Parent's Receive Miracle after Leaving Son's Diagnosis "In God’s Hands"

In July, Drew and Ariann Corpstein birthed a beautiful baby boy named Matthew expecting that he wouldn’t live longer than a few days. 

During the Corpstein’s 20-week ultrasound the doctors discovered that the baby was missing most of his brain, diagnosing him with a terminal brain malformation. On the family’s GoFundMe page, they wrote, “Instead of a brain, it was replaced with cerebral spinal fluid. The fluid was going to continue to expand the head of our baby. The head size was measuring about 3 weeks ahead of normal. We were told our baby wouldn’t live past several days, if not hours, or die before birth.”

According to Fox News, the couple had experienced a miscarriage in 2016. With this in mind they began to prepare themselves to lose this baby as well. The couple chose to cease the day while they were pregnant with their son and went motorcycle riding and took a trip to Costa Rica. 

Despite the fear they were facing in the potential death of their son, the couple continued to rely on God, saying, “Whatever happens, it’s in God’s hands.” 

When baby Matthew was born the doctors discovered that their initial diagnosis was wrong. Instead of a terminal brain malformation, Matthew was experiencing hydrocephalus. This condition causes there to be extra fluid on fully developed brain tissue, meaning that the cerebral spinal fluid they thought was replacing the brain tissue was not, and the baby’s brain tissue continued to grow. 

The baby was hurried into an emergency surgery where a shunt was inserted to drain the excess fluid. According to Fox News, the Corpstein’s were told that their son could have “every chance at a normal life.”

Dr. Jona Conklin, a perinatologist who worked with the Corpsteins, told the Des Moines Register that “the baby still had a long road ahead.” Nonetheless, the family is continued to rely on God and has deemed their son “Matthew The Great.” 

Ariann Corpstein posted a ‘Matthew update’ to Facebook on August 22, saying, “Romans 5:3-5 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Photo courtesy: Unsplash/Rawpixel

REF: Christianheadlines

Operation Blessing Helping India's Flood-Ravaged Victims Get Back on their Feat

Kerala is slowly limping back to life.

Hundreds of thousands of people in the flood-battered Indian state are beginning the arduous task of rebuilding their lives following the worst floods to hit the region.

"Our focus is providing medical assistance and rehabilitation of households who have lost everything in the floods," Priti Choudry, CBN's India director, wrote in an email.

CBN's Operation Blessing has teams in the disaster zone ready to help flood victims as they return home.

"Our goal is to reach 5000 individuals," said Choudry. "We are also working with {flood victims} to clean their homes filled with slime and mud."

NASA this week released stunning before and after satellite images showing the extent of destruction across the state.

The first image was taken on February 6, 2018, before the floods showing vast stretches of vegetation across the state, coloured in bright green.

The second image from NASA was captured on August 22, 2018 after the floods. Water - which is shaded in dark blue-  almost entirely covers the green areas showing the extent of damage caused by flooding.

For two weeks, Kerala got hammered with catastrophic flooding not seen in these parts in over 150 years.

"I've lived here for the past 10 years and this is the first time such an event has ever happened," a flood victim told aid workers.

All 14 districts in the state were hit, causing widespread damage that officials say will take years to rebuild.

"That tank you see behind me was completely submerged," described Steven Thomas of Operation Blessing. "Now the water is receding and people are coming back from the relief camps."

In Ernakulam, one of the most affected districts in the state, Operation Blessing has deployed doctors, nurses and aid workers bringing food, medicine, water and other essential supplies.

Roughly 700 homes in this one area alone were destroyed, and another 20,000 homes partially damaged from floodwaters.

"As you can see there are a huge number of patients and people in distress," said Dr. Shubhmeet Dalal, an attending physician at an Operation Blessing medical camp. "The patients mainly have complaints related to fungal infections and waterborne diseases."

So many families had no time to save any of their possessions as floodwaters swept through their homes and businesses.

"At least we are alive but it will take a very long time before we can build our lives back as we have to start from scratch," said one victim.

Officials have put initial storm damage estimates at nearly $3 billion.

The death toll has climbed to 445 people, and more than 100,000 buildings were destroyed.

The government says 7,000 miles of roads have been destroyed or damaged. Farmers have also lost millions of acres of crops.

More than a million people were displaced by the floods, with many finding shelter in thousands of relief camps across the southern state.

"We are also making an effort to rehabilitate houses by providing basic household items to start with," said Choudry.

While doctors treat the sick and injured at this medical camp, Operation Blessing crews are helping some 300 families...

as they wade through muck and mud to clean houses and streets that were submerged for days so they can return to their homes and rebuild their lives.

REF: CBN News