Sharon had a close friend at work at Sears. Her name is Kiana. One evening after work, she found Kiana in her car in the parking lot suffering from severe chest pains and took her to the emergency room. She was diagnosed with severe heart damage.
Sharon invited her to come and stay with us and Kiana lived with us for a year. Eventually Kiana moved back to live with her mother and father. It was during this time it was determined that Sharon was suffering from a severe disease that would end up taking her life seven years later.
The amazing part of this story is Kiana would come to our house and stay with Sharon on weekends when I was out of town for work, near the end, sleeping with Sharon in her bed, feedinng her, comforting her, laughing together. All this time, Kiana’s heart damage and symptoms were getting worse.
Her doctors told her that one of the best ways to save her life was to have a heart transplant, which she agreed, and following examination by a core of heart specialists was placed on the heart transplant list. When a heart became available, she would have the operation. But there was always the risk a heart would not become available, and the damaged heart would take her life. She still drove herself to Sharon’s graveside funeral service in Newburyport, MA, which was a ten hour drive.
Six months later, I knew the Lord was leading me to take Kiana back to Newburyport to receive prayer from Gina, and Charlie, gifted leaders from our Vineyard Church, and me.
We stopped at an apple orchard on the way home to pick apples. I had never seen Kiana with this much energy. We walked over two miles picking apples and she was filled with life.
She had more appointments with the heart doctors and it was determined that she did not need a heart transplant, that her heart had improved substantially.
Kiana continues to improve. We have lunch often. She loves the Lord.
