‘My God is going to fix this…’

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By Jim Muir

Shelly Allsopp sat across a desk from a doctor and a neurosurgeon at Children’s Hospital, in St. Louis, and heard a four-word sentence that would be the ultimate dread and fear of any parent: “It’s a brain tumor,” the doctor said matter-of-factly when talking about her then-3-year-old daughter Keira.

Undaunted, unafraid, unfazed and showing a remarkable faith-based boldness, Shelly never flinched and instead looked both men in the eyes and made her own matter-of-fact statement:

“My God is going to fix this…we’re battling the devil here…so you both need to get ready because God is going to be involved in a big way in this.”

More than a decade later – a decade where Keira has had four surgeries and many ups and downs, Shelly, husband Adam and a large circle of blood-family and church-family members still hang onto those now prophetic words: “My God is going to fix this…!”

During a recent interview, Shelly took time to sort through the past decade of highs, lows, thoughts, tears, laughter, emotions and her enduring faith that God is in total control of Keira’s life.

Adam and Shelly are the parents of three children, daughter Presley and son Holden, who were born before Keira. Both older children had no health issues and it appeared the Allsops would experience the same with Keira. Shelly went through a routine childbirth and Keira was a typical infant with no health concerns.

It was not until Keira was three years old that the Allsopps’ lives began to change.

“She was perfect until she was three years old. It all started when Keira just started running into things. That’s how we first knew that something was not right,” Shelly said. “One day she was just a normal three-year-old child and then she started running into things. She would run into the swing-set, run into a pole. It just started happening and we knew something was going on.”

As these episodes increased, the Allsopps began the arduous process of trying to find out what was happening with Keira, first scheduling visits to a pair of different eye doctors, and thinking that a vision problem was at the root of Keira’s problems. One doctor thought it might be a retina issue while the second local opinion was that Keira’s issues had nothing to do with her eyes and was neurological. The second eye doctor recommended Children’s Hospital, in St. Louis where an MRI was scheduled. Shortly after the MRI, came the meeting with the doctor and neurosurgeon when Shelly made the bold proclamation stating: “my God is going to fix this.”

Immediately after that conversation with the doctor and surgeon, Shelly said God’s always-right timing began to play out within minutes.

“Adam was working in the coal mine then and he was on the afternoon shift and he left at 2:30,” Shelly recalled. “They told me her diagnosis and I looked at my watch and it was 2:30. I went to a phone and called home and he was still there and so he was able to come up and be with me and we were able to meet with the doctor and neurosurgeon together. From the beginning of this the timing has always been in God’s hands.”

Doctors told the Allsopps that Keira’s battle would be a long, difficult process that would include chemotherapy, lengthy treatments and multiple surgeries and it would be a process that she would deal with her entire life. Keira had her first surgery in 2010 and after experiencing serious side effects from the chemotherapy, had to have another surgery in 2011 when the tumor was continuing to grow.

“I have said since day one – and that’s been 12 years ago – that God has always provided a pathway for all of us through this process,” said Shelly. “Even back in 2011 the neurosurgeon explained to us that he had a pathway, that’s the word he used, to perform the surgery that would not cause any other damage to Keira. I can’t stress enough that God has always provided us a pathway.”

Saying that there have been trials and errors through the years, Shelly pointed to a sermon by Whittington Church Pastor Mark Minor that tested her faith and obedience and also that of her pastor.

“Mark preached one Sunday that he wanted to anoint somebody’s house or business and bless them,” said Shelly. “We were having a terrible time with Keira at the hospital trying to access her port and she would cry and it was just awful and we couldn’t do anything with her. I asked Mark if he would come to St. Louis and anoint her room. Here I am, asking him to drive two hours to anoint this hospital room…and he did it. And from that moment on we never had any more issues with the port. I think that happened because of faith and obedience.”

Shelly said at age 15, Keira does not remember the initial treatment, chemotherapy or surgeries.“And that’s a huge blessing for her that much of this she does not remember,” said Shelly.

Shelly said her faith has sustained her daily through the 12-year ordeal and noted that Keira’s serious health issues are never very far from her mind. 

“Worship music gets me through each day, it’s a constant reminder that my God is in control of my life and in control of Keira’s life,” said Shelly. “God gave Keira to us and made us her parents. He has our family and this situation in his hands. I know that I could not have done this without trusting God and putting my faith in Him.”

However, Shelly noted that she does have her “moments” – usually late at night – when her faith sometimes waivers. 

“Most of my times like that hit me in the middle of the night,” she said. “We’ve lost so many friends that we met when we first started this journey and that works on your mind. But, then I think of how God has blessed us and I just feel so very thankful for all that we have. Despite all that has happened during the past 12 years I know that my God is good.”

She said she has also learned throughout Keira’s illness about the joy of a “good hot shower.”

“I don’t let anybody see me cry…but if I need to cry I do it in the shower so those tears are quickly washed away,” she said.

Keira is now a freshman at Benton High School and went to her first Homecoming Dance just a couple months ago. 

“In many ways she’s a typical high school student, which is a real blessing” Shelly said. “One thing I’ve noticed is that when she was little we did things because ‘mama said’ and now she has developed her own opinion about some things regarding her treatment. That’s something new that we’re dealing with, but she is a fabulous kid and we’re blessed.”

Shelly said the fact that Keira’s health journey has taken so much of her time has caused her to develop a balancing act in her role as mom for her two older children. 

“The other siblings have been a big issue to deal with because I have been gone a lot to St. Louis for her treatments,” Shelly said. “I just had to work extra hard to make up for the time I wasn’t there and to do extra special things with them. And I think it caused Presley and Holden to have to grow up a little quicker than normal. It’s been hard on the whole family.”

Since that life-changing day more than 12 years ago when she informed a doctor and neurosurgeon that “my God is going to fix this,” Shelly said her thought process has not changed. “My thought process has not changed, even a little bit. I think through this all God has used me and Keira to help and bless others and to witness to others,” Shelly said. “One of the people that I believe has changed because of this is my dad. My dad has not always seen eye-to-eye with God but when Keira got sick I went and had a talk with him and it has all been good since then. All this with Keira has drawn him closer to the Lord. It’s been amazing to see the change in him.”

Since Keira’s last surgery she has stabilized and has not had any headaches at all and her balance is back,” said Shelly. “To me, that’s the real miracle in all this. This has not been a situation that you can slap a band-aid on. I have relied on my faith in God to bring us through this.”