Leading Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias has announced that he will undergo urgent spinal surgery in a bid to bring healing to a decades-old back issue.
Releasing a statement through his ministry organization, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM), the travelling speaker asked for prayers as he prepares to go under the knife.
"As you may recall, I have had serious back issues and struggled after two surgeries," he wrote. "The Lord brought comfort and strength and gave me eighteen good years after my first surgery. But over the last year, I have battled several flare-ups and after my last trip to the Philippines and Sri Lanka, it's a miracle I got home on my own two feet."
He continued: "A subsequent CAT scan and MRI showed no option but to go into a surgery immediately. It's time for a serious repair job that will take me off the road for close to eight weeks. The surgeon has said he will have to remove two of the screws that are loose and anchor my fractured sacrum in two places to the pelvis.
"That's in lay language, but I have the best of doctors and surgeons who have loved this ministry and want to see me positioned for the distance. The doctor has described it as an emergency, but he is equally confident of success."
Zacharias went on to reveal that his "spinal repair surgery" will take place on 20th February and that he "will be recovering until the beginning of April".
"It will be some days of pain and struggle," he said. "But by God's grace and with my family, friends, and colleagues close at hand, I will make it. I ask for your prayers and your continued support. Michael Ramsden, Sarah Davis, and the rest of the team are more than capable of continuing their good work with RZIM in my absence during this time."
Zacharias concluded: "Thank you for your love and prayers. Thank you for all the expressions of support for Margie and me. Thank you for serving our Lord alongside us. Thank you to all my friends in the practice of medicine who offered their kind advice. I am blessed with the best of colleagues, supporters, and pastor-friends. Your prayers have meant more than you'll ever know.
"The wear and tear of travel are literal and figurative. I will keep you posted from time to time. I thank God for great medical expertise and look forward to a speedy recovery and being on the road again. But for now it's time to face the pain and the discipline of healing. Ezekiel asks the question, "Can these dead bones live?" The answer is a resounding "Yes" as God breathes new life into them.
"The Lord has never forsaken me and He is by my side. I am a blessed man. As I recover, I will pray, read, and write."
