Her faith in God made her heart whole again - Pt 2

Mandeville, Manchester:

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness,” Isaiah 41:10

The passage of scripture quoted above remains a constant on the lips and heart of Jhori-Lee Holness, a woman who admits that overcoming her struggles would not have been possible without her faith in the Almighty.

After hearing that she could not enter the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) because of her heart condition, Holness’ hopes were dashed. But it was an opportunity for God to show her how He can transform impossibilities to possibilities.

“He (doctor) could not recommend that I go in JCF at the moment. For a second, I thought that all my dreams had now come to an end because I did not see myself doing anything else except policing. I am very patriotic, and I thought the best way to show that was to maintain and enforce the laws. Besides, policing fits my personality very well because I do not like having one daily routine and being in an office.”

As she contemplated her options of possibly repairing or replacing the faulty valve in her heart, Holness had nothing but a burning hope that things would work out.

“When I went to my family doctor, she stated that I should go to the Mandeville Regional Hospital to be referred to the University Hospital of the West Indies. I went to the hospital three times and still did not receive the letter. By then, the symptoms were becoming more prominent, such as swollen ankles; extreme shortness of breath even in the simplest thing I do, like combing my hair, bathing, and even by just talking; chest pain; and fatigue. Day-to-day activities became more and more difficult, and I got a personal nurse that monitored me on a daily basis.”

Second opinion

Holness’ mother became tired of the futile efforts to get her daughter help and decided to visit another cardiologist. It was here that she was told the surgery would cost $10 million!

“When I went to the University Hospital of the West Indies and I met with Dr Stephenson for the first time and he, too, recommended surgery, and gave me the same estimate. He then gave me another option: he told me about a mission and that this team would actually cover the cost of the surgery. I couldn’t believe my ears that just like that, the expenses of the surgery would be covered. I knew then and there that God was already working miracles and was showing me that He was by side. I went with that option of being a part of the mission, so my name was added to the list.”

She continued: “I was given two options: either replace the valve, or repair the valve. Because it is my dream to become a police officer, their major aim was to repair the valve so I can achieve that dream. If they were to replace the valve, I would not be able to become a police officer, and if I should even become pregnant, it would be a high-risk pregnancy with many complications because it would require that I be on blood thinners for the rest of my life. They did manage to repair the valve, therefore, I will be able to become a police officer and can become a mother without any problems after I recover.”

With a glow of peace radiating from within, Holness told Family & Religion that her faith in God has not waned since her miracle surgery, and she is encouraging people to give their hearts to God.

“The amount of faith that I have in God played a huge part in me going through my time of sickness. I kept in mind Matthew 17:20: ‘If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you’. All the doubts that I had, I prayed about it and left it all in God’s hands. I was surrounded by people who also assured me that all would be well - my spouse, family, personal nurse, friends and co-workers.”

Everything takes time, but God is an on-time God.”

familyandreligion@gleanerjm.com