Luke 7:10 “And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.”

This is one of the Bible stories I read to Ricky every time I’m with him. Originally, I began reading these powerful stories of God’s miracles to him when we were just at the beginning of this journey. These are stories filled with hope and healing, light in dark times. As the weeks go by, I try to dissect each story and understand how they now reflect our own experiences and reveal what God is still capable of doing in our lives.

This one particular verse always stands out to me. We have all been slaves to something at some point — whether it’s a toxic relationship, addiction, harmful words, anger, depression, or anxiety. How truly AMAZING it is that to be healed, all we really need is faith and the presence of GOD! All those slaves, healed and set free. It’s not just those who seem “worthy” on the outside, but those of us who feel broken, who have hit rock bottom, who may be living on the streets or caught in sin.

My brother, who hasn’t lived a perfect life and has struggled for more than 30 years with addiction, is now being worked on by God Himself and has been deemed worthy. We’ve witnessed the miracles God has performed through and in him during these last 79 days. Not a single member of our family remains unchanged by this journey… but in the end, we know exactly who has the final say. We know that God has strengthened each one of us and that in the midst of all of this, there have been miracles — many miracles — and there are still many more to come. If you are struggling, if you are doubting right now, please know that we are here for you, and even more importantly, so is He.

My little sister, DeLisa, stayed at UAB this past weekend. For the first time in 11 weeks, I stayed home instead of being there alongside her and Ricky.

On Thursday, physical therapy came to our house and worked closely with Ricky, helping him regain strength and mobility. Friday was a significant day for me; I had a meeting scheduled with the speech therapy team. On my way there, I prayed out loud with a heart full of hope and determination. I begged God to allow Ricky to begin his swallowing valve trials without complications. I prayed for Ricky’s secretion burden to lessen and for complete healing and restoration for my big brother. When I finally arrived at Ricky’s room, I found him quietly staring out the window, lost in thought. When he heard my voice, his eyes immediately grew wide and filled with tears, and I think mine did too. And guess what?? There were no secretions this time; he was breathing beautifully and calmly. The speech therapist arrived soon after and conducted a capping trial. Throughout the entire trial, Ricky’s oxygen levels stayed at a perfect 100 percent. His vital signs remained steady and optimal; there was no labored breathing or distress at all. After that, the speech therapist placed Ricky’s swallowing and speaking. . Once again, all his vitals stayed unchanged and stable. Because of this remarkable progress, Ricky will now begin doing these valve trials every day, gradually building up to constant capping. Once he can tolerate being capped continuously without any changes in his vital signs, the next big step will be to move toward the removal of the tube altogether. This journey is challenging, but moments like these fill us with hope and remind us to have faith in God’s plan.

Please continue to pray !

“ And when those who had been sent returned to the house…

“Waiting at my doorposts”