Photo of our Pug G taken by Nate Freeman

“Don’t flinch,” those were the words I heard after I decided that I was tired of being sick and tired. I had gone through two surgeries in three months pertaining to kidney failure and dialysis treatment. The initial procedure was to place a stint in my neck so I could be hooked up to the hemodialysis machine. On two different occasions my blood pressure reached fatal extremes. I would have to sit still for three to four hours three times a week, just to rid my body of the toxins that my kidneys were no longer filtering. Those types of treatments left me completely drained. I was told that some people stay on those types of treatments for years. There are no words that could adequately describe how terrible I felt.

      I requested to have Peritoneal Dialysis. During this type of treatment, 3 liters of fluid was pumped into my abdominal cavity. The fluid acted like a magnet and filtered toxins out of my body similar to my kidneys. The main issue with this treatment was that I had to do the treatments 4 times a day, everyday. And I had trouble keeping food down.

      One day I decided that enough was enough. I made up my mind that no matter what happened, I was going to trust God, do what the doctors said to do and encourage others. I believe that what you make happen for others, God will make happen for you. Every time the church doors were open we were there. During the day I would go with Bob Louth to the hospitals to visit and pray with people. Often times on my way to church, I would have to pull off to the side of the road, because I couldn’t keep anything down. I would check myself, make sure nothing got on my clothes, wipe my mouth and stay true to my word. I wasn’t going to let sickness see me flinch. Don’t look at what you can’t do; instead look at what you are able to do. Stick to it. And never let them see you flinch.