News > North America

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

I. 2013

My Key Verse in 2013 was . It says, “ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” In a word, this past year can be summarized as grace. At the beginning of the year I was carrying an LVAD in my chest. It didn't seem possible that I could have it explanted by the end of the year, and yet that is precisely what happened. I remember telling M. Sam how I really really wanted to keep my heart. The alternative was to have a heart transplant, and I did not want this at all. When I mentioned this to M. Sam, he turned to me and said matter-of-factly, “You can keep your heart.” In fact, he encouraged m. Grace and me to “assert God” at every step in the matter of our medical crisis, just as Abraham asserted God in his life. So that is what we attempted to do. M. Grace was very diligent to follow the doctors instructions regarding the care of my drive line, and dietary restrictions, and I was diligent to keep up with rehab and walking. The motto at the rehab clinic is “Walk far; Walk often.” So on days when we did not have rehab, we would try to walk 2.2 miles, the distance of a path at a nearby park. M. Grace did such a good job of keeping my drive-line clean and free of infection that when the time came for surgery to remove the LVAD, the nursing coordinator took a picture of the drive-line area as an example of how the drive-line should be kept, and the surgeon went on and on afterward in a conversation with Missionary Grace and me, telling how it was not an act of God but was due to our good care and keeping on top of the situation. He used words like “pristine”, and the like. It was very gratifying to hear this from the chief surgeon; I was very proud of M. Grace because it was her diligence and care. It was just about a month ago when the ex-plantation surgery took place, and yet it seems much longer ago, almost like a dream. I find it remarkable that I am one of the patients who is on the road to recovery from ideopathic cardiomyopathy. The doctors never held out much hope for recovery. Maybe they need to do that in order to not give patients false hope. Still, toward the end of the year when the chief surgeon asked me what I wanted to do, I told him that if possible I wanted to have the LVAD removed, and that I wanted to keep my heart. And he said, “I believe we can do that.” I was a bit stunned by his answer. Nevertheless, surgery was scheduled for December 10th, and the LVAD was subsequently removed. Recovery, this time, has been much faster than the previous surgery to implant the LVAD. This entire journey has been one of God's grace for me and, I believe, for Missionary Grace as well. We became closer, and more attentive to the word of God, and more desperate to seek Jesus and his gospel. One thing that helped us in this has been the preparation for the joint worship services through reading the Gospels, and taking time to pray.

I know that there have been many people praying for us throughout our crisis. And I am very grateful for all your prayers. I believe God has honored the many prayers of his servants, and I am humbled by this. I have learned that prayer is real, and that God answers the prayers of his faithful servants.

At the very end of this year we experienced a disturbing event at our house. At 5:30 AM one Friday morning in December, someone shot 8 bullets through our front door, and through two interior walls. We have no clue as to who this was, or why it was done. We wonder why our house was targeted. This really rattled and angered me. Why would someone risk deadly force against our family? It makes no sense. Perhaps our enemy Satan was jealous of God's victory in our lives this past year. At this point we can only speculate. When this happened, and the days following, I kept thinking of the verse that says, “It is mine to repay,” or more accurately, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.”() I felt vengeful. I wanted to purchase a shotgun for the protection of my family. I nearly chose , as my key verse from David's Song of praise. In these verses, David says, “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; 3 my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—from violent people you save me. “I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and have been saved from my enemies.”

As I said, I nearly chose these verses as my key verse, but it just didn't seem right. It seemed more like how Lamech in Genesis 4 used God's word to try to justify his own sinful actions. When I talked about this incident with M. Sam, he advised against purchasing a gun, and encouraged me to rather “Witness the gospel.” I thank God for granting us a good friend like Missionary Sam. Every situation can be the time to witness the gospel, for those who are rooted in the gospel. When we told my cardiologist about the incident, he congratulated me for passing my first stress test since the surgery.

II. 2014

In 2014, I pray for God's continued grace and guidance, and that we may serve his will. I chose . These verses read as follows:

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 1 and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

These verses do not come out of nowhere. Paul prayed for the Ephesian believers with a clear purpose. In verses 15-17 he prayed that the believers may grow to know the Father better, through the Spirit of wisdom and revelation:

"For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better."

He prayed with the clear point that they may know God the Father better. That is a good prayer for believers in any age. Then in verses 18 and 19 he prayed that they may know the hope to which God the Father has called them:

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

And in verses 19b-22, he explains about the incomparably great power for those who believe:

"That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come."

He is talking here about the resurrection power. When I think about the grace that has been shown us this past year, it seems like the God's grace through my recovery has been like a microcosm of God's grace in the gospel. The grace of forgiveness is a gift from God. says, “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” I feel that we have been given a new beginning, a second chance, call it what you will. I pray that 2014 will be a year to grow in this grace, and a year to grow in the love of God. I pray that I may grow to love others as Jesus loved. I always feel that there is a barrier or a limit to really love others. So I pray for God's help and guidance and wisdom to be able to have genuine, God-centered love for others.

I also pray that God may bless our Bible reading in 2014 that we may remain rooted in the Word of God and remain under His grace.

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your grace of healing in my life. I pray for your continued grace throughout this year of 2014. Thank you for Missionary Grace's growth throughout this past year. I pray for your continued grace upon her in this new year. I pray for Mary and Joanna and Mary Martin, that you may provide a good environment for them at UK in the coming year. I pray for our son John that you may grant him your grace and direction as he graduates this year, and for Sam that you may grant him your grace and guidance as he enters college this year, and for William that you may grant us grace and wisdom to raise him in your ways. I ask this in Jesus' Name.

One Word: "...that you may know the hope to which he has called you..."

Dr. John Doty