C Me As Hope

On Monday, November 10, Lang was hiking in Red Rocks, Las Vegas. He was sitting down and scooting towards the edge of a rock to find a path down, when the rock surface gave way. He slipped off and fell about 20 feet down, landing mostly on his head and arms. He broke his skull, cheek bones, jaw, nose, both wrists, and his lower neck in three places. By God’s grace, a respiratory therapist, Julie Sharp, was hiking in Red Rocks in the same area and came when she heard the commotion. She and Carla helped get Lang breathing, helped get the medivac team called, and she drove Carla and the kids to the hospital. Julie helped keep Lang alive, and she is a hero. Serena Denmark, Rob Rodgers, and Lindsey Brewer were all on the medivac team that stabilized Lang and flew him to the hospital. They are our heroes as well. We pray that God blesses all of them for their part in saving Lang’s life.

Immediately after he regained consciousness, Lang was able to move all of his limbs, so the broken neck was thankfully not in a critical area. Upon reaching the hospital, he was put into surgery to correct the break in his skull, and the doctors placed a chip in his skull to monitor the swelling. The staples from the surgery began at the top of his forehead, went back to the top of his head, and arced down towards his right ear. There was a tremendous amount of concern for Lang’s life due to the massive head trauma. Friends and family were called in from all parts of the country to come be with him. The selfless sacrifices of time, energy, and resources from Lang’s military friends, especially Josh and Karl and their families, were simply amazing. We thank God for them.

Day 1 in the hospital. Post surgery, they kept Lang sedated. They periodically would wake him up to check on him. The first time they woke him up, our feisty friend was trying to pull out his iv and breathing tube. This was an amazing sign. As the day wore on, his responsiveness increased. He eventually began to respond to commands to raise his arms and squeeze his hands. He was actively moving his legs and feet as well. Due to the head and eye-socket trauma and swelling, he was unable to open his eyes. He was also unable to talk, due to the breathing tube. We know this was both painful and frustrating for him. Slits had to be cut down from his eye-sockets in order to reduce the swelling. Throughout the day, the swelling of his head continued to reduce. The doctors were optimistic by the end of the day at seeing Lang’s tremendous progress and responsiveness.

Day 2 in the hospital. This was a great day. It started with Lang recognizing Carla’s voice during one of the sessions when they removed his sedation. He smiled. It was wonderful. He was still very frustrated at the breathing tubes. They are quite painful and annoying. He attempted to pull them out several times. Brain swelling was still an issue. His blood pressure, heart rate, and swelling would all increase during times when he was awake, so they were monitoring this time very closely. Phone calls for concern about Lang were coming from all parts of the world, even as far way as Iraq and Afghanistan. This was incredible. Lang has touched so many people. The doctors were very impressed with Lang’s progress, and they thought the breathing tube could be out in a few days.

During day 2 a tremendous amount of life details began to unfold. This accident came at a very difficult time. Lang and Carla have a wedding planned for January 1, 2009. They had just purchased a house together that closed roughly a week before the accident. Carla had quit her job in Washington with the plans to move to Tucson after the wedding. The military had just completed orders to move Lang to Tucson in January. All of Lang’s family, friends, and coworkers began working and are still working towards resolving the many issues that this accident brought about. Please pray that these details work out, and that God will provide for the needs that Lang, Carla, and the family have. More information about these needs will be released soon. Please pray about any support you may be able to give.

Days 3-4 in the hospital. The doctors were again optimistic about Lang’s progress. They stated that they would attempt to remove the breathing tube later that day. They went ahead and removed the bolt/chip that monitored the swelling in Lang’s head. This was a huge praise. They were then able to perform an MRI on his neck to asses the damage. The MRI results showed that the damage, broken bones and a torn ligament, should not require additional surgery. Again, a huge praise. By the end of day 3, the doctors attempted to remove the breathing tube, but were unable to due to Lang fighting them too much. They decided to wait and try again after giving Lang some mild drugs to help him relax. They successfully removed the tube, and Lang was able to talk for a short bit. He said he loved Carla. He said he was mad. He said he wanted to stand. No one has ever doubted the fight in Lang. His strength and desire to get well are showing through. It was wonderful to see. Later that night, Lang’s breathing was labored. They decided to re-intubate him. This was very difficult to see. However, the progress is still wonderful. The doctors are still very optimistic. They are concerned about the onset of pneumonia, which is apparently very common with long-term intubation.

Days 5-6 in the hospital. Some minor stitching was done to repair the slits that were created near his eyes to reduce the swelling. This went well. He will probably have plastic surgery in the next day or two.  This is not 100%.  He may need to have his jaw wired shut, so they may have to give him a tracheotomy for the breathing tube. There is a lot of waiting now. Waiting on Lang’s progress and waiting on the doctors and their decisions. If Lang does not have surgery on Tuesday, then they will try to take out the tube on Tuesday.  If he does have surgery, then they will probably attempt to take out the tube later this week. He was so much better yesterday.  Still a little forceful with wanting to get up, but he responded well when Carla would tell him to lay down.  Most times she didn’t even have to help him lay down. She would just tell him to put his arm down or bring his leg back on the bed or lay his head back…and he would do it.  It was good to see him respond that way.  Periodically, his frustration and anger are showing through. We know the determined, fighting, and confident Lang is alive and well. Every now and then he expresses his frustration to Carla and the hospital staff. Please pray for Carla’s and the family’s strength through all of this. It is very hard to help keep Lang from doing the things he thinks he can do. She knows it’s for his good, but it is so hard to see the frustration in him.

This is where we are right now. Carla and his sister Leia are still by his side. There will always be someone there. For now, Carla rarely leaves, unless the doctors drag her out. Her strength has been amazing. Pray for it to continue. We all love Lang very much and can not wait for his return to health.

We praise our God day and night for not taking Lang to be home with Him. We need Lang here, and we believe very strongly that God has great work for him to do.

Carla or one of the other friends and family will post again soon to keep everyone up to date.

Pray. Maybe you pray every day. Maybe you’ve never prayed before. But we believe in the God of grace and mercy that holds us up in times of need.

A long time ago some people were standing between a sea of water and an army that was coming to kill them. It was sure death. A servant of God told them: “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. … The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” God saved them.

Yet another time, a man walked up to Christ and said that his servant and friend was paralyzed and in great pain. Christ offered to go heal the servant. The man said, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.” When Jesus heard this he was astonished at the man’s great faith. His servant was healed that very hour at the word of Christ.

We wait, pray, and believe that God will bring Lang back to us.

Grace and peace to you.