Tony Evans says support for daughter Priscilla Shirer offers a 'glimpse at Body of Christ in action'
Pastor Tony Evans thanked supporters for praying for his daughter, Priscilla Shirer, as she underwent surgery to remove a lobe in her left lung. He described the love shown to his family as a “glimpse at the Body of Christ in action.”
Shirer, whose mother, Lois Evans, died Dec. 30 from a rare form of cancer, revealed on Facebook last week that doctors would be removing an entire lobe of her left lung after discovering a nodule that contained some “dangerous irregularities.”
Ahead of her surgery, Shirer shared a video on Instagram showing Bible teacher Beth Moore at her house cleaning up for the “War Room” star after a family gathering.
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“When you’ve had a few really tough weeks and you’re on the eve of a few more tough ones but then your people show up — cooking and cleaning and making a celebration out of thin air,” Shirer wrote.
On his Instagram account, Tony Evans, Shirer’s father and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas, re-posted his daughter’s photo. He captioned the image, “This IS a glimpse at the Body of Christ in action. Thank you for praying for Priscilla today.”
According to an update from Shirer’s husband, Jerry, the surgery “went well” and “doctors are pleased.”
“We are so grateful for your prayers,” he wrote on Facebook.
Moore, who along with Bible teacher Christine Caine marched around the Dallas hospital where Shirer was being operated on and prayed for her and the surgical team, also shared an update.
“I’m going to just give you the very basics because I want to leave every kind of detail to the family and respect [them] completely in this,” Moore said on Instagram Tuesday while driving back to Houston from Dallas.
“She did very very well during the surgery. The surgeon said that it went absolutely according to plan. That her body is strong and they have every anticipation that she’ll heal up well,” she continued.
Moore revealed that the Going Beyond Ministries founder will spend the next couple of days in the hospital and has more recovery time ahead.
“Pray for a smooth and comfortable recovery and, I’d add to that, a time of respite for this family we all love so much. Your prayers MATTER. Keep them up,” Moore concluded.
In addition to the loss of Lois Evans, the Evans family is still grieving the death of Tony Evans’ father who died last November, the unexpected loss of Evans' sister, Beverly Johnson, who died in January 2019, along with his niece, Wynter Pitts, who died last year, and his brother.
Speaking at Lois Evans’ celebration of life service last week, Shirer revealed her mother’s primary interest was that her children develop a personal relationship with the Lord and stand firm in the faith amid trials.
“If there is one thing you can do in honor of my mother, it's do not let your hearts be troubled,” Shirer said. “It’s to believe that the God of Ephesians 3:20 and 21 is still who He said He is. ‘Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above and beyond anything you can ask or think, to Him be the glory both now and forevermore in Jesus’ name, amen.”
