Monday evening, 10-year-old Lincoln Norton was hit by an SUV, leaving him with a punctured lung, blood "pooling around his heart," broken bones, severe road rash that required a skin graft and reconstructive surgery, and many other injuries, according to his family. During this time, Lincoln's family was also robbed.
Yet, his parents continue to testify of the goodness of God.
After the accident, Lincoln was placed in a medically induced coma, but he woke up just in time to celebrate his and his dad's birthday on August 2 in the hospital.
Happy birthday, baby boy. You are the bravest human I have ever had the honor of observing up close. You are blowing me away, my little warrior. Keep fighting! God is on your side! #prayforlincolnjo A post shared by Natalie Norton (@natalienorton) on Aug 3, 2017 at 5:45pm PDT
I love this boy so much. Listen to the first thing he said after they extubated him earlier today... 😂🦈 // After a few hours off of ventilation, there is now talk about having to potentially re-intubate—his "good" lung is now showing signs of some awful thing I can't pronounce (or remember)... but what do you say we just pray that problem away? #prayforlincolnjo ... also, he wanted to know "am I going to have a black eye?" Bwahahahahahaha. I think odds are good that yes, son, you will, in fact, have a black eye. Aaaand that will likely be the very least of your worries. 🤕😂 (Thank you soooooooooooooooo much for all the love and prayers. We feel them, tangibly so. I don't know if I could survive this without all of you, loving on us so.very.hard.) A post shared by Natalie Norton (@natalienorton) on Aug 2, 2017 at 8:02pm PDT
Lincoln's mother, Natalie, posted on Instagram, reminding her husband about the miracles of God on this double birthday. While she says that this entire experience has been "every parent's worst nightmare from start to finish," she recognized the miracle that so far, her son does not seem to have suffered neurological damage.
"I'm sobbing writing those words. My sweet, courageous, brilliant baby's brain seems to have miraculously suffered little more than a moderate concussion. GOD IS SO GOOD," Natalie writes. "We love you all so much for wanting to pour your love on us. We can feel it from afar, and we are so GRATEFUL! At this point what we need more than anything is your prayers for his comfort, courage, and healing. . . . We testify that God is real and his angels surround us in abundance in our times of greatest need."
On Monday evening, our ten year old son, Lincoln, was hit by a compact SUV and has been in a medically induced coma in the ICU ever since. The internal injuries are too many to list here in their totality, but the pooling blood around his heart, "cracked" liver and a punctured lung are currently the most significant to report. He will require reconstructive surgery to his face, including a skin graft (currently scheduled for Friday morning), and his entire body is covered in road rash, bruises and lacerations. This has been every parent's worst nightmare from start to finish. At this point, the biggest miracle is that there doesn't seem to be any neurological damage. I'm sobbing writing those words. My sweet, courageous, brilliant baby's brain seems to have miraculously suffered little more than a moderate concussion. GOD IS SO GOOD. There is so much more to report, and I'll do so slowly as time and emotional capacity permit. We currently aren't able to accommodate visitors, though we love you all so much for wanting to pour your love on us. We can feel it from afar, and we are so GRATEFUL! At this point what we need more than anything is your prayers for his comfort, courage and healing. Please tag your friends below to join us in prayer for our boy. Thank you, we love you. We testify that God is real and his angels surround us in abundance in our times of greatest need. #prayforlincolnjo. (Also, happy birthday today, @richie_norton. Our boy is not dead. What greater gift could we possibly ask for?!) A post shared by Natalie Norton (@natalienorton) on Aug 2, 2017 at 2:13pm PDT
Lincoln's dad, Richie, added his own message on Facebook, opening with a question that haunts so many in similar circumstances: "Why do bad things happen to good people?"
He continues,
I don't know. I don't even think that's the question. I think the real question is no question at all. Sometimes stuff just happens.
I love the scripture that says, "for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust" (Mathew 5:45). Sometimes it's not about what happens to you it's about how you choose to react once it happens. Life sure is letting our little family feel all the feels. All part of the inhumane human experience. Lincoln is tough as nails and so optimistic. He's not well by any means, but boy has grit.
Love you all for your prayers and support.
You are his angels. Keep the love coming. We do feel it.