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Who gets shortness of breath by leading a hymn sing at church? But after singing the third verse of my favorite hymn, “Wonderful Grace of Jesus,” I knew that something wasn’t right inside of my body. I felt like I had just climbed the Philadelphia Art Museum stairs! And it wasn’t until later last Saturday night that a little after 10 p.m. when I was on my way to Cape Regional Medical Center, that I was actually both sobered and scared by the throbbing pain that I was feeling in the right side of my chest and the fact that my right arm was going numb with the sensation of pins and needles. I began wondering aloud to God, “What is going on Lord?”

I spent the entire night in the Emergency Room. By early morning I was admitted. Now I will be the first to tell you that I don’t really take good care of myself physically. I don’t exercise regularly. I eat at all the wrong times. I avoid having to go to the doctors and when I finally do- I embarrassingly have to confess that I rarely do what I am prescribed to do- and it caught up to me and I was rendered guilty and I am in no way proud of my careless behavior! I have a long history of high blood pressure and lousy cholesterol levels and migraine headaches and in recent years have battled anxiety, anemia and depression. And now I was sitting in a hospital bed wondering if I was heading down the same road as my own Dad who had a heart attack and triple bypass surgery when he was in his 50’s.

By Sunday afternoon I was in ICU. By Tuesday afternoon I had been transferred to Atlantic City Mainland for a heart catheterization “procedure” that evening. Although I know that many of my readers have been through something like this, I still don’t wish that experience on any other human being. I felt humbled and helpless and even a bit terrified. I also felt the presence of God and the support of loved ones and family and friends and the over the top care of some of the best medical professionals that I have ever had the privilege to run into. This was true of both Cape Regional and the Atlantic Care line up. I have always had great admiration and deep respect for those in the medical field but I am ready to kiss the very ground they all walk upon. Thrust into very difficult situations and having to deal with so many constant and life-challenging circumstances- all I can say is I was in the best of hands the entire time. By 9 p.m. Tuesday evening, I was informed by the wonderful doctor attending to me that my heart was in good shape and by the wee small hours of the morning of early Wednesday- I was back in my own bed feeling like I had been given a great gift and more days to live to live to the fullest.

What can I say everybody? These last few days have been a whirlwind adventure to say the least. If I learned anything- it is that I must take my health more seriously than I do. We human beings are not always good stewards of the precious presents that we have been so graciously given. I need to listen to my Doctors and start obeying their orders and not being so careless about my high blood pressure issues. I promised my last nurse Deborah, who was so wonderfully passionate about what she does and sincerely not wanting me to ever experience a stroke, that I would be responsible with my attitude towards my well-being.

I also really discovered that while I do look forward to going to Heaven someday- I do want to live and be here on earth for many more years to come. I want to grow old by my wife’s side- and see my kids and grandchildren grow- and walk my daughters down the aisle-and continue to pastor my awesome church family- and be on the radio and coach baseball and unwrap each and every day as the truly awesome gift that it is! Can anybody know why we take so many wonderful pieces of life for granted? Why do we get so caught up in the mundane that we miss the real miracles that God has strategically inserted smack dab all around us? Wake up Rudy and know that life is happening right before your very eyes- today!

I also got confirmed to me that my favorite thing in life is being around people. I got really lonely sitting there in the hospital by myself. I don’t like to be alone and I began to treasure every visit by every individual who took the time to pop in and be with me. I was only there a few days. I can’t imagine the many people who have to sit hours every day never having anyone come alongside of them. I was also blessed by the many kind words and prayers from my friends on facebook. People may make fun of the social network but it gave me the company that I was thirsting for when I couldn’t be with anybody in person.

And I am eternally grateful to God for the nurses that He gave me along this journey. I was humbled by the wonderful- beyond the call of duty efforts that those who got stuck with a nervous, never shut up, talker like me bestowed upon me anyway in spite of my jumpiness. All star care givers like Gina and Kayla and Judy and Apple and Dawn. I love you all and I mean that. And I am so ecstatic how God placed Christy in a strategic place just when I needed a personal touch and good friend. “Christy, I want to thank you so much for taking such good care of me when I was actually terrified by that cardiac catheterization. If ever I wanted to cry like a baby it was when I was on that table Tuesday night- but big boys don’t cry- yeah right!”

So last night the Doctor told me something that I already knew in the spiritual sense but now it was being confirmed by the physical evidence. His professional medical opinion was that I do have a strong heart! Love has a way of doing those things, doesn’t it? Love is the strength behind it all and I thank God that it was He who put this love in my heart! Where would I be without the Lord? Thank God I will never have to answer that question. So I write this offering of Speaking In The Light with a grateful heart and a fresh anticipation of the day that is before me- days that we must not ever waste nor ignorantly just exist our way through. These are the moments and now is the time to live and I would love if you would join me in the celebration.