God is Great, Let's Praise Him
June 2004 

            ‘Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever.’ (Ps 106:1)  This past month has been a very trying time for my family and I.  Yet the more trials we went through, the more faithful God proved to be.  We cannot help but echo the thoughts of Job, “But He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.’ (Job 23:10)  It is our prayer that this testimony and thanksgiving may comfort those who are going through difficult times and to encourage those who have been a blessing to us during our period of need to keep up their good work.    

In late March this year, my father experienced heart angina after a tennis game.  We sent him to the hospital.  After some tests and given that he did not have medical history of hypertension, high cholesterol or diabetes, the doctors concluded then that he probably did not have a heart attack.  He was discharged and prescribed aspirin to thin his blood. 

            On the morning of 28 April, my father again experienced heart angina.  This time, it happened just as he was about to drive off from home for his tennis game.  Somehow prompted by the Holy Spirit, he went upstairs.  My sister woke up earlier than usual that morning and she heard noises in the bathroom.  Unable to sleep again, she decided to check it out.  She found my father splashing water on his head and breaking into cold sweat.  She helped him to rest and gave him his aspirin.  My father recovered and after a short nap started carrying weights.  As a result, we thought there was no need to bring him to see a doctor.  However, on second thoughts, I decided to consult a doctor friend.  He advised me to bring my father immediately to the hospital.  So, again, my father was admitted through the A & E Department.  And again, the initial ECG and blood tests showed that he did not suffer a heart attack.  It was only after an angiogram was carried out that the cardiologist found five blocked arteries.  In fact, they were blocked on long stretches so that a heart bypass was the only solution. 

            I called a friend who works in NUH and within five minutes, the hospital staff called and recommended the top heart surgeon for my father.  Arrangements were promptly made and the operation fixed on 6 May as my father needed to stop taking aspirin for a week before the operation could take place.  Meanwhile, we were praying for his operation to be in the morning as the surgeons would be more alert and fresh. 

            He was readmitted to NUH on 5 May.  That evening we were told his operation was scheduled in the afternoon.  We comforted ourselves with the thought that a more complicated case must have been scheduled before his.  God must have a reason for denying us our request.  Little did we know that God would answer our prayer in His own way.  That morning, I received a call at 6.30am.  My sister was already in the hospital.  They have decided to schedule my father in the morning because the case before him could not proceed.  I rushed down and we prayed together.  God has given us very little time to worry and we could only commit my father to Him.  My father on the other hand was very strong.  His only worry was to ‘trouble’ us so much during this time.  Armed with Ps 27:14 (verse read to him by Rev Wong) and the hymn ‘God will Take Care of You” (dedicated by Church Choir), God has already granted him the peace and he was spiritually prepared for surgery.   

That morning, I accompanied my mother and I remember us praying on our own.  My unsaved mother was praying to her own god.  I hinted to her that my father desired to bring her to church when he got well but she said she would not be able to sit through service.  Finally, after 5 hours, my father was wheeled out of the operating theatre. 

We continued to pray and over the next week, he recovered just as we have been told.  He testified that by God’s grace, he did not feel any pain from the operation.  And on 12 May Wednesday, we rejoiced when the doctor informed us that my father was well enough to be discharged from the ICU and should be transferred to the general ward.  We requested for him to be upgraded to a single-bed ward for fear of infection.  However, this was not available.  We therefore requested the doctors to allow him to stay in the HDU for one more day, which they reluctantly agreed.   

This turned out to be God’s blessing again. My father started to have breathing difficulty by the following morning.  By noon, he was sedated and put back on the ventilator (to help him breathe).  He was wheeled back to the ICU and fitted with all the monitoring devices and intravenous needles.  Apparently he had developed an infection in his lungs perhaps due to some food having gotten into his lungs when he vomited.  The surgeon described his condition as ‘worrisome but we are monitoring him very closely.  Let’s hope the infection does not deteriorate into pneumonia.’  Because my father also has Parkinson’s Disease, pneumonia would be very dangerous for him.  My father became very agitated during this time.  He was no doubt upset that he was put back to the ventilator in ICU instead of being transferred to the general ward.  It was like taking two steps backwards.  Though he was heavily sedated, he would not sleep.  The ventilator in his mouth led to mouth dryness and sores.  His medication for Parkinson’s was interfering with the effects of other medicine and also aggravated the dryness in his mouth.  Seeing him suffer yet not able to help, we felt so helpless and desperate, and could only turn to God for help.  We prayed the most during this time.  As we could not sleep much, we would wake up at night to pray and read the Bible.  My sister was amazed one night to flip her Bible to Ps 27, the psalm that Rev Wong read to my father.  Verse 14 reads, ‘Wait on the LORD, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.’  Waiting for the lungs to be cleared of liquid, waiting for the fever to subside, waiting for him to breathe on his own so that the ventilator can be removed, waiting on the LORD – waiting was so difficult when we could not see the end… and how we begged God to hear our cries! 

            ‘… God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.’ (1 Cor 10:13)  God heard our cries.  By Saturday, two days after being in the ICU, my father began to accept God’s will for him.  He cheered up and resolved to face this testing bravely.  By Sunday, when Rev Wong, Dn Charlie and sister Constance visited him, he was able to pen these words, “God is Great, Let’s praise Him.”  He could not speak but this did not stop him from giving praise and glory to God by scribbling on a piece of paper his thoughts.  It was really wonderful to read his testimony that “God is beside me” throughout his ordeal.  My father seized every opportunity to ask us to pray for him.  My mother, though an unbeliever, also started joining us when we prayed.  Truly, God is great and greatly to be praised!

            Over the following week, my father slowly overcame the infection and regained strength.  His complexion improved noticeably and he was finally transferred to the general ward after a total of 19 days in the ICU.  25 days after the operation, he was discharged from the hospital.  Now he is recuperating at home.   

We are grateful to God for those who have supported us during this time.  There are many who prayed with us, those who ministered to us through their visits, phone calls and writing.  There are also those who offered practical help like looking after my children while I made my twice-daily visits to the hospital.  My uncle and aunt who are also fellow believers, took turns with us to keep my father company during his hospital stay.  It is really wonderful to experience God’s love and concern through you brothers and sisters in the family of God.  Now, it is our prayer that my mother will, through all these, acknowledge Jesus as her Saviour.  If you also do not know Jesus, may this testimony move you to know Him.

wendy

on behalf of family of Chan Sin Huat