The Puzzle of Elijah
Olga Anischenko
This book tells the story of a happy family awaiting the birth of their fourth child. In the middle of her pregnancy, Olga learns their baby boy will be born with a serious disability. Questions of serious concern arose: should they abort the baby or trust and accept God’s will as it comes? Olga and her husband do not hesitate to choose life for their son. The child is born premature and very weak. Will he survive and, if he does, what will his life be like? Why did this happen to them, the Believers? How will these serious decisions affect their family? Elijah’s birth created critical questions, which Olga, Oleg, and their loved ones will need to find answers to. Olga shares her poignant story to help support other families who face similar medical crises and emotional overwhelm.
Olga Anischenko
The Puzzle of Elijah
REVIEWS
“Dear reader, I am so glad you chose this book! In it you will find a fascinating story of a mother, who boards an emotional roller coaster that tests her in every way possible, while her precious longed-forbaby struggles to survive. Walk with Olga as she relates her story of life, love, survival, and learning while on this path. Be uplifted…”
Marie Walters
“This was one of the most heart touching and hardest books to read. This book is not for the faint of heart. This book was a big eye opener for me as to understanding people who are going through a hard time in life. As I am related to Olga, as a sister, seeing them go through this scary time in their life, I did not fully comprehend the intensity of their pain and just how excruciating fragile everyday was for them until I read the book. It will be hard for you to read the book and not shed many tears. I can say their testimony forever changed my heart.”
Lana Mchedlidze
“This book is a wonderful source of encouragement for anyone who is going through a difficult time in their life and struggling with their faith in God. Olga’s story is a beautiful testament to the hope that exists in even the darkest of days.”
Taylor Hooper
“This is a heartwarming story of a couple that struggle with tough decisions that I’m not sure I would be able to make concerning their 4
child. God’s grace and love and their strong faith makes this a book that you’ll not soon forget.”
Sandie Hollister
“I did not have the honor of knowing Elijah, but I have come to know his mother, Olga, and learned of the amazing impact his life had upon his family and the medical personnel. As told in detail by his mother, Elijah’s story broke my heart and lifted my spirit on every page. He was a warrior sent here to teach all of us the value of life, and the power of families to find faith, love, and joy even in the most heart wrenching circumstances. Within the pages of this book you will mostly likely weep when Elijah struggles to survive, and his parents make life or death decisions. Yet, you will also be inspired by the courage and faith of this family as they triumph over tragedy and move forward to serve others with love and compassion in their community.”
Kay Watson
“This book is a journey, filled with Love, Courage and Faith. Love not only for Elijah, but the love shown and shared by Olga and Oleg for each other and their children. Courage shown by Olga and Oleg to do everything in their power to save the life of their precious Elijah. Faith in our God that He would be with them through out this journey. This journey does not end with the final page… It continues.”
Joe Amaya
“Life is full of good times, love, hope and, sometimes, hard choices. Hopefully those hard choices happen only once in a lifetime, an overwhelming challenge of hope and faith… Having worked in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for 38 years, I met and cared for, not only infants, but whole families. One family I will never forget immigrated from the Ukraine and Russia and were put into a world so very foreign from anything they had ever had to experience before. They had to put their trust in what Doctors and Nurses had to say. Oleg and Olga and their entire family were dealt a card no one would have wanted to deal with. I know this from my personal experience. Their story will capture your heart and soul, as they fought for the life of their premature son. Through this son, Elijah, they found more love and faith than they ever though was possible. I am honored to be part of this story.”
Patti Dryden
The Puzzle of Elijah
Life is a puzzle.
You never know what the big picture is going to look like.
You may think, here is the end of life,
but in reality – it is only the beginning.
Olga Anischenko
The Puzzle of Elijah
© 2018 Olga Anischenko. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author except as provided by USA copyright law.
Book editor: Kay Watson
Cover designer: dezaro.net
Website: www.olgaanischenko.com (http://www.olgaanischenko.com)
YouTube: Olga Anischenko English Channel
Amazon books: Olga Anischenko or http://a.co/9QyIdgZ
To invite Olga as a speaker: 360–521–9240
INTRODUCTION
My name is Olga. This story is about my family, friends, and completely unfamiliar people, who miraculously appeared in our life and helped us during difficult times. I wrote this book for seven long years.
Writing this book has been everything but easy. It has taken time to reflect, understand, and to become completely at peace with the decisions we made and the actions we took. And to be completely honest, it was painful everyday as I recalled and wrote down memories, experiences, thoughts, and such personal conversation as we sometimes had to have. It was never easy for me to entrust my soul to paper. I even had to face family and friends who doubted the wisdom of sharing our story. They felt there were parts of the story which should not be told. I then faced a new dilemma: should I tell only part of our story or be truthful in every detail. I chose the harder way, to share our journey as openly and completely as possible.
Ultimately, I realized my story, told sincerely, would help other families in similar situations. This approach inspired me and gave me confidence I was doing the right thing. I know what parents feel in the midst of continuing crises. I have experienced their fears and their pleas for mercy in their prayers. I know they do not need pity. They need help and encouragement; support and assurance they are doing the right thing for their child; and never-ending love which gives them confidence to keep going.
Every page of this book was written by me with tears. In the process of working and examining what we experienced, I discovered a lot in myself, in my loved ones, and in my God. It is God that Oleg and I are grateful to for the experience and support we received throughout such a difficult time for our family. We have discovered that serious trials can become the foundation for future growth and success. Passing through the limits of physical and moral strength, we moved forward. Accepting from God both good and bad, we decided to rely entirely on Him, believing that He will lead us to a better future.
In fact, my book is a story of faith, hope, love, courage and, at the same time, worry for the future of our family. Under the weight of unimaginable stress, we made important and irreversible life and death decisions. It was a struggle and a challenge to everything we believed in and how we lived. Now, years later, we realize who we are and why we have experienced this life lesson. Over time, there was a clear understanding that we survived largely due to our large family, and the upbringing we received in our childhood. Our parents instilled the qualities in us which helped us cope with the tragedy. We realized that our life is firmly entwined with the subtle and inextricable thread of the past.
…….
1
Find out about your ancestors and you
will learn a lot about yourself.
My husband Oleg and I are immigrants to America. In 2007, ten years into our marriage, our journey began…
One evening, when Oleg, I and our three children knelt to pray to God, I heard Oleg say: “God, I am so tired of being a “lukewarm” Christian. I want to have a personal relationship with You! Please send a situation into my life that will show me WHO YOU REALLY ARE!” For a moment, I felt scared and thought what is my husband talking about? But because I loved him and trusted him, I thought he knew what he was asking for. As I understood later, our words have power because God heard my husband’s prayer. He came and knocked at our door, and we began a very hard journey. Only a few years later, when we read a following statement in the book of Sirach, 2:1-5, in a full Bible, we understood what had actually happened.
It says there: “My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal… Be sincere of heart, be steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes. Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient, since GOLD IS TESTED IN THE FIRE, and the CHOSEN IN THE FURNACE OF HUMILIATION.”
I am about to tell you what happened after Oleg’s prayer. I am not blaming my husband or God. Today, seven years later, Oleg and I thank God for every second of our life, for God’s miracles, lessons and for revealing Himself to us. God’s work in our life was painful, but worth every moment of it. It was the time of spiritual growth and learning Who really God is. Today, we love God, each other, and our children so much more than we ever did before. We value our family and know the price of health and happiness. And most important, we know the difference between religion and the real God!
This story begins with our family. We, as individuals, are a product of our family and of other people, who influence us. Therefore, to understand our decisions, you have to understand us as a family. The decisions we make today are connected to the past.
…….
My family is from Ukraine. Grandmothers and Grandfathers grew up in wealthy families, but during the revolution, the communists took away most of their property and distributed it between the poor people. Life in the Soviet Ukraine under the communist regime was hard: less food being produced, hunger and some deaths from starvation.
During World War II, in 1942, the Germans invaded our country. My Grandfather, Alexander Lapin, was drafted into the Red Army. He helped to defend the city of Leningrad and was among the troops who entered Berlin. He believed his faith in God kept him safe, when so many people died during the war.
When Alexander came home, he fell in love with a beautiful girl, Anna, and married her. They lived in the urban-settlement, Rakitno, seventy miles from Kiev, the Capitol of the Ukraine. Alexander was a generous man and people were drawn to him. He was originally a member of the Baptist church. After returning from the war, his faith had changed. He became a pastor of a Pentecostal church, serving his community and seven surrounding villages. He rode his bicycle to see people, bringing honey and other gifts with him. At the same time, Alexander worked as а machinist of a local train company. With time, their family grew to nine children. My Father, Anatoliy, is their second child.
Alexander & Anna Lapin My Father – Anatoliy Lapin
…….
My Mother’s Father, Peter Lysenko, was also drafted into World War II. One battle became so intense that many of his fellow soldiers were injured or killed. Wounded and fearing death, he cried out to the Lord, “If you exist, help me survive and I will serve you to the end.” He survived, but was captured by Germans and put on a train to Auschwitz, a concentration camp. On the way, he and two other soldiers crawled up to the roof and tried to escape. The two soldiers were shot and killed; Peter was the only one to escape.
