I contacted the sweet volunteer who is currently caring for Daniel. Despite how crummy of a situation this baby is in, he sure is loved by so many people right now. God continues to flex His muscles and show us how strong and mighty He is. I was especially blessed with the ability to Skype with Linnea (the volunteer) and Daniel, before they left for the hospital. Again- so many tears. And I really am not a cryer.
That night I heard from Linnea again. They did not end up admitting Daniel and simply sent him home with some neb treatments. The orphanage, Linnea, and myself are all very concerned he has come down with pneumonia again. Pneumonia in any baby is not good, but especially not in a baby with a compromised heart to start with. But when you are in a country with very little resources to go around, you don't receive any sort of treatment, much less a hospital admit, unless you are extremely sick. I was astonished to hear that not even a chest X-ray or lab work was done. So Daniel is back at one of the orphanage but is receiving one on one care from Linnea. He is in great hands, and Linnea and I both are learning to continually trust the Lord through every moment. We both know that the Lord promises to provide and we know that the Lord has already numbered each of our days. So if Daniel is meant to have this surgery, it's going to happen. And if he isn't suppose to have it, then God is still just as good, faithful, and loving.
So we also got word last week that Daniel must weigh 6 kg (13.2 lbs) in order to have the surgery. He is currently 4.8 kg (10.5 lbs)- so the munchkin has got some work to do. I was slightly discouraged by these numbers. But in my heart I felt as though there was something significant about them. I then decided to open my bible to Daniel 6 just to see what I might come across…I had forgotten that one of my all time favorite stories can be found here- Daniel and the Lion's Den! Irony? NO. God's sovereignty? YES.
Most of us know the story by heart. Daniel was a faithful man of the Lord, so when he was told he would be persecuted for worshipping God, it didn't shake him.
"…because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him. Then these men said, 'We shall not find any ground against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God." Daniel 6:4-5
Daniel was sentenced to death. Thrown into a den of lions to be viscously eaten and destroyed.
"Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king declared to Daniel, 'May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!' Daniel 6:16
But just the opposite happened. The mouth's of the lion were kept shut, Daniel's life was saved, and God was glorified.
"My God sent sent his angel and shut the lions' mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and blameless before you, O king, I have done no harm." Daniel 6:22
Why was his life saved? Because he simply trusted the Lord.
"…so Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God." Daniel 6:23
So simple, yet so profound. He trusted in his God. There are many ways I can parallel this biblical story of Daniel with the current story we are living out with baby Daniel. First, this world tends to look much like a lion's den. There is no promise of safety or security. Heck, we see that here in the states. Elementary schools, movie theaters, and military bases are shot at and innocent lives are lost. Where are we suppose to escape the lion's den of this world? Baby Daniel is in a third world country, without a mom or dad. But the same God who rescued big Daniel, rescued baby Daniel. He was taken in by a loving orphanage. Many people have been placed in his life to care for him, love him, and provide the medical attention that he needs. Has he escaped the lion's den? No. Honestly, none of us have or will on this side of heaven. Yet, we have been rescued. For those of us who believe in Christ Jesus, we are saved! For those of us who know and are walking with Jesus, we know that we must simply trust in our God to close the mouth's of the current-day lions of this world. When we trust in our God, we don't just survive the lion's den, we thrive in it. We live a life that is Kingdom altering and God glorifying- just like the Daniel of the bible lived his life.
So what about this helpless six month old baby? I pray that Daniel's rescue story continues. I pray that he gets big enough and strong enough to have this life saving heart surgery in just a few weeks. I pray that we get the $1400 we are still in need of for the surgery to happen. But even if one or all of these things don't happen…Daniel has still been rescued. He is loved by people who love the Lord. So he has most definitely been rescued. The mouth's of the lions of have been shut, therefore, he is rescued.
I have been in awe of the love and support from friends and family back here in the states inquiring about this baby, and wanting to know what they can do to help. Most importantly, please continue to pray for all of us involved as we continue to work towards getting his surgery scheduled. Pray that he will fight off this bug he has now and that he will gain the needed weight. Pray that we will trust in our God each and every moment.
If you feel called to give financially towards surgery and medical expenses, there are a couple ways you can do that. This link, http://www.casadeamor.org/supporting will take you to the account directly if you would like to donate online. Or you can mail a check to the address below. Please put a note with it stating it is for Daniel specifically. Also, if you do send a donation by either route- please shoot me a message in some form or fashion so that I can tell Glenda (our sweet lady that processes all the donations) to be on the look out for it. Please make checks out to GOAL/Casa de Amor.
GOAL/Casa de Amor
PO Box 357
Collierville, TN 38027
USA
As for me, the plan is to still take off as soon as finals finish and to stay in Bolivia for the month of May to care for Daniel. We are praying the timing works out that he can have surgery right when I get there. But we cannot even get a surgeon assigned to the case until that other $1400 is in. Things work very differently there than they do here. It has been a difficult few weeks. Daniel is always on my mind, and I wish I was there. But as I continue to press into the Lord during this season, He continues to remind me that I am not needed anywhere. He chooses to use me. And for that I am abundantly blessed.
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