If You should speak
Or should remain in silence
Should give me light
or lead me through the dark
Whatever the cost
Whatever joy or sorrow
I’ll worship still
Because of who You are
-Starfield

Ian slept in pretty late this morning but then had a good session of therapy with Amanda and Heather. He communicated very clearly to them that his left heel was hurting him which is great that he can tell us specifically where he is hurting. However, we’re noticing that as he becomes more aware, he may be feeling more pain and discomfort. Ian communicated to Bill that certain areas of his body were hurting, like his back and hip, most likely side effects from the impact of the accident.

For some reason, it’s often harder for me to think about his hip or back hurting than it is to think about the injuries to his brain. It was like that since the night of the accident- it was always the somewhat little injuries (little in comparison) that hit me the most.

Naturally, as he gains consciousness he will begin to feel more and more pain. Please pray that God would continue to grant abundant mercy on him. It’s hard to know that Ian is in pain, but it’s wonderful to know that our Lord is tenderly caring for all of those pains.

Larissa

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My husband, Mark, puts out cd’s that are the Scriptures set to music. I was listening to one in the car, today, and Ian happened to be singing two of the Scriptures I listened to. Not only is Ian gifted in all the other ways that have been detailed here, in this blog, he can sing too; very well. His singing career goes all the way back to his first band, the Dum-Bums that included such talents as his friend, David, my son. Their fame spread far and wide between our two houses, that were right next to each other. Their last band, Knucklehead (pictured here), which also included my son actually played a few gigs. Ian can sing and his voice, on the cd, was evidence that his voice was only getting better.

The songs he sang were very edifying, but also, very interesting. The first was 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

“For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

The second was 1Thessalonians 5:23-24:

“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”

There’s not much more that I desire in this world than to hear Ian sing again. But wasn’t he telling me, as he sang, that what he was singing is exactly what God is doing in his life? The Lord, Himself, is preparing for Ian an eternal weight of glory, beyond all comparison that will make what he and his family have to endure seem light and momentary. If I look at what is seen, and not at what is unseen, it seems unbearably heavy and far too long, but Ian was telling me something very different. He told me that the God, Himself is sanctifying him completely and keeping his whole spirit, soul and body blameless until Jesus returns or he goes to his real home, Paradise with Jesus. And then he capped it all off with God’s promise, “He who calls you is faithful. He will surely do it.”

Ian is gaining something so, utterly, fantastic in these sufferings, that we would probably faint with ecstasy if we could see it. But we can’t see it, and that’s why we get into trouble. We’re looking at him with our physical eyes that only see what is temporal and transient. So, as he sings, we’re supposed to be looking at and for the things that are unseen because they are eternal and most important. The Scriptures, just as Ian was singing, teaches that all of our sufferings are completely purposeful in the hands of an eternally wise and very skillful God.

I am praying, hard, that Ian will sing again. But in all my prayers, I don’t want to lose sight of what Ian is gaining in his sufferings and therefore dishonor God and rob Ian, in my own mind, of the glorious weight of God’s doings. I want to obey Jesus and pray, with perseverance, until He answers, but I also want to remember that there are supernatural, hidden and mysterious things happening in and with Ian and his family of which I have no idea, but of which He knows all.

God if faithful. He will surely do it.
Kristi A.

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I read an article in our local paper recently about an atheist author whose best-selling book aggressively attempts to refute the existence of God. The Psalmist must have experienced a similar assault on God’s character in Psalm 42 and 43; his oppressors were saying continually, “where is your God?” (42:10). I’m sure some who read this blog have the same question in mind “witnessing” our experiences with Ian: where is your God? I’m sure because that question has whispered from the corner of my mind.

The Psalmist struggled with difficult experiences caused in part by atheists in his day. “Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls,” he said. “All your breakers and your waves have gone over me.” Yet, in the face of his difficulties he challenged his own soul (42:11): “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” This is a refrain he repeats three times in two Psalms. It’s a refrain I have to repeat over and over again to myself, too, despite my difficult experiences.

No matter what happens with Ian, I must “hope in God, for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

Ian continues to be alert and apparently aware of his surroundings. We “communicate” by asking yes/no questions of him, and we get a long blink if his answer is ‘yes’. A friend of ours led a group us in a worship with Ian; I trust it meant a lot to him.

Pray for Ian.

Steve

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I’m sitting in the hotel room tonight after a long day at this great conference. It has been such a blessing to meet some of the people that have been following this blog and praying for Ian, some since the day of the accident. I am so moved again by the fact that people who don’t even know Ian feel a weight on their heart to daily lift him and us up in prayer. Only God could stir hearts like that.

I was talking this morning with someone who reads the blog daily and throughout our conversation I was saying how God’s grace alone has sustained me through this. She then asked me what I do in my moments of darkness and basically asked what do I practice in times of temptation. What a great question. I think I responded by saying that I stop and ask God to help me and give me grace. God has also helped me to be diligent in my quiet times and I daily have seen the fruit of that. But that question really made me start thinking more about grace and what it has actually done in my life. These are my thoughts so far.

I have been enveloped with grace for the past eight months. I have been given abundantly more grace than I have asked for in prayer. I have walked along with the Murphy’s through what apart from Christ is a huge tragedy, full of sorrow, and lacking of hope. But we have not been crushed. God has met me in every hour of need and I have no way to explain that other than to credit it to God’s infinite love for me. Nothing has shown me more of His character than being carried by His grace through this suffering. His grace is what allows me to get out of bed in the morning when my emotions tell me that hiding under the covers would be best. His grace is what allows me to look at Ian and see the man that I want to marry. His grace is what allows Steve and Mary to care for all of their oldest son’s physical needs. His grace is what allows us to say ‘it is good that I was afflicted.’

This conference opened with singing “Amazing Grace.” I was crying instantly because we sang that song countless times over Ian while he was in the hospital. Ian is a recipient of God’s amazing grace. We are experiencing, right now, God’s amazing grace. “Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come.” And “grace will lead me home.”

Thank you for your prayers. And thank you, Chrissy, for challenging me with that great question.

Larissa

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(Larissa wrote this last night and asked me to post it today. Steve)

One of our friends who is working with Ian reported today that he swallowed around a dozen times while she was working with him. When he was in Children’s, it was a good day to have one swallow per session. This may not seem significant at first, but him swallowing more means that he is gaining control of his tongue. We’ve been told that after he learns how to consistently swallow again, him forming words should come pretty quickly after that.

We took Ian to the movies tonight to see Pirates III. He did really well for about an hour and then he was happy to be home and back in his bed.

As Kristi wrote, this weekend is New Attitude, a conference with Sovereign Grace Ministries. I don’t like the thought of being there without Ian. It just feels awkward. But God knew that he wouldn’t be there and He knew that we would be wishing he were in Kentucky with us. Somehow this is better and is accomplishing something greater. God can minister to Ian no matter where he is and He can also comfort our emotions of longing to have Ian there with us.

“Forsake me not in my joys, lest they absorb my heart. Forsake me not in my sorrows, lest I murmur against thee. Forsake me not in the day of my repentance, lest I lose the hope of pardon, and fall into despair; and forsake me not in the day of my strongest faith, lest faith degenerate into presumption. Forsake me not, for without thee I am weak, but with thee I am strong. Forsake me not, for my path is dangerous, and full of snares, and I cannot do without thy guidance”

Spurgeon

Thank you for praying

Larissa

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Last year, today, David and Ian were filming their last installment of “Drowning Melville.”, in Louisville, KY, at New Attitude, a conference sponsored by Sovereign Grace Ministries. If you haven’t seen it, you should. You’ll see Ian at his acting, funniest best. The address is:

savethewheel.com/melville

I remember how stressed David was about it. They, both, worked so hard to get it filmed, edited and finished, and then they never had time to show it at the conference! I doubt that Ian was as stressed as David. He was, always, pretty relaxed about these things, which drove David crazy. They’re relationship has always had it’s rocks every now and then.

How could any of us ever dreamed that Ian wouldn’t be at New Attitude this year, and why he wouldn’t be there? Except One, of course. The Lord knew. He has always known exactly what He was going to do in Ian’s and his family’s life. And He still knows. He knows exactly what He’s going to do, right now, and exactly when He’s going to do it. He knows how long we will have to wait and He knows, more than any human that’s ever lived, how painful the waiting for His work is.

If anyone knows pain, it’s God. Most of us know it, occasionally, only in one lifetime, but He has known it for generation after generation. He has watched what sin does to His creation and His creatures ever since He created man and only He knows the depths of His own pain. God experiences pain, the Scriptures says, and He knows how to take care of His children who are in pain. Let’s pray for Murphy’s grief, this week-end, as they care for their son, who would be at New Attitude with his friends, if God hadn’t decided something else for him. He has permitted great pain to enter the Murphy’s family, for great purposes that we have no idea of. Let’s pray that God works wonders in Ian’s life, this week-end, as He works wonders at the conference.

kristi

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My friend and I just took a trip to Florida and all during my trip, I found myself thinking, worrying rather, “Will Ian ever see the beach again? Will he ever fly in a plane? Will he swim in the ocean again?” Those are some of the most fun things in the world to do, and it made me really sad to think that Ian may never be able to do them again. I know that God can still heal Ian completely, but I also know that that might not be His will. I had to fight during those moments to remind myself that even if Ian never sees the beach again, the beauty of the beach or the fun of playing in the ocean does not hold a flame to what Ian will experience in heaven when he sees Jesus face to face. And I must continue to believe that Ian is feeling God’s presence right now in a way that we cannot understand, and that the experience of God’s presence is far more satisfying than spending an afternoon playing in the ocean.

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