When the Holy Spirit Speaks in the OR
She came to us with an infected knee and not a word of English. A quiet woman with eyes full of pain and hope, she arrived in Antigua for a knee revision surgery with Dr. Jay Pond. Her condition was serious. The infection had progressed, and we knew we were working against time.
As she was wheeled into the operating room, there was little conversation—mostly gentle smiles and gestures to communicate comfort. Our anesthesia team, led by Dr. Phillip Gallegos, kept her calm as they administered a spinal
block. She was awake but resting, drifting in that quiet in-between space.
And then, something extraordinary happened.
As Dr. Gallegos casually asked the team what music they wanted to hear, the woman suddenly opened her eyes and, in clear English, said:
“I’d like to hear Alan Jackson.”
We all froze.
This woman—who had never spoken English to anyone before—had just made a request, perfectly understood. And not only that, she smiled and added, “I was dreaming I was sliding on rainbow-flavored ice cream.”
The room lit up with laughter and awe. A moment of joy, right there in the middle of a complex surgery.
But it wasn’t over.
Before the anesthesia wore off completely, still in that hazy place between sleep and wakefulness, she began to speak again. This time, she prayed aloud in English—words of blessing poured from
her heart. She prayed for our team, asking that the Lord would reward their faith and service, not just in heaven, but here on Earth. She prayed over each person in the room—words of gratitude, faith, and abundance.
And then, as quickly as it came, it was gone.
When she fully came out of anesthesia, her English was gone too. She returned to her native language, unaware of what she had spoken.
Moments like these stop us in our tracks. They remind us that we are part of something far greater than medicine. That beyond the surgeries and schedules and logistics, there is a presence
moving through this work—a Holy Spirit who meets patients where they are and speaks through them in ways we can’t explain.
We often say that we come to Guatemala to serve. But just as often, we find that we are the ones being served—by the faith, courage, and presence of those we meet.
We may never fully understand what happened in that operating room. But one thing is certain: in that moment, we witnessed a miracle.
Nikki Ruark, Blogger
