God's Yes is More Powerful than Sickness

“I remember praying and just saying, 'Lord, did we do something wrong?'" asked Melanie Fox.

September 11, 2021 was supposed to be a celebration – the day Melanie Fox was to get married. Instead, her 56-year-old fiancé, Michael, was in a hospital bed fighting for his life. Their meeting and engagement had been an answer to prayer, one she now doubted. 

“Do you not want us to get married? I was starting to question everything, and I said, 'Lord, do you not love us anymore?'"

Two weeks before the wedding, Michael had contracted Covid. Within days he was in the hospital with double pneumonia and his oxygen levels had plummeted. According to the doctor’s report his was “…an extremely unfortunate situation with evidence of continued worsening.”

Melanie said, “The pulmonologist did come in one day and he just kind of stood at the end of the bed and shook his head. And I just looked at him and I said, 'It's not good, is it?' And he said, 'No.' And he said, 'I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but you may want to let his family know that this looks pretty hopeless at this point.'"

Michael’s oldest son, Robbie, saw it differently. He was one of the many who filled the hospital waiting room, praying for his dad.

“I knew he would walk out of there. I knew at the beginning he would,” recalled Robbie.

However, things would only get worse. Over the coming week, Michael would have a stroke and develop sepsis – the leading cause of death in hospitals. Then, his kidneys began to shut down. Even after several rounds of antibiotics, nothing was working. 

Melanie said, “And I know that you said, Lord, that we would be together. So, I don't understand. I’m just empty.” 

Then, another setback. As medical staff were prepping Michael for dialysis, one of his lungs collapsed. Trying to avoid putting him on a ventilator, they decided first to increase his oxygen and wait to see if that would work. Melanie and Michael’s youngest son, 28-year-old, John, were waiting in the hallway.

Melanie said, “He looked at me and he said, 'My dad needs a miracle.' And I said, 'Yes, he does.' And I said, 'John, why don't you ask God to give him that miracle?' And so, he just looked up and he said, 'God, my dad, he really needs a miracle right now.'"

Outside, the hospital parking lot was filled with people also believing for a miracle.

Robbie said, “Cause God has the final say. Doctors are great. They've really helped a lot. And their hands are guided, but they don't always have the final say in things.”

Within the hour, Michael’s oxygen levels had risen and his lung re-inflated, so he didn’t need a vent. Not only that, his kidneys began to recover.  

Melanie said, “They said he doesn't need the dialysis. His markers are up, he's good, everything's great. And even the sepsis is gone.”

Soon after, they were able to bring Michael out of sedation. But he wasn’t waking up and doctors cautioned the family about getting their hopes up. The stroke could have long term, serious consequences. 

“And I remember just looking up and saying, 'Lord, I don't know what's going on and I don't understand, but I trust you,'" said Melanie.

Finally, Michael woke up. His first words? The same ones he’d said to Melanie right after he was admitted to the hospital. 

“I said, 'You're going to look beautiful in your wedding dress.' Cause I knew number one, that I was going to see that because the Lord showed it to me. But I also knew that that would bring comfort to her,” said Michael. 

Melanie said, “I thought, okay, Lord, he said I was going to be beautiful in my dress, so I know that he's going to make it through.” 

Michael began to improve and eventually went into rehab. He had been in the hospital 43 days when he was discharged. Although it would take months of rehab to overcome the effects of his stroke - there was one thing he wasn’t waiting for. 

Michael said, “I had a lot of challenges because I came home in a wheelchair, and I could barely get from the car to the wheelchair. And so, that was on October the 12th, I believe. And on October the 17th, I determined I was going to walk down the aisle to marry my wife.”

And he did. With prayer and rehab, Michael has fully recovered. The happy couple and their families are enjoying every minute they have together, thankful for the miracle God has given them. 

Michael said, “I had a lot of people praying for me. And, I'm going to tell you that prayer was, was heard by the Lord. I know, I know it was, cause it not only gave me strength, it gave Melanie strength.”

“He's always there,” Robbie said. “God's got us, even in the hardest times.”

"He says, 'He'll never leave us, He'll never forsake us,'" said Melanie. “So even if it looks like it's just hopeless, and it's the end, and it's going to be over and done, you know that He's not going to leave you. He's not going to forsake you.”