"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV
I've been hearing and seeing "Fix Your Eyes . . . ." quite a bit lately---in studying, in songs, in worship services, etc. I know what it means---we need to focus on Jesus. Know who He is, and how much He loves us, and remember all of that whenever we are in the midst of the hard things in life. As I was gathering my thoughts to update this blog, I realized that "Fix Your Eyes" is a great title for this post---not only for the spiritual meaning, but because Anna's eye (that left one) needs "fixed."
Anna's left eye, this past Monday, was at a 2+ flare again. Two weeks ago it was down to trace cells. Sigh. Last time we had a flare like this (a month ago), her vision was still 20/20 in that eye. This time, the inflammation was affecting her vision in the left eye---mostly blurry. (We are SO thankful that the right eye remains clear of inflammation!) So we increased the number of daily Pred Forte eye drops, and increased her Remicade dose from 12 mg/kg to 15 mg/kg. There's still room to increase the Remicade again if we absolutely have to. It worked out on Monday that Anna was able to get the increased dose that afternoon. She had already been scheduled for an infusion, and her appointment with the ophthalmologist was two hours before the infusion. A flurry of phone calls and confirming with the infusion room nurse took care of everything.
We go to see the retina specialist next week, and Anna will need an OCT (picture of the back of the inside of the eye) to see if the macular edema has returned. All of this in the midst of finishing up projects and studying for the final exams of high school, and "senior meetings" leading up to high school graduation. We do our best to run this race with perseverance--fixing our eyes on Jesus and the joy that is to come.
One thing I wanted to share with all of you . . . . you hear my thoughts in every blog post, but you don't always hear Anna's perspective (her source of strength and her faith). I was designing her graduation announcements this evening, and there's a place for some text on the back of the card. I asked Anna what she wanted there, and she gave me a verse from the Bible. This is Anna's perspective on her life and journey:
My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever. Psalm 73:26 (NLT)
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