Michael's Heart

Michael has had a heart murmur since birth. When he was 3 & 6 months old we took him to a pediatric cardiologist - although they heard a murmur, they didn't seem concerned. Our pediatrician has told us each year that if the murmur wasn't gone at age 5 we would go back to pediatric cardiology. And after each appointment when Dr. S continued to hear it, Andy & I prayed that the Lord would close the hole in M's heart. Fast forward to this spring - M's 5 yr appt. The murmur was still there & very pronounced. Dr. S also had a resident listen & they both agreed that we should go see a specialist, just to be on the safe side. ( We are so thankful for this, as we have learned that many pediatricians wouldn't have had us go). We made an appt. with a pediatric cardiologist for August 8th. We put it on our calendar & for the next 3 months A & I continued to pray for the hole to close. On August 8th we took M, fully expecting the dr. to say he was not concerned - that either the hole had closed or that M will live the rest of his life with a small murmur. But after doing an EKG & an echo cardiogram, they determined that M has a 15mm Atrial Septal Defect & it needs to be closed because the bottom part of his heart is already larger than it should be and is showing signs of stress. This was difficult to hear because we really weren't expecting it. After much prayer, talking with the doctors & processing all the information we scheduled the surgery for Monday, November 5th -which at the time felt so far off. But now Nov. 5th is almost here. We have been fervently asking the Lord to close the ASD - that when the camera goes down M's esophagus to look at his heart, M's heart will be healthy without any need for surgery. I love to imagine the dr. walking to us in the waiting room & saying, "Good news! The ASD is gone!"
If the ASD is still there we are praying that it can be repaired with a catheter & that M will heal quickly & completely. Although this is a very difficult situation, we are reminded, once again, that our children are in the Lord's hands & that we are not in control. The Lord has already shown so much faithfulness & we cannot even begin to imagine going through this without His closeness & His promises. Thank you so much for your prayers for our sweet boy.
"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God." Psalm 20:7