A Year of Miracles
How God Spared My Son and Demonstrated
by Joshua Goforth, January 17, 2003
We are approaching the thirtieth anniversary of the landmark ruling of the Roe v. Wade case which devastatingly changed the way our justice system views human life. A number of articles will be published on this topic by journalists across the nation, but I would like to focus your attention for a moment on some of the peripheral damage that has been caused by this radical change in view. Our view of life as a nation has been quietly shifting, driven by new “fiscally-aware” social agendas. In the world of medicine, these views have redefined the way we treat the born, as well as the unborn. Let me share with you how, one year ago, I came face-to-face with this reality through the life of my firstborn son, William.
On January 13, 2001, while on family vacation in Colorado, my wife Noelle - 22+ weeks pregnant - went into advanced labor and was rushed to a nearby (small) hospital. The doctor there told us that the baby would be born in a matter of hours, that there was nothing that their facility could do beyond resuscitation, and that the baby would most certainly die. We immediately began to pray that the Lord would cause the labor to cease. For nine days, Noelle labored in trandellenburg (a reverse incline position) while the Lord kept the baby from coming. After nine days, our unborn baby was one day short of 24 weeks, and a level three (much larger) hospital in Colorado Springs with all the necessary equipment, agreed to accept Noelle’s transfer. Little did we know what a battle lay ahead of us. On the morning of the 21st, Noelle was transferred by ambulance to Colorado Springs, a one hour drive way.
There, in our initial meeting with a new doctor, Noelle and I were introduced to the driving force behind critical decision-making in the world of preemies - “quality of life.” We were told the “horror stories” of many of these “micro-preemie’s” outcomes, especially when brain bleeds complicate the situation. We were prepped and told to be ready to make some “very difficult decisions” when William was born. They gave him a 60% chance of survival, with a 60% chance of mentally debilitating brain bleeds and/or severe physical disabilities.
William “the conqueror” was born that night, weighing 1 pound 4 ounces, at 24 weeks gestation. The following week was the most difficult week of our lives. In grief we watched as William slowly developed the worst classification of bleeds in both hemispheres of his brain. We watched as his vital systems teetered on the brink of failure. We watched the color slowly drain from his thin, fragile skin. Each day, it seemed, brought more devastating news. Twice, his life nearly slipped away. All the while, pressure was mounting from the hospital staff to discontinue life support for this tiny struggling life. They said he “wanted” to die. They said he was “trying” to die. They argued that the quality of life that he would have did not justify the heroic measures or the dollars being poured into sustaining his life. They questioned the prudence of stopping nature’s course with the “monster” they had created with their life-saving machines. It took more than four meetings amid great resistance for them to finally understand that we were determined to do everything humanly possible to save William’s life. In reaction, a decision was immediately made by the staff to transfer him via Lear jet to San Antonio, Texas, our hometown. This was a highly unusual and unprecedented move. We praised God for opening the doors for us to go home.
But the battle had just begun. Upon reaching San Antonio, the same issues were raised again. William would need at least four high-risk surgeries, and by their standards, his “assured” outcome did not justify the risk or expense. It was suggested that we were thinking only of ourselves and not what was “best” for William. We stood our ground.
It was at this point that a new issue came to the foreground. Noelle and I had made the decision not to request state or federal financial assistance, but this was not acceptable to the hospital staff. We were uninsured, and would likely incur over a million dollars in medical expenses. The battle over this issue raged for the rest of our four-month stay, with numerous attempts to coerce us into accepting the federal funds, through a number of unscrupulous means. We stuck to our guns, however, and in the end, we were discharged with William weighing just less than seven lbs. on low-level oxygen support, with a feeding tube. Oh, the freedom!
Early in these hospital struggles, Vision Forum Ministries launched a fundraising/public awareness campaign to let the Christian community know what God was doing in William’s life, and to give them an opportunity to help financially. What God has done since those early days is nothing short of miraculous. On April 14, 2002, Vision Forum Ministries hosted a spectacular fundraising “Titanic Dinner” for William, commemorating the principle “Women and Children First” on the anniversary of the sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic. Themed “Rescue the Perishing,” the beautiful event raised over $40,000 toward William’s hospital bills! Through simple negotiations, that amount was able to cover a $120,000 Colorado hospital bill! Largely through the ongoing efforts of VFM, the amount owed to hospitals has been reduced from $1.2 million to under $100,000. We want to express our overwhelming gratitude to all of you who have poured out the love of Christ on our family and have shown us true sacrificial love. We have been stunned by the response of literally hundreds and hundreds of people who have taken a personal interest in William and who pray for him “without ceasing.”
Many of you have received various prayer requests and reports on William’s physical progress over the past year, but it has been a while since everyone was updated. So how is William doing? First, a quick review of where he started: By seven-days-old, he had suffered bilateral grade four brain bleeds. This caused serious, permanent damage to large amounts of his brain tissue. His lungs were badly damaged by the ventilators over the course of his hospital stay (an unfortunate necessity). His eyes developed a very severe case of ROP (retinopathy of prematurity) which required four surgeries. At time of discharge, due to his brain damage, he had no control over his eyes, and had “sunset eyes” 95% of the time (where his eyes always “looked” down). He was not eating enough, and couldn’t suck properly. He had problems with reflux, and was on home oxygen support. Overall, his prognosis was poor, and doctor expectations were very low.
Now, six months later, I am thrilled to report that he has exceeded all expectations in every area of his development. His eye doctor reports that he cannot believe William’s eyes are the same eyes he examined six months ago. From a physical standpoint, they should provide him with adequate vision, if his brain can learn to interpret the information coming from them. We have seen steady improvement in this area. He no longer has “sunset eyes,” and gains more control over his vision daily. His eating has improved dramatically. He takes the bottle well, and loves his baby food. To sum it up, he is a happy twelve-month-old little boy who loves his mommy and daddy and his family and friends. He is free of all supplemental oxygen, feeding tubes, or life support of any kind. He smiles and laughs, loves his Johnny-Jump-Up, is learning to scoot and babble, has favorite toys, and is ticklish. We can’t imagine life without him.
Thirty years ago, a giant crack was hammered into the foundation of this nation. One of the most basic and crucial roles of the civil government — the protection of innocent life — was abandoned. From that catastrophic fault, many other cracks are appearing. We must fight against even the most subtle departures from this basic principle. Life is precious. We must defend it. Only God knows the quality of life that any person will have.
While no one knows what God’s plan is for William, we look forward with hope to the day when we can walk with William, and introduce him to his doctors, so that they may see this great thing that God has done. “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes!” Psa. 118:23