Jonah: Some Good News

Here is the latest update for Baby Jonah.

Dear Praying Family,
 
The doctors have told us that Jonah is doing a little better. They believe the infection is under control, his fever is down, and they will not have to remove a section of his intestine. That is where we are at now. Thank you so very much for your continued prayers. I know my problems [physically should not be shovelling snow & ice] are small compared to all this, but I am thankful for your prayers for me and Val thru all this.

In Christ’s Love,
Marty & Val
       

Baby Jonah’s Challenges Increase

Here is the latest update I have on little Jonah Silverburg.

Dear Praying Family,
 
We received a call at 1:45 AM this morning. [Sunday, Jan. 30th]
Jonah was unable to breathe on his own and was put back on the ventilator after 36 hours being off of it.
He was also having continuous heart arythmia, and there is a fluid buildup around his lungs. All this after his kidney failure, heart reconstructive surgery and 3 previous cardiac arrests. This little baby has been thru an awful lot. Valerie was unable to go back to sleep.
 
We will be leaving for Church soon to Praise our Lord.
Afterwards, Val will go to the hospital.
 
Thank you for your faithful and continual prayers.
 
In Christ’s Love,
Marty for Val

Baby Jonah Week 3

For those who are new, please read the background of this Missionary Family in the Bronx, NY by clicking on related links at the end of the post. For absolutely everyone I hope that you are blessed by upholding this entire family in prayer as well as having additional thanksgiving that your family is not going through this same trial. However, there are others who have gone through similar trials that may be all around us; everyday. We all are “living stones” and testify to the work being done by the Kingdom of God in the lives of people.

As you look at these latest updates you will notice more specifics for the need of prayer in the Silverburg family. Please, Please send a word of encouragement as a comment at the end of the post. It really helps them to know that we are walking beside them through the trial through prayer. Your words may be JUST what they need to hear.
“A man has joy in an apt answer,And how delightful is a timely word!” –Proverbs 15:23 (NASB)

Here are a series of updates for Baby Jonah and the Silverberg Family… Thank you for remembering them in prayer. Even when we don’t immediately hear how God is working, we can know that our prayers will be interpreted for us by the Holy Spirit even when our groanings are too deep for words.  I LOVE that verse of Scripture /

^“26In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;²⁷and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. “  —    Romans 8:26-27

1/26 –

Dear Praying Family,

Thank you again for your love and prayers. Jonah remains critical, but we believe he is improving.

Please pray for new problems of Kidney failure and liver function problems, with the possibility of liver damage. The Doctors have told us that in order to keep Jonah alive, they have had to possibly compromise these vital organs. Jonah is much smaller now, the swelling is way down. His whole face is purple and blue from bruising, from tissue damage due to the swelling. His hands and arms are also purple and blue from bruising from the swelling and the many lines

in and out of him. All in all, we believe he is improving.

We don’t know when he will be moved downstairs. It could be any day, or it could be a while yet. We are not looking forward to the chaos this will cause our family, yet it is a necessary step in his recovery and in his eventual going home w/ his family. We are hoping not to have to pay too much for round the clock sitting for Jonah. We are hoping and praying that the many people who have offered to help us during this crisis can somehow pull together as a team at that time, to help provide someone to sit at Jonah’s bed, so our other children can still continue to function here w/ their Dad and w/ their Mom as much as possible.

Everything has been very hard, but we are trusting the Lord and taking it one day at a time. Jonah is 29 days old today. Please pray for our new problem w/ Josh’s schoolbus, which was rerouted about 3 weeks ago, w/ Josh having to be up and out one and a half hours earlier, which our little autistic child could not adjust to. So I have been driving him, an hour round trip for me. We are doing much fighting w/ the bureaucracy. We did not need this additional trouble at this time.

In Christ’s Love,

Marty for Val

Also please pray for me regarding snow shoveling today and tomorrow

1/27

Dear Praying Family,

Jonah remains about the same. His kidneys have improved a little. They tried to take him off the ventilator yesterday, but he could not breathe on his own, so they put him back on. He has a fluid buildup around his lungs, and the Doctors were supposed to make another hole in him and drain the fluid but it hasn’t happened yet.

Today we are snowed in. Kids are home and Val cannot make it to the hospital.

The hospital is short staffed and no one answered when Val called.

I did a huge amount of shoveling. I also helped our neighbor shovel her entire 40 foot sidewalk. I’m not supposed to do any of this type of work, but when you see an elderly lady trying to shovel, what are you supposed to do. Lot’s of long toss shoveling and carrying shovels full to make piles.

No where to put all this snow. Arms, hips, shoulders and spine hurting badly. It is also very dangerous driving today, many sidestreets impassable and lots of cars blocking the streets, no where to park. Our street was plowed once, PTL, but it’s still very bad, and our car is very plowed in. Please pray for me. Later I will shovel the many stairs so our dogs can get out, then go back out and shovel some more in front. I will not even attempt to get our car shoveled out today, so we don’t know how Joshy will get to school tomorrow. I’ll try to walk Shakinah and Josiah to their bus in the morning, about 2/3 of a mile each way. I walk it every afternoon. The walk is good for me, but very painful.

We have attached anew picture of Jonah.

Thank you for your continued love and prayers for Jonah and our family.

In Christ’s love,

Marty for Val

1/28

Dear Praying Family,

Jonah will have the ventilator removed again around 1:30 PM.

Please pray that he can breathe on his own and not have to go back on the ventilator.

I also want to thank all who prayed for me re: snow shoveling. As you know, due to many serious medical conditions, I should not do this. If my current physician found out what I was doing, he would discontinue treatment. I am not too bad, PTL. Huge amounts of pain, but expected much worse from 6 hours of shoveling yesterday, including the neighbors walk and a stuck car. Practically had my car out, but got plowed in again w/ 3 feet of ice. Did 2 hours w/ pick axe and shovel today, almost have car out again.

Thanks for praying for us all.

Val took the bus to the hospital, as cabs are becoming too expensive and she is doing a little better. Josh had to take the 6:35 bus today. We pray he doesn’t get too sick.

I walked Josiah and Shakinah to bus, and am going to get them now. So glad to be able to walk. Not to be taken for granted.

We Love you All Dearly,

In Christ’s Love,

Marty for Val

Baby Jonah and Family

Listen to God Will Make a Way — I apologize for not getting this update sooner today, but news will be a bit more spread out over the near future as the Silverbergs will tell you in today’s update. I really wish that they were near where I live so that our church people could take turns helping them with child care and cribside watch and prayer. As it is I am specifically praying for God to move specifically in this area of caretaking. This family is being spread out and apart due to circumstances and it seems like it would be better for their family if they could be together. Still I know that as the song goes “God will make a way; where there seems to be no way,” and that is supported in Scripture. I am clinging to what I know to be true about God walking us through trials for benefit of not only ourselves, but those around who watch our reactions to trials; all for the glory of God.

Here is the update letter from Jonah’s daddy:

Dear Praying family,

We just want to say thank You so very much for your prayers and your patience w/ us as we have sent so many e-mails.

We would like to say you have prayed Jonah thru this, but he is not thru this yet. Your prayers have certainly made a big difference, and our Lord’s Grace and Mercy has sustained us and Jonah.

Jonah is still in critical care, not conscious, and on the ventilator, but we believe he is doing better.

He has received wonderful round the clock care at Montefiore Childrens Hospitol. When he improves some more, he will be moved from the 10th floor to the 8th floor, where he will not receive the same care. Valerie will have to be there 24 hours a day,or we will have to pay someone to stay w/ him. Remember, we have 3 other children and Joshy, who is 10, has a very hard to handle case of Autism. We haven’t figured out what to do yet, and would appreciate your continued prayer, as we can’t run the family 24 hours w/o Val, and we don’t have the money to pay anyone.

I will not continue to send updates daily, but every few days, unless there is something important to report.

Thank you again so very much for your precious prayers.

In Christ’s Love,
Marty

PS- Pray for me, the ice shoveling Tuesday and snow shoveling today have taken a toll on me.

Thank you ALL for praying for this dear family. It is going to be essential as these dear ones continue through this challenging season. I will update as soon as I hear anything new. In the meantime we can be assured that even when we don’t know the details God ALWAYS does!

Drained and Resting

Our little friend Jonah is showing some signs of improvement! I hope you are as blessed by these reports as I am. It is such a lovely thing to enter into the fellowship of prayer. No wonder it is often spoken of as a sweet aroma to God’s nostrils.

Here is today’s note from the Silverbergs:

Dear Praying Friends,
 
PTL, it seems that Jonah is making small progress. Three drainage tubes were taken out of his chest yesterday, with some minor damage to his insides. He remains somewhat stable, still on the ventilator and feeding tube. He is mostly unconscious. No other major heart or blood pressure problems. We hope and trust the little guy is healing. He’s been thru quite an ordeal. Jonah is now 22 days old.
Please continue to pray with us and for us.

In Christ’s Love,
Marty for Val

I am going to pray that Jonah’s body will continue to normalize in relation to his heart and that the entire family can REST for a bit in the surpassing peace that only God can give! Surely, little Jonah’s battle has been and is being a powerful testimony to not only to the unsaved, but slso as an encouragement to those of us who so often fail to see the many blessings that God favors us with every moment!

May we make each and every moment be filled with thanksgiving for all that God is!!

Jonah the Weekend Warrior

The last we had heard, Baby Jonah was having surgery at 1 PM last Friday. I watched people praying with me thriughout FaceBook and Twitter. Part of what I personally have a passion for is praying and relaying via IndyChristian Media using the technology of the worldwide web in connection with the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish the Great Commission of God. Thanks to all of you who read this and join in my personal passions of 5e: exalt, equip, edify, examine and evangelize.

I know that many people have been prompting me for news, but I simply didn’t have any until right now. Although it is difficult not to worry over a weekend without updates about dear ones for which we pray. Thanks be to God, He never stops blessing the prayers we lift up even when they are vague but filled with sincerity. The news is good in that our tiny little warrior continues to battle grave circumstances with God’s strength.

Here’s the update:

Jonah’s surgery went well Friday and his chest was closed.
He had some serious and dangerous Blood Pressure issues, but after a lot of intervention, those were resolved.
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday were good days with no additional issues, PTL.
He is still very critical and on a ventilator and by no means is he out of danger or doing well, but we are very thankful for where he is at.

In Christ’s love,
Marty and Val

Marty and Val have access to view your comments, so please leave a comment of encouragement, or just that you are praying. What Scriptures do you believe speak to you and them right now? What part of the world do you call home? I know there are people worldwide who are tune with this story; however you writing it here may be a testimony for all to see! All for the glory of God!