Who would have believed that purchasing a hot tub would lead to a near-death experience, an encounter with angels and a life-changing event – but it did.
In mid-December 2007 I purchased a hot tub and had it installed on my deck. I had never had a hot tub before and I fell in love with it the first time I used it. I could do water aerobics' and get 30 minutes of exercise every day. I felt terrific when I used the hot tub and planned to make it a regular part of my daily life.
However, a few hours after I used the hot tub for the third time I developed flu-like symptoms. I layed down to take a nap and woke up with a very high fever. I passed my fever off as the common cold, took some cold medicine and went back to bed. During this time, a neighbor called me (which I do not remember) and she later told me that I was talking "very odd." She suggested that I go to the doctor.
Although I don't remember this, due to my high fever, I managed to call the next door neighbor and she took me to see my doctor on an emergency visit. My doctor found that my temperature was 104-degrees and my lungs were filling up with fluid. He told me to go to the emergency room immediately – but I went home and went back to bed. (This is only one example of where God intervened. Most people would have a fried brain running a 104-degree temperature for several days, but I survived with absolutely no brain damage or brain stroke.)
The next day, December 21, 2007, I was not getting any better so I decided to go to the emergency room. I called another friend and she took me. I still did not think I was as sick as I was, but as soon as I entered the emergency room at Grant Hospital in Columbus, Ohio the security guard got up and put me in a wheelchair. He also took me to the admitting room without any wait time (which I found to be strange.) During admission I remember telling the intake worker, "I hope I am not taking up your time unnecessarily." The intake worker said, "You have got to be kidding. We have people come here for a hang nail – but lady – you are sick."
I don't remember much after that because I went into a coma for three weeks. But I found out later that my kidneys had shut down, I had respiratory failure due to Legionnaire's Disease (caused by a reaction between my diabetes and the chemicals in the hot tub) and the doctor reported to my primary care physician that I was expected to die. To make matters worse, on January 3, 2008, I contracted MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) as well as Hepatitis-C from the hospital staff spreading it from patient to patient. Although the Hepatitis-C was treatable, the MRSA alone could have killed me within 24-hours. However, I now know that God took me to this level of near-death to demonstrate His intervention. There was no medical reason for me to live and this provided a true witness to all the physicians and medical staff of His power when I came out of the coma and lived.
The Angels Appeared
Just before I came out of the coma I looked above me and two angels appeared. They were visible from their torso up and they were touching shoulder to shoulder. The angels were pure white, gleaming and shining as bright as the sun on freshly fallen snow. I was not blinded by the light because it was so pure and perfect. The angels were men. They did not have wings but had bodies like you and I. The only difference was that everything about them was pure white. Their hair. Their skin. Their clothes. Everything was shining a beautiful pure white that comforted me. I felt no fear. Just a peace like no other. I remember smiling at them and suddenly I woke up from the coma.
As soon as I woke up I heard doctors and nurses yelling "This is a phenomenon. She's alive." Then suddenly I was surrounded by a whole bunch of people passing me from table to table, cleaning me up, turning me every which way but loose – and I don't know what else since I was still in a daze. People also started asking me silly questions like who the President was and the date. Later a nurse said I replied: "Who cares?" and everyone got a chuckle out of my response.
The next thing I knew was being transferred to the 9th floor which is the intermediate intensive care at Grant Hospital. People told me that it was 2008 and I had a hard time accepting that since I entered the emergency room in 2007. I do remember people trying to write the date on a white board but whatever they wrote looked like the scribbling of a child. I also was unable to talk because they had not inserted the piece in my tract that allowed my voice to be heard. For the first several days I had to communicate with motion because I was still too weak to write or form sentences. Of course this didn’t work most of the time and I cannot begin to tell you how frustrating this time period was for me.
Finally they inserted a voice box into the tract in my neck. I could now talk and communicate. For the first time I saw how important my voice was and I began to learn not to take anything for granted again. As soon as I was able to talk I began glorying the Lord. I told everyone who came into my room (including the people who dumped the trash) about the two angels that appeared to me. I witnessed about Jesus Christ and everyone could see the joy and happiness I had for Him bringing me back to life. The reaction from people was mixed, but I didn’t care. I was so happy to be alive and so glad that God had a purpose for me that I continued to witness until I was discharged from the hospital on January 26, 2008. Now I am witnessing through this article which I hope is published for millions to read.
The Healing Continues
During my two-week stay in intermediate intensive care, many doctors and nurses visited me. They said they had taken care of me during my coma and had heard of my miraculous recovery and wanted to see it for themselves. Everyone who visited me said they were amazed at how quickly I recovered and of course this gave me another opportunity to witness about the healing hand of Jesus Christ.
But one miraculous incident occurred that literally scared two nurses who came to visit me on the 9th floor. The nurses said they had come by to check on my ear. During my coma they said that I had moved my head and a piece of my earlobe was accidentally cut off. They had brought up medication to put on it. I looked at them and said, "There is nothing wrong with my earlobes." The nurses pulled my hair back and saw that both my earlobes were perfect. There were no cut marks or any signs of previous problems. The nurses looked at each other and left the room. They never returned.
Each day that passed brought another healing. One day I was unable to stand and the next day I was able to stand and walk. The next day I was able to sit and read and the next day I was able to wash myself; and the healing continued. My physical therapists, speech therapist, RNs, techs and others who took part in my care continued to be amazed at how quickly I was healing. Everyone that monitored my care said they had never seen someone recover so quickly. Some people tried to give me the credit for my quick healing. They said I was a "determined lady with a strong will." But I never gave credit to myself. The credit was given to the Lord Jesus Christ – the one who deserved the glory. I deserved nothing and I made sure people knew it.
On January 26, 2008 – only 16 days after I came out of my coma, I was able to be released from the hospital. A good friend of mine (with nursing home experience) came and lived with me for two weeks after I returned home. The first three days I had to wear diapers and was totally bedfast. But on the fourth day I was strong enough to pull myself up on the walker and use the bathroom myself. (Remember to never take anything for granted.) At the end of two weeks my friend returned to her family and I was able to drive my car and take care of myself in my own home.
Summary
This experience was certainly a life-changing event for me. The first major change was when I stopped smoking cigarettes after 33 years. I had no withdrawal symptoms and God completely healed me of this addiction. Secondly, I have learned to appreciate the "little things" and I thank God daily for them. Things I used to take for granted, like using the bathroom, taking a shower, standing and making a sandwich, walking across the floor and driving my car are all things that I now treasure and thank God for the ability to do.
I also know (beyond a shadow of a doubt) that God allowed me to live for a purpose. I pray every night and ask Him to keep me focused on the path He wants me to take and to do whatever it takes to please Him. One thing I do know is by writing this article, I am sure it is one of the purposes God had for me. Thanks to the power of the internet, I am able to share my true-life experience with others and perhaps it will increase their own faith and personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
May God bless you.
Author Resource:-
Victoria Ring is a Certified Paralegal and Bankruptcy Specialist and was the first paralegal to develop the Virtual Bankruptcy Assistant field in 1999. She has also developed an entire line of training products and holds several seminars per year in drafting bankruptcy petitions. Her training materials have been approved by NALS, NFPA and the Supreme Court of Ohio for CLE credits. Additionally, Victoria Ring provides speaking and in-house training services for bankruptcy law firms. Visit her website at http://www.713training.com.
I invite everyone reading this article to visit my Christian website and pick up your free gift, read other Christian articles as well as my award-winning poem on the front page at http://www.servantofjesuschrist.com.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.christian-article-bank.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites