"Most people, if you look at me today, would not know that I am an open-heart surgery patient who survived a pretty near-death experience.”

After being denied tenure as a professor at UW-Madison, Angela felt the stress of trying to get a reconsideration of that decision. The week that she was supposed to fight for her tenure case, she then also had to fight for her life. She had had a headache and chills, and when she finally went to the hospital to get checked out, she found out she had a bacterial infection on her heart that was pumping poison through her body.

Just before her open-heart surgery, the pastor who came in to pray with her said that he didn't know how to pray for her. Usually, God would give him a feeling one way or another, so he asked casually how she was doing and what to pray for, and she answered "you know, I just got this job offer..." That morning turned into a praise-fest at UW Hospital because, as the pastor said, "why would God give you a new career and a new position if He's not going to bring you through this."

“That was the turning point for me because, again at that point, I felt like I had been surrounded by the spirit of death. My career was dying. My body was dying. And I could not see, like, how are you going to bring me through this, but it felt like there’s hope. There’s hope—there’s going to be life on the other side of this.”

Angela has an artificial heart piece that was supposed to last seven to ten years—she's on year 15. No problems, no cardiac events. "I am living proof to the resurrecting power of God."

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This story, and all of our stories, are from people who call Door Creek Church their home. As you contemplate this story, may your faith be encouraged and your hope renewed. If you’d like to learn more about sharing your story, start here.