Lord, Hear Our Prayers

This is Yulia in the center of this photo taken in July of 2007

Shortly after the above picture of Yulia was taken, we learned that she had been having fainting spells. This was later diagnosed as a brain disorder that had been left undetected too long to be treatable. Specialists in Prague and Moscow were consulted, but Yulia was told that all that could be done for her was to be given pain medication and be sent home to die. This was especially heart breaking for us since Yulia was a widow raising her daughter Masha on her own. We were devastated to think that this girl would become an orphan.

Each Sunday we began praying for Yulia that God would provide for her healing and recovery. We continued to pray for her as we got updates of her condition. I'm not quite sure of the details of how exactly everything took place, but somehow it was discovered that a procedure at a hospital in Turkey might be successful. The only problem was that it was going to cost something in the neighborhood of what the average home sells for in Central California.

We prayed that God would miraculously provide a way for Yulia to have this procedure and that He would guide the hand of these surgeons as they operated on her. Again, I'm not sure how it happened, but amazingly the hospital significantly lowered the fee for the procedure and enough people stepped forward to pay for the costs to make it possible.

Praise God that Yulia stood before us at church today to give her testimony of God's Sovereignty even in suffering. Against all odds, the surgery on her brain was a success. She last saw the doctor six months ago and has made a full recovery, but the story doesn't end there. While Yulia was in the hospital, a man named Yura began visiting her and praying for her. In fact, Yura began spending so much time with her that they fell in love with each other. Even in the face of death and suffering, their faith remained firm and their love blossomed. They are now happily married.

God not only restored Masha's mother, but through Yulia's suffering, Masha gained a father. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. May the name of the Lord be praised, yet how sweet it is to be witness to His giving.

Yura, Yulia, and Masha today at church