Jean has been set free...

Just a few minutes ago I finished speaking with both Ron and Eric about Jean. Around 11:30 this morning Jean went to be with the Lord and took her final breath in the body that's confined her for so many years.

A few days ago Jean awoke to a pain in her chest that turned out to be a massive blood clot nearing her lungs. She passed out and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. At the hospital they stabilized her body function and needed to take extreme measures to keep her alive. These extreme measures are not want Jean wanted. Over the next few days in the ICU she showed signs of life with eye fluttering, muscle twitching, chewing, etc. However, even though the tests administered to Jean showed blood flowing to the brain, there was severe damage when she was not able to get oxygen during her unstable time on Saturday. Also, the medicine used to bring her back, severely handicapped her brain function. As a result, the life signs we saw were merely muscle responses to her body relaxing, not a sign of brain function. The doctors concurred that Jean was not really there any longer, and as a family (husband, children, sister) it was decided that Jean would not want to live in this state on a respirator. They humanely agreed that removing Jean from the ventilator would be what Jean would want. The breathing tube was removed early Tuesday evening, and she continued to breathe on her own until late this morning.

Although it's going to be difficult to share this news with our children today, we can take comfort in these passages...

John 5:24 "I assure you, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life." ... Jean was a Christian and she knew where she was going!

1 Corinthians 15:42 "Our earthly bodies which die and decay, will be different when they are resurrected, for they will never die." ...Jean is now dancing in heaven!

John 11:25 "Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again." ...Jean believed!

Lastly, I know that not all of our friends understand what it's like to be a believer and to know the Lord. We all have doubts. Some may look at a person like Jean and see the MS, the illness, the weakness. Eric and I have often wondered why Jean was given this burden in life. But then we've also seen that through her, our families have more compassion for others. We've raised money for the MS cause to find a cure - would we have done that without her being sick? Our children know that a wheelchair is not a death sentence. They've ridden on her lap, played with her "special toys" - like the chairs that raised her up and down, and the scooters and wheelchairs that drove her around. This is like a bumper car to a child - and fun, not scary. So we can see life and change in us, because of her...

One last verse to end my note today...

2 Corinthians 12:9 "Each time he said, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me." ... Thank you Jean...I love you

Kelly