Update on Carmen

Lana is a dear friend of mine.  I love her to pieces!  She is wise beyond her years and loves God passionately.  I often call her for advice on a number of different issues. It's an honor to know her family.  If you read this post, will you please pause and pray for the Coddington family right now? They are hurting. Their most recent post from beautifulcanvas.org is below. Thanks.

Peace That Passes Understanding

Comments (38)

By Lana, August 6, 2010 10:00 pm

Dear Family and Friends,
As you know, Carmen hasn’t been doing very well since last Saturday. A few nights ago Carmen once again spiked a fever and had 80% oxygen levels despite 5 liters of oxygen. She wasn’t able to tolerate her feeding and was breathing 86 breaths per minute. Since then, we have been giving her Tylenol and Motrin to keep the fever down and alternating morphine and Ativan to keep her comfortable.
Carmen’s life on this earth is nearing its end. As you can imagine, this is excruciatingly painful.
Yet, somehow, it is joyful at the same time. A few years ago we met with our pastor and talked through all that we were facing with Carmen’s disease. He said to us, “What a privilege you have been given to usher this child into the arms of God.” We keep thinking, Carmen, you are going to HEAVEN! You are going to meet Jesus! There are streets of gold and a mansion waiting for you. You will be able to run down those streets and laugh and play. You will be free from this disease. You will be WELL!
Amidst all our tears, we have a real sense of peace. But, we know that the next days will challenge everything we are holding onto. So, we ask God for the peace that passes all understanding, peace that we believe can only come from Him. Please, please continue praying that we can keep Carmen comfortable and that we end this journey well.
Thank you,
Dave and Lana