Back in January of this year (2018), I got a call from my wife Jessica after she returned home with Asher from his six month checkup. I could tell right away that there was some bad news by the tone in her voice.
When Asher was born, he had a soft spot on the top of his head, like most babies, but he also had a large soft spot in the back of his head. All babies have it at some point in their growth, but his was fairly large. It was close to the size of the soft spot on the top of his head.
Of course we found out right away that this rear soft spot, known medically as the posterior fontanelle, is totally normal. But the reason it concerned us so much was because Zeriah, our first child, didn’t have one (or at least a noticeable one). The nurses told us that it would close up in a couple months.
Well at this six month checkup, our pediatrician was shocked to find the posterior fontanelle still open, and very open at that (she could fit her thumb). She said that this was very concerning, because not only should it have closed already, but because it hadn’t, along with the size and shape of his head, it could be a sign of brain damage. So she had us schedule an ultrasound for his brain, in order to see whether or not brain damage had occurred.
When I heard all this over the phone, I felt so helpless. A sense of fear that I’ve never experienced before started to overcome my thoughts and emotions. I remember recalling times when he cried certain ways, or did certain things, that may now have a reason behind them: he probably was experiencing pain, or even worse, brain damage. Jessica and I had already had concerns about the shape of his head, so this news confirmed our concerns, and then amplified them as we realized the problem was more than just cosmetic.
I told Jessica I needed to pray and would call her back. I left the electrical room I was working in and went outside to talk to God. I remember pacing back and forth, asking God to heal him. But as I did, scriptures I had previously meditated on regarding healing began to come to mind. I began to have an attitude towards the situation like Jesus had towards Jairus, when his daughter was pronounced dead. In Mark 5, shortly after Jairus came to Jesus to ask that He would heal his daughter, people came from Jairus’ house saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” But in Mark 5:36, it says, “As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, ‘Do not be afraid; only believe.’”
In a similar way as with Jairus, as soon as I heard the bad news, I started to be filled with fear. But then as I prayed, Jesus reminded me, “Do not be afraid; only believe!” So instead of begging God to heal him, I began to declare God’s truths over the situation. My prayer turned into declarations like, “God I thank you that you heal all of Asher’s diseases,” – Psalm 103, “And that by the stripes of Jesus he is healed,” – Isaiah 53. As fear continued to rear its ugly head throughout the rest of that day, I would rebuke the spirit, saying, “Thank you God for your perfect love that casts out all fear!” – 1 John 4:18. I continued to meditate on these and several other scriptures throughout the day.
Later that evening when I got home. I held Asher and declared all of these same truths from God’s word over him. I remember Jessica and me laying hands on him and praying healing over him as well. A little bit before bedtime, I went to feel the soft spot on the back of his head, and it was gone! You could still feel the triangular shape of how the plates come together, but the center that was soft (as recent as that morning with the pediatrician), was filled in with bone! A week or so later, the ultrasound results came back, and he was perfectly fine. And over time (he’s 13 months old now), you can’t feel the triangular shape, and he’s developing perfectly.
Praise God!
-Steven Sedory
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