Standing In The Faith for Baby Hadessa`s Life

What does it truly mean to stand strong in The Faith? I’ve heard this phrase often in my walk with Christ, but I never truly understood what it really meant until now. Four years ago my husband and I were expecting our first child together, who we named Hadessa. We had been trying to get pregnant for quite some time, so when we became pregnant we were very excited! As baby Hadessa grew in my womb I would talk , sing and Pray over her while she was growing in me and knowing deep inside, she would be just perfect. July 15, 2007, Hadessa was born. She was 7lbs. 11oz. and 19 ¾” long. There she was our beautiful princess just as we had imagined, but nothing could have prepared me for what was about to happen or so I thought.
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Shortly after our baby girl was born, we were informed she had a soft cleft palate. We were told it was nothing major; That she would just need to have a minor surgery at 6 months of age or so to repair it, and she would be fine. But, something wasn’t right! My baby wouldn’t nurse and she was making a strange sucking noise. I knew in my Spirit something was terribly wrong. My daughter’s mouth began turning gray and then blue, she wasn’t breathing. She couldn’t breathe! I called out for the doctor and as he took a closer look at her, he grabbed Hadessa and stuck his finger in her mouth to pull her tongue forward. She was gagging on her own tongue! We soon found out that our little problem was not so little anymore. Hadessa had been born with Pierre Robin Syndrome (this is where the lower jaw is further back than normal and so the tongue sits in the air way causing the baby not to be able to breathe or eat properly). She was taken immediately to the NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit). Within hours she was flown to the Children’s Hospital in another city which was two hours away. I felt as though my life had crumbled. I didn’t know what to do, there was nothing I could do except pray, so I began to pray, like I never prayed before. I am a believer, I told myself, and this is not acceptable! I began to believe God for a miracle healing for my little girl, because my God is a healing God and nothing is impossible for Him.

At this point in my story I would love to tell you that Hadessa was miraculously healed in that moment, but she wasn’t. The truth is in that moment God began Hadessa’s healing. Sometimes healing is a process. The word says that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6). Hadessa would spend the next two months of her life in the hospital before being able to come home. And when she came, she did not come empty-handed. She would have to be attached to an apnea and heart monitor twenty four hours a day for the first month. And for the next two and half years she would be fed by a gastronomy tube, (feeding tube) which was surgically inserted into her stomach. We had good days and we had bad days, but God got us through them all. I dealt with a lot of emotions during that time anger, frustration, depression, and confusion, just to name a few. There were days when I wanted to quit and give up. But God gave me the strength to keep going. I would even cry out to God and beg Him to heal her now, because I knew He could, and I felt like I just couldn’t take anymore. But God brought me through it. For it is written: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”(2 Corinthians 12:9). There were even times when it seemed like she would never get better and that things were getting worse (like when she had a seizure and such horrible reflux that she would literally vomit almost her entire feed) and I would just fall on my face in frustration and sadness, but in all this I never gave up the hope I had in God, and that He would heal my daughter. I held on to that hope, because hope in Him was all that I had. The Bible tells us: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1).

And here we are today. Praise the Lord! Hadessa is now three and half years old. She, Thanks to God, is doing great! She has gone through 5 major surgeries and because of God’s goodness has quickly recovered from them, not even needing extra oxygen, but breathing on her own after each one, because God was with her. Her lower jaw grew out miraculously and she doesn’t need a 6th major surgery. Also, 99% of kids that are born with Pierre Robin Syndrome have hearing problems and are prone to ear infections, but Glory to God! Hadessa’s hearing is at 100% and she hasn’t had any ear infections. It was truly God, His Word, and Prayer that got me through this difficult time in my life. The Bible says: “That Christ is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34) and that in all things we are more than conquerors, through Him who loved us. (Romans 8:37) So standing strong in faith doesn’t mean you never break down or feel like giving up. It means even though you feel like giving up you don’t. “For nothing is impossible with God.” (Luke 1:37). 
This beautiful testimony was shared by a dear friend and a best friend of ten years Renea Lagunas. She is a Strong Sister in Christ and I love her dearly. Through her ups and downs Renea has shared with us all that God always brings us through and I thank her for taking the time to share such a touching testimony. Thank you Renea for sharing your Testimony of your daughter Hadessa, May it inspire others as it has inspired me to keep the FAITH!