The mini season for Spiny Lobsters began today in South Florida. My son Mike and seven-year-old grandson River were all geared up to go, so I was up early to go diving with my boys. I arose early to have breakfast before we headed out to Key Largo about three hours away.
As I sat alone eating at the kitchen counter (the boys don’t eat early like I do), I was just finishing up when I felt a numbness in my right bicep that felt like it was going to cramp up. This was accompanied by a slight dizziness which only lasted about three seconds. Immediately, I surmised I might be experiencing the onset of a stroke, so I popped two aspirins with the remaining coffee, loaded some clothing into the car and made my way to emergency thinking it’s better to be safe than sorry. I phoned my son from the hospital to tell him he should head out without me since I was told that I would be going to stay in the hospital overnight for further tests and observation.
I’m not one to worry or fret since I know that I’m saved (I had received Christ over forty years ago, have peace that surpasses all understanding, and have studied scripture diligently), so I know where I’m going when I die.
“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13).
As I was wheeled to my room for testing, I was thinking I might be here for a divine appointment. As it was, it turned out to be not one – but five!
Sure enough, the first one was the nurse that greeted me and got me set up in the room for my stay (which turned out to be for three days and two nights). I had come in at just the right time to have avoided further complications as I had had a Transient Ischemic attack. A transient ischemic attack is like a stroke, producing similar symptoms, but usually lasting only a few minutes and causing no permanent damage (Mayo Clinic.org).
I noticed that this middle-aged Haitian nurse had a good, calm demeanor; and I asked if she was a Christian. She replied yes, and as we began to talk about the end times, it became clear to me that she didn’t know anything about prophecy; so, when I asked what denomination she was, she wasn’t sure. I decided that the best I could do was to key her into what the scriptures said about the end times. When I told her that I was a contributing writer for Rapture Ready and dropzonedelta – she looked at me with awe as though I were someone special. As she left to make her rounds, she thanked me for the heads up after agreeing with me on all the signs I pointed out to her.
Then came the head nurse wearing a Virgin Mary pendant with whom I shared scripture. She was a Catholic. She too was astounded by scripture verses I rattled off verbatim in language she could understand.
Next was a young 23-year-old fresh, clean-cut assistant (also a Catholic) with whom I shared several prophetic verses. She acknowledged that things were going from bad to worse in our country and around the world, and being a devout Catholic, she told me that she was the only young person in her church and felt bad for other people her age who didn’t know Christ. I refrained from commenting about the cultic Catholic church except to say that it had been infiltrated by imposters; but I said that us Protestants too were facing the same dilemma and that the best we could do is go by what the Bible says.
Following her was the doctor who gave me the initial checkup. When he asked what I did for a living, I told him I was a film actor and writer. Immediately, he perked up; and since he was a movie buff, he asked me about my film work. I held back, not wanting to overwhelm him, and kept things at a minimum. I told him that I also wrote for two Christian websites, and he changed the subject right then and there.
Then I asked about his ethnicity since I could tell he was from somewhere else. He was from Turkey and somehow ended up here and becoming a Heart Specialist. In any case, we talked at length about other things, and he finally told me I was going to need a pacemaker right away or I might not wake up in the morning. I said, “Let’s do it.” Within a half hour, I was on the operating table. A Muslim was about to cut me open with my blessings!
This man was going to follow up on me after I was released, and explained a few things about the procedure on the day I could go home. I can’t wait to engage him on spiritual matters when we meet again.
The Hospital doctor was wearing a crucifix on a gold chain, so I inquired about it.
“I see you are a Christian.”
“Oh yes.”
“I’m a Christian too,” I replied.
And a conversation ensued. He told me he had been born in Santo Domingo and that, yes, he was also an avid believer. Then I asked about the pedophilia problem they were having in the Catholic church, and he answered matter-of-factly, “They’re only human.” Just then he was called away by the P.A. system.
I finally got home but stopped to get some Kentucky fried chicken with all the fixings. (Hospital food is the worst.)
Now I have a home nurse visiting whom the surgeon told I was a professional actor. She was delighted to meet me since she was from L.A. and had been an aspiring actress herself, but eventually became a model, got married, and that was that. She ended up divorced and had raised a couple of children alone. She was a Catholic who had recently dabbled in being “born again,” so now I’ve got some explaining to do as I have already given her my full-blown testimony.
YBIC
Jim Towers
You can write me at jt.filmmaker@yahoo.com and visit my website www.propheticsignsandwonders.com