Rejoice In Our Suffering

I prayed; "Please God Heal Me" as I was heaving my way through the night, I knew I had become really ill.  My head had been aching non stop for hours like it was going to explode.  My eyeballs felt so much pressure like they were going to pop out.  I could barely crawl back to bed and wondered how soon I would have to get back up for more, because I couldn't move fast if I needed to get out of bed in a hurry.  Everything hurt!  I was just waiting to the point when I could at least drink some water and keep it down.

It seems I have malaria, and as I started taking the course of medications, my body was rejecting anything I was taking by mouth, and that meant no headache medication either. It seems I am now on the road to recovery, not 100% yet, but getting there, it will take a couple more days.

So what is so joyful about this?  As I am alone here with my kids, I realized they are supposed to depend on me but I have nothing left to give.  But when called to action they stepped up to the plate and kept checking to make sure I was still alive.  Yea, I mean that literally, malaria is the number one cause of death in Uganda as well as in several other African countries.  They have seen death occur far to often, so they know the possible consequences of an illness.  Most everyone here has had malaria or have seen it, so they know all too well the effect it has on your body.  So they made dinner and followed the schedule for the cleanup and chores.  The evening prayers and worship were conducted as we have scheduled.  They prepared the morning breakfast and locked the main house so they would be able to come in and get their morning breakfast without disturbing me.

All of this is something to rejoice to the Lord about.  My little children, made up mostly of orphans and street kids, have learned what "Love thy neighbor as thyself is all about". I think they also know what having a family is truly about too!  Praise God!
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