From the Ward

18 months ago when I lived in the girls home I spent a substantial amount of my time taking the kids to the doctors, patching up wounds and distributing medicine. In India when a person has an infected wound they use a liquid on it which removes all the dead skin (a nurse once told me it is illegal in the UK). As the liquid removes all the dead skin it causes lots of pain, so, as you imagine the girls don't like it at all! When I used to sit down with the girls to tend to their wounds and they knew the liquid was coming we used to sing together...

'Jesus loves me, yes I know...'

The song never finished because the girls would either laugh or cry, but either way were learning that even in the painful times, God is with them. 

Last night I can quite honestly say I have never ever been in so much pain in my whole life , so I didn't find myself singing the song I so adamantly thought would relieve pain when I tended to the kids not because I have any doubt that it is true, but because the only thoughts in my mind revolved around how much pain I was feeling.   All I could do was trust that God was there and that those around me had me covered in prayer.   If I could have mustered the words to praise Him I would have.

 It probably sounds like I'm exaggerating, as is my tendency when telling stories, however this blog is being written in part from the hospital bed, where the pain is still fresh in body and memory.

 At 8am on Wednesday morning I started to get pain in my stomach, as the day continued the pain increased to the point where I didn't want to even eat my lunch! That was when we knew it was bad! We then began the tour of medical facilities in Goa. We first went to the government hospital where they tested me for Malaria, the first of many injections to be endured, praise God it wasn't malaria. We then were referred to a private hospital at which point the pain became unbearable and began to move up my body through my ribs and to my shoulders.   At times before when I've had pain, there seems to always be a way to relieve it, not so this time.  

I saw quite a few doctors all of whom thought it was a good idea to prod my stomach, in a manner similar to that of kneading bread.  As far as I was aware, they were not really figuring anything out just adding to the horrendous pain. After many eliminating tests, the eventual diagnosis was that I had an acute intestinal infection. 

Frustrated, in pain and once again stopped from serving as expected here in Goa on mission, I am sure that God is using this to teach me many things.  I am learning to trust more and more in His synth and power and not my own.  I am seeing Him at work in things unexpected and at times unwanted.  Most of all I am learning that joy doesn't always look like happiness, and a super smiley energised character.   Instead I've learnt that joy is always trusting and praising God in spite of all other things, knowing the truth that He is with me always, even now, even in this place, and nothing will rock that truth.

I am now back from hospital, still in a tiny bit of pain but feeling positively better.  Thank you to everyone who kept me in prayer, I felt them, especially when we got the team to pray I would have a full bladder for ultrasound! 

See you all soon

Big love 
-Soph

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