Naples church intercedes from the heart, for a heart

NAPLES (FBW)-While her family, friends and church family prayed for her through two years of illness and surgery, Janet Hayes of Naples said she felt "a phenomenal peace" surrounding her every step of the way.

And it was while she underwent extensive medical procedures, Wicker, whose husband is Hayes Wicker, pastor of First Baptist Church, Naples, said she claimed reassurance in Psalm 87:7, "All my springs of joy are in you."

It began in January 2002, when Wicker noticed a lack of energy and shortness of breath. She thought she was having a heart attack. When that proved not to be the cause of her problems, diagnostic procedures began. Cardiac surgeon Scott Schultz, a member of First Baptist, served as the Wickers’ advisor in the process. When he and other physicians evaluated her tests, they found a leaking mitral valve.

The condition could have been congenital, Wicker told Florida Baptist Witness, since she was born prematurely in 1952. But a weight-loss drug she was prescribed in 1993 also might have caused the problem. The then-popular drug has since been proven to cause serious heart problems.

Medications were her first line of defense against the leaking valve, but after almost a year with little improvement her cardiologist suggested surgery. His recommendation was seconded unexpectedly by a world known expert.

"During all this, I was still teaching Bible studies on Tuesday mornings and Wednesday evenings. One of the ladies in my class mentioned to Hayes that she had noticed my shortness of breath, and she thought we should talk with her husband," Wicker recalled. "Her husband is James Cox, a retired surgeon who is world famous for developing a surgical procedure for atrial fibrillation - the Cox Maze."

Cox recommended a hospital, Cleveland (Ohio) Clinic Inst., and a cardiac surgeon, Delos Cosgrove. Wicker’s surgery was set for Dec. 12, 2002.

All the while, First Baptist was interceding for its pastor’s wife. The more than 300 women in Janet Wicker’s RefresHer Bible studies were more aware than most of her feelings about her illness and the decision to undergo surgery, she said.

"They are the people I share with the most. We are transparent with each other and accountable to each other," she said. "I find that the more I am willing to share my struggles with them, they are more likely to share their struggles with me.

She specifically asked the RefresHer group to intercede for her in nine areas, including "that God would use this in my life to develop perseverance.., to deal with unconquered sin.., and to conform me to the image of His son....

The congregation gathered to pray for the Hayes’ before their trip to Ohio. "Our elders, deacons and their wives gathered with us for prayer. They anointed me with oil and commended me into the hands of my doctors," she said.

On the day of the surgery, Jack Stinziano, one of the elders of the church, flew to Cleveland to wait with Hayes Wicker. Also Lynn Kendall, who holds dual membership at First Baptist and lives part of the year in Cleveland, waited with her pastor.

"We spent the day of Janet’s surgery in prayer, really interceding for her," Hayes Wicker said. "I could not just sit and read a book.

"I sensed a great need to ask that God’s purposes be accomplished in her and me as partners. As a husband and father, one of my priestly roles is intercession."

A member of their congregation had enlisted a surgical nurse to watch for Wicker. She sat with Janet in the prep room before surgery.

"I felt such peace, phenomenal peace,’ she said. "I’ve never felt closer to God. I believe that God puts people in our paths to minister to us in a crisis."

Back home in Naples, the women of the congregation had gathered to "pray me through the day of surgery," said Janet. A nurse guided the prayers and interpreted medical terms for the others, "so it was like they were waiting at the hospital with us."

The younger Wicker children, Evan, 17, and Allison, 13, stayed with church friends and went to school as usual. Kristin, 24, a student at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., traveled to Cleveland to care for her mother after surgery.

Allison told the Witness, "We realized that we had to take more responsibility, because things would not be the same."

Classes before the surgery prepared family members to see their loved ones with a grayish hue and breathing with the help of a tube. Janet Wicker, however, defied expectations.

Hayes Wicker described the recovery room: "I asked a nurse where Janet was, and she pointed and told me, ‘She is the only one in here smiling.’ She was pale, but she glowed. And she was smiling, he said." Interjecting her own memories, Janet recalled the moment.

"I was breathing so well after surgery that I didn’t need a breathing tube," Janet added. Hayes struggled for words.

"I have seen a lot of people after surgery in my 33 years of pastoring, and I can tell you that seeing your wife there is very different. She is still my beloved, and I could see God’s glory in her," he said.

Days afterwards, Janet remembered asking Hayes "how bad" she looked. "He said these precious words: ‘You were radiant. I could sense the presence of the Lord with you,’" Janet recalled. "Of course, he was seeing through the eyes of his love for me."

Janet said recently she has now returned to "almost 100% normal," and has resumed her teaching schedule with her beloved RefresHer study groups.

"When Hayes and I met at Southwestern Seminary, we were both students," Janet said. "I felt called, too. I have supported Hayes in his ministry through the years, taught Sunday School and other classes–but this women’s Bible study has been the answer to why I prepared for ministry, too.

"This journey has been so wonderful, so full of God’s sustaining grace, so encouraging in every respect," said Janet. "There are so many lessons we have learned and continue to learn. I look forward to writing and sharing them."