Latching onto Jesus

Dear Caring Prayer Warriors,

It has been at least a double fortnight since my last entry and for that I am sorry. I know you are always interested for news about Anna and how to better pray for my family. Thanks for your commitment, that is worth its weight in gold to me. I can't believe i used to live without ever asking anyone to pray for me. O how desperate I always am for a touch, a word, a hug, a direction, a smile, an encouragement from God -He chooses you all frequently to administer those. God is so good.

I know God is doing great things and is bringing His strength our way because we are all enduring various weaknesses. Most pressing would be Anna. She has been ill for three week, ever since our return to Denver. There is much to thank God for: 1 she has a strong cough and fights to clear her throat. 2 she has a g-tube so we can easily give her the nourishment and medicine she needs. 3 she has a wonderful large bed fully adjustable so that she can be positioned any which way. 4 she listens well to stories to preoccupy her mind as she remains slow on the go.

We've delighted in Simon's crawling and standing milestones recently. We eagerly await the sleeping through the night milestone. I know people say it goes fast, but i must add that we are enjoying the evolution of his quirks and gestures. This boy has given me a deeper sense of wonder about God's plans for him/me/mankind. O and praise God he has remained healthy.

Lindsey and I are finding ourselves worn thin. I've been sleeping in the living room these three weeks weeks so i can tend to Anna and Lindsey can tend to Simon. I was sick now Lindsey seems to be on the verge. Sleep deprivation, interrupted sleeping, not sleeping enough, it is all challenging for my character.

We look to install a flooring for Anna's crawler and walker next week. How wonderful to think that our prayer requests are a "yes" in God's time. We may push that back. Toys line the furniture and walls everywhere, the dirty dishes are backed up like a friday night at Denny's, and the cars need a wash.

All this to say, Please Pray:

-For Anna that she would be healed from this sickness, have a clear throat and patience for al the discomfort. That we can have a routine again surrounding therapy.

-For our family devotion times to be a time of peace and focus on God's Word, singing and prayer. With all the discomfort going on its hard to concentrate and enjoy this time of family discipleship.

-For Jesus to be our all in all regarding this storm, that he would be the Savior, healer, protector, and friend. so that we would not believe lies, or give into temptations, or hang onto bad attitudes or unforgiveness.

-For Simon to eat and sleep better.

-For Lindsey to have time away from our dearies to sleep and rest and shop at Joann's

-For peace and rest given our full schedules.

-For Joy (who administers the intensive model of therapy) to be Anna's new Physical therapist,

-For Anna to qualify for the CES waiver which would allow more benefits and activities.

-For An RN to work here to lighten our load.

-For the flooring to be beautiful, well installed and for God to be glorified, the Church is stepping up to help us of their own initiative. We are so blessed.

-For me to be Christlike at work given the busyness, a new boss arriving, and stuffing to sell. May God be glorified in my work.

-For time to express our gratitude to the many, helpers on our "thank you " card list.

 "Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." Galatians 6:9

Thanks,

  Nick, Lindsey, Anna and Simon

Celebrating God for Stuff

Thank you for upholding us through this time in prayer. We are vulnerable to so much. Yet we hear our Shepherd chilling us out, helping us stay the course, and keeping us from harm. We desire to be home but still have half of Anna's intensive therapy sessions to go. Believe me when I tell you: all of this has been well worth it and certainly blessed by the Lord. 

Anna's Physical Therapist Jeni has a PhD in Physical Therapy. It seems like a contradiction in terms, she doesn't respond to Doctor,  one thing is for sure she knows what Anna needs. She brings great intensity, observation, and evolution into the treatment. What a great experience so far, from 9 am to 1 with her every day. Her heart is dialed in with these kids too. Fun fact, she roller skates to work and is on a roller derby team. 

Jeni sees so much ability in Anna; Given how much time she spends with cerebral palsy kids that is great news. We cheered and made their web page because Anna propelled herself forward 6 feet using no help from us, just her feet. Anna was in a wheeled contraption that promotes crawling. We thank God for the head strengthening going on its obvious!  

We have had the privilege of sharing our faith walk and our "real" family moments with our hosts. It is literally one of those situations where they are blessed to be a blessing to us. They have a very routinely, clean, and peaceful house used throughout the week for small groups. Simply put, we are unable to exude that same harmony. They are gracious hosts and so accommodating. I feel loved by the Lord that He would arrange for us to stay with them free of charge for three weeks. They make me wonder if there is such a thing as a stranger in the Body of Christ? 

Please pray: 

-For our PT Jeni to build on what Anna has been doing. For wisdom as she commissions us to care for Anna at the handoff. 
-For vision what a motivator sight is, she is engaging her eyes more and we are overjoyed at seeing all of Anna's efforts to see and grow. What work 
-For miracles, we are going to put Anna in a walker next week! 
-For Anna to be healthy (she is still congested) and strong. 
-For progress so that Anna can work to do things on her own. 
-For our marriage to be rich in good communication, so we can better bless Anna as her parents.  
-For Simon's health, he has had stomach issues. 

Thanks for praying, 

Nic, Lindsey , Anna and Simon

O for a Thousand and One Tongues to Sing

Hello Prayer People,

My brother has this image of Anna running through a field and dancing because of the Lord’s healing. My brother never came up and told me this; it pops up when we pray together for Anna. God has given my brother an image of grace for his niece and it is like a promise for him.

I don’t have such a time and place that I see Anna miraculously able. However I do frequently wonder about Anna’s voice. This girl has the prettiest coos and elementary sounds but she is nonverbal, unable to tell us anything outside of her use of volume, tone, and frequency. So I have often asked God what her voice and singing would sound like, how pleasing it must be for a father to hear his daughter singing to the Creator in worship.

Before Anna I would have thought these types of believer’s visions to be improbable at best. Now I see that these yearnings of healing come from believing with the heart before the head. God always wants our hearts first.  My head doesn’t grasp that Anna could one day sing worship to God but my heart does. Anna will be healed, should it be here, gradual, partial, complete, in heaven?

Sorry for the long intro.

One of the reasons Anna cannot eat solid food is because her tongue has never learned how to move from side to side. She has only been able to use her tongue in a forward and backward motion. The natural use of her tongue is limited neurologically. If food were to get pocketed in the sides of her mouth she cannot retrieve it. For the last year and a half we have tried with the feeding therapist to stimulate this ability with a vibrating brush, creative spoon feeding, massaging… but with no result.

Then two nights ago, Lindsey was brushing Anna’s teeth and asked me to come quick. Praise God! Anna was trying to locate the toothbrush on the sides of her mouth with her tongue. She was nearly rolling the sides of her tongue, showing us that she can move her tongue to the side.

Let’s Pray:

-For increased grace to make new neurological connections through therapy and new cells bringing ability to Anna’s tongue

-For visions and dreams that are a “Yes and Amen” in Jesus

-For Anna’s current sickness to pass swiftly. Pray for her ability to clear all excess mucus from her throat. Her congestion is causing her to wake up frequently and/or causing her to gasp for air. She cannot roll over, or go onto her side to be more comfortable without us rotating her. Also, may the Lord help us as we suction her it is tricky and often triggers reflux.

-We noticed little reflux in Panama throughout our trip, however back in Colorado the reflux increased again, may God take away her acid reflux

-For Traveling mercies for the upcoming road trip on Friday to Portland for Intensive therapy. 

O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing has been on my mind ever since that toothbrushing night especially this verse:

"Hear Him, ye deaf; His praise, ye dumb,
Your loosened tongues employ;
Ye blind, behold your Savior come,
And leap, ye lame, for joy."

Nicksters, Lindsey, Anna Pie, and Si-money

From a cell to the sun

Dear prayer warriors,

Give thanks to God who gave us cells that grow and form into organs, tissue, bones, brain matter, and many other things. I take these little guys for granted for sure. Although lately a bit less. From the cell to the sun, creation does reveal God's greatness -what infinite praise is due The Lord in light of His created works.

We went and visited the canal and its locks. We saw how a way was made through the rainforest. The United States was such a presence there for so long. No wonder the currency here is the US dollar and there is so much America everywhere. It been interesting for sure. 

On the way from our shiny hotel we saw the poverty. It was widespread dirtiness, seemingly total and lawless. I used to ask "what is the justice in poverty" and why was I not born into it? In reading God's Word, I have learned that there is no justice in poverty only injustice. It cannot be written off by ignoring it or having a phony justification. 

Another notable remark in the journey is befriending Juan-Jose our driver. I have given him story after story about how Jesus came alive in my soul and turn the whole mess around. He was also surprised at the amount of help we have received from our churches since having Anna. I keep telling him that the help is actually from God through His church. God be praised. He does claim a Catholic faith and believes that everything happening in His life happens for a reason only God knows. 

May the Holy Spirit convict us all of our sin and cause us to see our desperate need for the only Savior. May Juan-Jose read God's Word, test it, and find it to be more trustworthy than his own heart. I pray for a deeper encounter with Christ for this man. 

As for us, Our appetite for healing increases as we hesitate to announce any progress. We concluded the injections today.  Regardless, Christ in us the hope of glory is more than enough. So instead of focusing on Anna's stem cell treatments showing dividends we focus on Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. It has rained all day, this is our last day here. So we have had the Brooklyn Tabernacle choir on repeat as we sang praises and lifted up spontaneous praying to our God from the comfort of our little Panamanian hotel room. Praying with children is a gift from God. Singing to the Lord is a sweet gift too. 

In speaking with Lindsey back in our fundraising days I remember specifically feeling led not to ask people for money for the Stem Cell treatments. Mainly because I felt people weren't properly educated about it. I'm thankful for this wisdom of restraint because really it's just between us and God. We don't have to give account to any sort of person investing for a must-see miracle. Gods purpose is bigger still. Instead we asked for financial help to fund the upcoming intensive therapy trip to Portland, and many have helped for that it's over half funded. God has made a way!! We are looking to all the rich mercy God has for Anna. And Because of grace we ask for more mercy for Anna. 

Please Pray with us:

-That we would thank God for His purpose and love Him for making our trip a joy, a vacation, a unique family time and a time of receiving great help from Dennis and Nancy.  
-For continued healing of Anna's vision, Cerebral palsy, GERD, and cognition
-For an increased ability for her to communicate with us. 
-For a safe return tomorrow, making our connecting flight in Huston and that we could be able to sit together, as of now we are scattered. 
-that any temptation to doubt and regret our sacrifice made to see Anna healed would be squashed by knowing our faith is being refined in God's Fire currently. 

Injection junction and other prayers

This is a robust list of things we ask you to pray for. (Its an abridged post from the prayer email I sent a week ago but never posted here). Let's pray again, tomorrow at 9 am central time Anna will be given her first injection of cord blood stem cells from live births in Panama. The Lord be praised forever.  

"But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall." Malachi 4:2


A contributing reason why I write these prayer requests is because of something I was told by a family we befriended while we were in the NICU. This family had been walking down the special needs path 5 years ahead of us while depending on Him. They said, “I don’t want to be before the Lord and ask Him why He decided not to heal my son sooner… Only to have the Lord reply ‘you stopped asking me to do it.’” They resolved to always ask, we can resonate with that thinking because God is able! 

Please Pray:

-For Lindsey, Simon, Anna and I to experience health, sleep, and a perfect peace on this trip. We are a bit manic in thought about all this and it's tempting to second guess.  May we be spirit-led and Christ like.  We have faith in God’s sovereign hand.  

-For Lindsey and I to have time outside of family devotions to meet one-on-one with God however that looks. 

-For Satan and all demonic forces to be dealt with in the spirit world by the supremacy of Christ and His work for us. We do not tread in the kingdom of darkness but rather the kingdom of the Son. 

-For every trial to be presented before the Lord in prayer and for the solutions to be bathed in wisdom. 

-For God to continue to have a glorious mercy on Anna through the giving of His umbilical cord stem cells to Anna. 

-For no complications in administering them. that the 40 million stem cells quoted would be administered and that all the cells be healthy and well preserved.  

-For God to rebuild Anna’s neurological injuries and brain damaged areas causing them to work as He intended them to work when He first created such intricate things.  

-For Anna to experience ability in her core muscles thus strengthening her esophagus sphincter ending her acid reflux, enabling independent sitting, and allowing her head control to be unaided. 

-For God to bring miraculous healing to Anna’s optic nerve and her visual cortex. She has the most beautiful eyes that are not injured however she can hardly see because of the damage to the visual receptors in her brain.

-For Anna’s full healing that she could see, walk, talk, jump, whistle, dance, express, and make choices. 

-That Anna would come to know that God loves her and made all this possible because of His great love for her. 

Eye-opening Thanks

Dear Prayer Warriors,

Let me tell you a little about the wonderful ways God is rolling out the welcome mat for the Currats in Panama and Portland. I'm filled thanksgiving and excitement at this opportunity coming to fruition. Seven months ago we hadn't heard about stem cells as a viable way to bring partial healing to Anna and now we are on our way to get them. So many things had to fall into place, God did things for us in a way only He could so of course He is the centerpiece of my thanks and celebration.

We thank God for:

-Panama September 25th to October 1st (For umbilical cord stem cells)
-other families that have made the journey and attest to its worth.
-the selling of our condo (So many pieces about the sell was blessed supernaturally).
-becoming debt free
-our passports arriving three weeks after and on the same day as the sale of our condo.
-the careful research, preparation, and planing that Lindsey did on top of taking good care of our kids. Just ask her about the brown bag feeding plan for each day of the week.
-The prayers of many expecting nothing less than God's best for Anna.
-Having our own MVP team for Anna while in Panama, a couple from our church in Chicago is flying out to be with us that week in Panama City to serve and encourage us! So Lindsey and I can get some unique time together.
-our stay at a hotel that promises to be more than accommodating to all our needs.
-for upholding our health in the days leading up to our trip
-for a week completely out of the norm
-for Anna who has been showing signs of a growth spurt improving her ability to hold her head up, smiling more than before, and even rolling over back to belly on her own (about 5 times last week)
-we have a dear brother and friend taking us round trip to the airport

-Portland October 7th-November 1st (for intensive model of therapy)
-The fundraising and Gofundme efforts that raised close to half of the needed amount for 3 weeks of intensive therapy in Portland.
-for a place to stay in Portland for three weeks free of charge as a ministry to our family in Jesus' name.
-we have another round from Anna's MVP from our church in Chicago who is coming to drive Lindsey and the kids to Portland and stay the first week with them.
-for our minivan that God gave us and how it has served us well this last year. I love how He brought someone in my life that taught me how to repair it as needed and so we have confidence in taking it to Portland and back.
-For being 2 hours from Lindsey's family to visit them on the weekends in between.

-For my work granting the time off during the biggest change my departments have ever had since I became the leader there.

Getting Stem cells is like receiving a bunch of potential to regrow cells in the places where there was damage before. Injecting stem cells is very much a replacing of the dead for the living; which sounds a lot like what Jesus did for me when He came into my life. I gave Him my old dying self and He gave me new life in Him. I then became a new creation, the old has gone. And so it will be with Anna if it pleases the Lord.  

The stem cells are the potential, but they don't automatically know where to go. That is why therapy is critical. Working on the handicap be it vision, cerebral palsy, speech, feeding, etc directs the potential to areas needing healing. Anna having a natural growth spurt now is increasingly beneficial. This is why we had to pair the two trips.

Please pray:
-For a safe trip, for traveling mercies, for Anna's MVP's Dennis and Nancy they are leaving a day ahead of us (Today).
-For a continued momentum of joy and gratitude both in what's happening and in the promises of God because He is in control and has shown so much mercy and care for Anna.

In praise of God,

Nic, Lindsey, Anna and Simon

Submitting to the Healer's Choice

We are humbled to tell you prayer warrior that God has heard our prayers and has mercy on our quest. The stem cell door now has a time and place for Anna. The Lord’s hand of blessing was ours to accept as we had a smooth, lighthearted close with the buyer of our condo. My realtor having a heart for God and heart for Anna did all his work for free! This is another little piece to the mosaic of how faithful people are standing beside us, loving Anna in the name of Christ, and encouraging us onward in the Lord. There is an unfolding unity to meet our needs that is very glorifying to God if you ask me. “That they (believers) may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”-Jesus (John 17:21) 

That same afternoon we also received all our passports.

I’ve been thinking about the bigness of the Lord, what a vantage point! God is so big and “in the know”; in 2008 He knew that I needed to buy a condo so that in 2016 we would have the blessing of taking our yet-to-be-born-daughter to get stem cell treatments. Wow wee. 

 In faith, we never doubt that God is able to bring healing! Healing fits the Lord so well that it’s compounded in His name Jehovah-Rafa. In faith we declare full healing and proclaim God’s glory. I want to envision full healing “help me o Holy Spirit.” It’s hard to imagine Anna verbal, able to keep her head up, without GERD (reflux), Hydrocephalus, cerebral palsy, cortical visual impairment, or optic nerve atrophy. I bet God knows what Anna is like without those limitations! I count on that. 

Yet in our fleshly thinking we see many people carrying a lifetime of disability without the mark of healing.  It’s tempting to accept this fate and see Anna as a spastic quadriplegic who cannot do for herself much at all, for all her years to come. Perhaps this is the road for our family. But God didn’t save me so that I would just rely on what I can see for myself. He redeemed my wretchedness to show how Jesus can restore a life far gone in drinking and mental disorders. If He can do it for me, I am convinced He can do it for anyone including Anna to the glory of His Name.

So yes the stakes are high! It’s our daughter, the cost is high, the assets are liquidated, and the “results will vary”. More importantly though: the time has come to believe that Healer-God is who He says He is. He chooses to heal with a criterion that is sovereign and mysterious to us. It will not be for a lack of faith should no betterment occur; His greater purpose is more important than Anna’s healing. What a privilege, the Lord has made a way for us to see Him work through the advancements He’s created in science. We who are a vapor, a blade of grass, momentarily here in His world, we get to gaze upon His Character of Healer so uniquely. We desire God in this –not what God can do.  May the dependence on Him become clearer, God we need You to show up and direct our steps.

In truth we can chill, God is so big He already knows how the kids will do on the plane.  Actually God is already in Panama, knowing full well which cells from which donors Anna will get. He already picked out the outfit the doctors will wear the day they meet us. He is in control and has led us.

Please Pray:

-For a safe trip to Panama City and back from 9/25-10/1

-For our continued health from viruses and any distracting illness as we travel down there.

-For my Spanish to be more than enough in every situation it is needed in.

-That the Lord would cause Anna’s neurological system to respond with full ability repairing all the damage.

-That miracles would be tallied as a testimony.

Thanks for praying and believing God for His best regarding Sweet Anna Pie,

Nic, Lindsey, Anna, and Simon