A new day has begun....

On behalf of Luke and our family, we would like to express our sincerest gratitude for the outpouring of love and support that has come to us during this challenging time. Countless people have prayed & fasted on his (our) behalf and I can assure you that we have felt the effects of your faith.

My apologies for not updating the blog late last night, but after his surgery we met with the surgeon, Dr. Miller, and we received a lot of information. Before I post what we learned, I want to make sure that I am accurate in how it's presented; so we will have a comprehensive medical update on the blog later today.

Last night we all had a chance to visit him in the ICU and we stayed with him until about 10pm. Visiting hours were ending and we were not allowed to stay the night in his ICU room. We went to our motel and I returned at 6:00 this morning, so I could be there when they got him out of bed.
I arrived to find him somewhat awake and alert....and very thirsty! Although he is "enjoying" lots of fluids from his six IV lines, nothing takes the place of some icy cold water, and his system is not tolerating anything right now. He has had a few sips, along with some ice chips, but he ends up getting sick afterwards. This of course is to be expected, but it doesn't help to minimize his thirst.
His nurse and I helped him out of the bed and into the bedside chair, where he sat until I was asked to leave around 7am. We talked a lot and his pain seems to be tolerable right now. As we talked a bit about yesterday's surgery, Luke was confused and a bit concerned when he learned how long it took, but I assured him that everything went great and that he is expected to make a full and complete recovery.

Standing up for the first time just 12 hours after his 9.5 hour surgery!

With sincere gratitude,

The Browns