(This is my first hand account of the Tyler McGinn MIRACLE!) 
Last night, I was out having dinner with Jane when my phone rang. I looked at my caller ID and saw that it was from Ron McGinn. My heart sinks when I get calls from him. He said Pastor Kevin, please put out an immediate prayer request for my son Tyler. He is in crisis and the doctors are trying to save him. Then he hung up the phone. I could tell it was urgent and scary just from the tone in his voice.
After getting in touch with Pastor Christina to put out the prayer request, I dropped Jane off at home and drove to the hospital. My heart was pounding as I prayed for Tyler and drove way too fast down the highway. I wanted to get there as quick as possible, before anything happened.
As I got to the 7th floor of the PICU Children’s Center at Hopkins, I made my way to Tyler’s room. There were about 7-8 doctors or nurses in the room. Tyler looked gray and I could tell he was dying. I have been around death many times, so I knew right away that this was the end. A nurse looked at my name badge and then directed me to a room across the hall where the family had gathered with two doctors. As I walked into the room, I was overwhelmed with grief and pain. Ron and Diane were both crying. The doctors were crying. They were hugging each other. The doctors were expressing their sorrow and the McGinn’s were expressing their appreciation to the doctors for all they had done for Tyler. At that moment, I realized it was over. It was time to help this family let go! I did not say much; I just sat with them and listened. Words really don’t matter at these times.
The doctors told Ron and Dianne that they were preparing Tyler for them. They were cleaning him up so Diane and Ron could be with him as he breathed his final breath. Tyler’s only concern was that he would not die alone, so Diane was going to lie down in bed and hold him as he passed away. My heart was so broken, but I was numb! I was in shock! As we all sat in the little room waiting for the doctors to give the okay to Ron and Dianne, we began to talk about Tyler’s funeral. Dianne asked about how many people could fit in the Crossroads gym verses the Chapelgate gym. Then the conversation would switch back to the present grief of Tyler passing away. Tears would stream down Dianne’s face as she was overwhelmed with grief.
Just before the doctor’s gave the McGinns the okay to go in the room with Tyler, Dianne looked at Ron and said, “What happens if Tyler is healed while I am laying in bed holding him?” Ron looked at her and smiled, “We will just praise God!!” I sat and watch this exchanged with amazement! I thought to myself, they still believe that God is going to heal him!
As Ron and Dianne went into the room with Tyler, my heart sank! I started to shed some tears! I was upset and troubled! So many people had prayed, we just had an amazing Prayer Vigil the night before, and I wanted to see a miracle. The doctors said it could be 1-2 hours for his body to fully shut down because his heart was so strong. I thought again to myself, how heart wrenching for Ron and Dianne! I stood in the hallway waiting and praying. Dianne said in her Care Bridge Journal,
“Then I climbed into bed with Tyler for the last time. I told him how amazing Heaven was going to be for him, how beautiful and perfect and pain-free and sorrow-free. Ron and I said all our last words to him, all the while still hoping for a miracle. His oncology fellow who first met Tyler on 9/7/11 said her good-byes and cried as well – she has come to love Tyler. As we watched the monitors, we saw his levels sink lower and lower.”
About 45 minutes after the McGinns went into the room with Tyler, Ron came out and asked the doctors why his vital signs were improving. The doctors assured Ron that this was normal, but said emphatically Tyler was going to pass away. Ron looked at me and said “I think God is doing a miracle.” Dianne began to shift from talking to Tyler about heaven to praying for his healing. She writes,
“Ron left the room for a moment, and I lay with Tyler some more. Instead of talking to him as I had been, I started praying. Thinking of the Centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant who was far away by just speaking the word (Luke 7:1-10), I asked God to speak life into my boy’s lungs, heart, stomach, etc. I prayed this over and over, naming as many organs as I could think of. While I prayed, many, many others were praying as well.”
The door was open to Tyler’s room, so I decided to go in and see Tyler. I could not believe my eyes, his color was good, he looked peaceful, his vital signs were improving. Dianne gave me a smile and I said to myself, “could this be a miracle”. I remembered back to the time when I heard the news about Tyler’s Leukemia, I asked God to show me a miracle with my own eyes. I have read about them and heard other accounts, but I wanted to see one with my own eyes. I said, “Lord could it be?” Ron even said to me, I think God was going to take Tyler to the brink of death and then heal him. All these thoughts were racing through my head, as time seemed to stand still.
Over the next few hours, the doctors were all without explanation for this sudden turn of events. One of Tyler’s doctors looked at me and put her hands up and shook her head with disbelief. She was the same doctor who told Ron that Tyler was going pass away. Please don’t get the wrong impression of this doctor. She is good and she cares deeply for Tyler. She stayed beyond her shift into the early morning hours with Tyler. But this was beyond her! God was doing something beyond the doctors. Tyler was improving right before our eyes!
About four hours after the McGinns went into the room to say goodbye to Tyler, Tyler began to move around, squint his eyes and move his head. Ron, Dianne, Karen (Dianne’s sister – who had been a quiet strong presence all evening), Doctor Kristen, the nurse on duty and myself were all present when Ron asked Tyler to squint his eyes if he could hear him. To all of our amazement he responded instantly! This is a young man who was under heavy sedation for 4-5 weeks! We were all a blown away and began to give each other high fives!
It was clear to me at this point, Tyler was not going to die! God had touched him and my heart was overwhelmed by His power! I stayed just a little while longer. The McGinn’s were going to stay with Tyler all night. Before I left, I prayed with Tyler and the McGinn’s. I had peace and I could rest! As I made my way home slowly, tears rolled down my face as I sang to the Lord and praised Him!
I got home around 2AM and just before I went to bed, my cell phone rang! It was Ron McGinn. This time his voice was filled with true joy and excitement. He said a new x-ray showed that Tyler’s lungs were the best they had been in over 4 weeks. Truly a miracle has happened! Dianne writes in her journal,
“The doctor was too curious about what had happened in Tyler’s lungs to wait for the 6AM xray, and ordered one. She was astounded and grinning as she showed us the before and after xrays – Tyler’s lungs look better than they have in weeks! In fact, the lower lobes of his lungs haven’t looked this good since his lungs first got in trouble.”
The rest of the story is still being written. Tyler still has a long ways to go. But I am confident in the ONE who has done amazing things so far! God is able to do exceedingly more than I could ever dream or imagine! God is able! All for His Glory! Keep praying and keep believing!
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