By Rev. Heather Joy James, wife of Pastor Stevan Mirkovich
Our family was at BC Children’s Hospital Emergency Room twice last week. Two of our three children, in crisis, needing urgent care. As I write this, we are now on the wait list for Emergency Surgery- Ophtamology- for our littlest one’s eye. A playground slide incident gone awry, she got a face full of rocks and debris lodged in her eye. Thank God her vision is not affected, and she is in mostly good spirits, not too much discomfort. We are home from a day at the ER, and then the specialist clinic, waiting for a phone call – sometime tonight- or tomorrow… Anxious? Yes, a little. Praying? Yes, a lot. As I sat in the ER, I wondered how a mother in Gaza would have accessed healthcare for a little one needing such a surgery. Facilities like the Anglican-run al-Ahli Arab Hospital, have suffered devastating blasts that killed hundreds of innocent people. Lord, have mercy. I cannot pretend to know how to wade into the complex political structures of the Middle East. I do know this: children are suffering because of this conflict- and you and I both know, this is not the first time. Lord, have mercy. I spent last Tuesday, in response to the call from the church leaders in Jerusalem, and then along with many across the country, in a Day of Prayer & Fasting- for peace, for mercy, for hope. Here is what I do know: prayer changes me. It stills my soul, it calms my spirit. The Holy Spirit is a balm to the wounds of my soul. My broken mother’s heart is enveloped in the love of a God who weeps at the pain of their child too. And in Christ, I can have hope that one day, every tear will be wiped away. In Jesus, there will be a reconciliation and renewal of all things. Until that day, we pray… Lord, have mercy. ~Heather Joy
**UPDATE: Juliana was able to have the surgery & she is in full recovery, her vision unaffected.