God Saved the Paw!

What a miracle! For about a week now, my family and I have been praying for Ira, my little cat back in Moscow. We received word last week that she had contracted "dry gangrene" in her right paw and that she would need to have it amputated today (Wednesday). We were praying that God would heal her of the disease; we were also praying for the gangrene to spread no further and for the veterninarian who would be examining her (the same doctor who had set pins in Ira's front legs after she had broken them a few weeks ago).

Well, in an e-mail I received this morning, I heard that the paw did not need to be amputated! In fact, the vet didn't mention anything about gangrene! Instead, the only thing that was needed was to remove some layers of dead skin from her paw so new skin can grow in to replace it. Praise God! Our prayers for healing were answered in grand fashion!

We do need to continue praying for Ira's healing, though. Her left leg is in pain, we believe, because a pin has shifted, and there is always the threat of infection as her wounds heal. I am confident that Ira will heal well. She is my little companion in Moscow, the one who nightly greets me at the door of the apartment after a long day at school, who sits on my lap at all possible times, and who sleeps on top of the blanket in the "canyon" between my legs at night. I'm so thankful she's in good hands right now!

Another point of providence about this whole story is the connection that is being formed with the female veterinarian who has been so helpful in this process. Evidently, she really likes the missionaries who are caring for Ira, because she smiles at them every time she sees them. My missionary friends say that she is an excellent candidate for the English Cafe (which I help lead) because she wants to progress in her English conversation, but her employers will most likely not pay for her to take classes. We'll see how this all pans out, but there could be even more good to come out of my little Ira's traumatic experience; I'm praying that our veterinarian friend will desire to come to the Cafe, where she could rub shoulders with numerous Christians and perhaps commit her life to Christ someday! Who but God could orchestrate so many things to work together like this?