with Madilyn’s health…we have no way of knowing how God will use this for her good and for His Glory, so we ask for the faith to trust him, and know that God loves Madilyn even more than we do.

Thank you again for praying!

Love,

The Rascos