The Power of God

Stephen doesn't know I took this picture of him. This was right before he went into surgery two weeks ago to get his tonsils removed and his sinuses fixed. This was his first surgery ever, so he was pretty nervous, as expected. It was an outpatient surgery that took all day. I was only expecting it to take three or four hours but we were at the hospital from 11:30 to 8:00 that night. A huge thanks to Rachel for watching the boys for us!

His recovery was really rough. He couldn't eat, sleep, talk, or even take his pain meds because the pain of swallowing was so bad. He lost somewhere between 10-15 lbs in a week. There were two times that we were close to having to take him to the ER for dehydration, but he managed to slowly take in some liquids.

One particular Sunday, a week after surgery, Stephen was feeling especially horrible and could not swallow his pain medications. He was in a lot of pain, but I couldn't get him to eat or drink anything. He wanted me to take him to the ER so he could get some IV fluids because the act of swallowing was so painful for him. We waited an hour or two and then called two priesthood holders from our ward to give Stephen a blessing. We gathered in the living room and they anointed and blessed him that he would be able to take his medicine and drink some fluids to help make him feel and heal better. They were here about 10 minutes and then left. A few hours passed and it was time to get the kids ready to go to church. I checked in on Stephen to see how he was doing and if I could get him anything before I left. He was able to swallow his pain meds and drank a whole 12 oz. glass of water before I left for church.

I didn't think anything of it until a week later during fast and testimony meeting; I sat on the bench and thought about his blessing and how quickly it was answered--that within two hours after being blessed he was able to take his pain medication and not only take sips of water, but drink a whole glass just like his blessing said he'd be able to. Not to mention that we ended up not having to take him to the emergency room. He received a lot of little tender mercies that morning.

I have always had a solid testimony of the power of the priesthood; it is the power of God given to those who are worthy to use it in times such as these. This power was restored on the earth through Joseph Smith. It is comforting to know that our Father in Heaven is always with us not only in thought, but also through priesthood holders like Stephen. I am so grateful we have the priesthood in our home and that Stephen is able to use it whenever it is needed. I know our Heavenly Father loves us and knows us personally; he knows our every need. All we need to do is come to him and ask. I am grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.