In Sickness and in Health

“In sickness and in health…” I’ve heard that line before and I even said it four years ago last Thursday. But I’ve been thinking more about this line in recent days for reasons described below. We have said that this blog would contain the good, the bad, and the ugly, and this entry definitely falls into the ugly category. Yet, God is not absent in difficulty, neither are God’s people. And so, even in the tough times, there is reason for rejoicing and thanking God – hence the tone of this blog.

Moving to Africa meant the need to expect more times of sickness in comparison to the States. For better or worse, there are not as many preservatives in the food here so it spoils faster. There are not as many health standards and sanitation regulations. The soil in which food grows and the water with which it is irrigated may be compromised with impurities not common in the States. Plus, there are different strains of normal colds that our bodies have never seen. Therefore, we came expecting to experience sickness, at least at first. It’s part of the lifestyle we’ve been called to.

As mentioned in earlier emails and blogs, Andrea got one of these common virus’ (or a normal cold) while we were out in the Gmz region. Down country is a terrible place to feel rotten. We were sleeping in a different “bed” each night, travelling by car over rough roads for several hours a day, and eating only the local food to which our stomachs are still in transition. On top of this Andrea had a fever (100-102) for five days which later turned into a cough for several weeks after our return to the capital. Despite feeling rotten, she still participated in almost every school visitation (all except 1) and every invitation to coffee or dinner (except one…it is very offensive for us to turn down such offers, even when she was REALLY sick and stayed in the car one day, there were many words spoken to me about how she should come).

As for me, I am now familiar with what it feels like to have giardia, a digestive track illness, the effects of which has made me a difficult person to live with. I praise Andrea for her patience with my ability to render a whole room useless with even the smallest emissions (definitely rivaling Eng for those of you who know what that means). Giardia though wasn’t a major deal, unlike the sickness that walloped me yesterday. I was feeling perfectly fine on Friday only to wake up Saturday with what began as a very angry digestive track and later evolved into fever, nausea, weakness, cramping and achiness. In reading all of our self-diagnosis literature, we narrowed the possible ailment down to salmonella, dysentery or food poisoning. Given the fact that today (Sunday) is much better, we are assuming that its food poisoning which is not at all uncommon when you eat at a local restaurant (as we did in taking our language school teacher out for lunch on Friday).

Coming out of yesterday’s adventure, I am thankful to God for two evidences of his grace. First, he allowed this sickness to come on a day when we had nothing important scheduled. The only thing I had to give up was playing basketball at the MK school, which I try to do every Saturday. Really, this could not have happened on a better day so I praise God for that.
Second, and much more importantly, I praise God for the loving companion that he gave to me. Andrea’s constant attention to my needs, yet not overwhelming me with unwanted interrogation was such a blessing. While sick, she studied for class with me, she watched one and a half movies, and she even made some generous trades which helped me win the board game “Settlers of Catan.” Yesterday is just one example among many in the last four years where Andrea has fulfilled her promise to love me “in sickness and in health.”