A Miracle For All Seasons

By: Lourdes G. Mon

 

Ivery much believe, sincerely and personally, that prayer is an integral part of our lives. God listens to our individual predicaments. My survival and pretty quick recovery from my stroke are indicative that God is present at all times in my life. I am not a very spiritual person; however, I offer my share of prayers when I wake up in the morning and before bedtime. My day starts with a virtual mass followed by a number of daily prayers.
Some 15 years ago, on various newspapers, and TV news, in the city of McAllen, on the southern border of Texas, a live a husband and wife, David and Toni Espinoza. Years ago, in the early days of the Christmas season, the Espinosas received a devastating news from David’s cardiologist that his heart was functioning only at 10% capacity. A heart transplant is needed as soon as possible and David was told that he may not live till the next year’s Christmas. The second problem was to find a match. Worse, he was told that finding a perfect donor could take nine months or more. What a bomber!
Wife Toni is well- known in her family, among friends and at their church as a prayer warrior. So, without wasting any time, she organized people she knew and hundreds she did not know to pray for a heart donor. However, after a few days, it hit her hard that in order for David to get a heart, someone has to die. It did not set well with her. Toni thought hard what humanly possible can she do. To change her strategy, she decided to pray even harder, fervently asking God to miraculously and completely heal her husband. For confirmation, Toni asked God to let it snow in their town on Christmas Day. She confided her godly request to a childhood friend who was startled in disbelief, said shaking her head, “Toni, have you ever seen snow?” She’d lived in McAllen, Texas, all her life. The average winter temperature on the border was about 75 degrees. Her friend continued, “The reason you’ve never seen snow is because it hasn’t snowed here in 109 years! And never on Christmas.” Toni shrugged her shoulders, smiled and gave her friend a look of resolve. “I know God is going to answer my prayers.”
It was almost midnight on Christmas Eve when one of the Espinoza daughters, home for the holidays, looked into the backyard and said in amazement, “Mom, it’s snowing!” The National Weather Service measured 3.5 inches of snow that day, marking the first White Christmas in McAllen since they started keeping weather records more than 150 years ago. Delighted, without a coat on, Toni ran to the backyard, to see snow covering her flowering rose bushes. Gazing into the night sky, as white snowflakes sprinkling her dark hair, she whispered,
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” It was a pretty and glorious sight and the next morning, children across McAllen bundled up, ran outside, rolled in the snow, made angels, and snowmen for the first time in their lives. Snow was McAllen newspaper headlines announcing the “First White Christmas Ever!”
As Toni believed, this snowfall was a sign that something miraculous will happen to her husband, David, needing a heart transplant.
In capsule form, when David and Toni went to see his doctor three weeks later, who examined and looked at David’s medical charts, the doctor in amazement, shook his head and exclaimed, “David, I don’t understand how this happened… but you’re going to live for a long, long time. Your heart is completely healed.” With tears rolling down their cheeks, David and Toni hugged each other and praised God for the best Christmas gift ever, a miracle. To this day, David remains healthy.
Similarly, though not quite a miracle like David’s, I am most fortunate and grateful that with my daily prayers and those of family and of many friends, I am recovering well from my stroke. My husband is my guardian angel. He continues to take care of me patiently making sure that my medications for the week are always ready. When I was going through my speech, physical, occupational therapies, he monitored my schedules and made sure that I completely complied with them. He also made sure that I didn’t miss any of my doctors’ appointments and still do, while I’m under doctors’ care. I am grateful for having him in my life.
This story of David tells us that God listens to our prayers, when we trust Him completely.

David & Toni Espinoza after the doctor’s examination, were told David is free of heart problem.