It was a summer full of anticipation. For the first time in a long time I was going on a Mission Trip with the local church. It was an intergenerational trip. People ranged in age from 3-70 years old. We spent the year preparing to work together, learning about the culture and the language. When the time came, we had the privilege of working with some of the Covenant Churches in Ecuador. It was an incredible two weeks. My heart was refreshed and my mind was filled with new ideas for ministry. I also remembered many ideas that had been laid on my heart many times before.

    Being in another country for two weeks allowed me to disengage from all of my thoughts about ministry at home and take time to listen with new ears to what God was saying. I came back to work so excited about rekindling the importance of reaching out to God’s people once again. These last few years God has been pulling at my heart about the issues of justice, missions, and compassion. He has also surrounded me with many people who have had the same passion.  I am continually learning from those who are further along in their journeys.

   I was so excited about the month of August!  My two brothers, whom I don’t get to see often, were going to be in town. I was leading a seminar at Triennial, where I would be able to meet with friends from around the country. I was going to California to work with the Sustaining Pastoral Excellence Team on the final details of this year’s teaching emphasis. I was heading to Alaska to meet with volunteers and staff in churches to do some training.  Finally, I had planned to end the month in the North Pacific Conference meeting with youth pastors and volunteers to facilitate training and visioning for this next year’s ministry. There was so much to look forward to!

    However, on July 31st I ended up in the hospital with pancreatitis. In most cases of pancreatitis patients are in the hospital for a couple days while they are stabilized and have gall bladder surgey. My case turned out to be a little more complicated. Since I had recently taken preventative Malaria medication for my missions trip, most of my doctors believe this was the cause of my pancreatitis. While no one knows for sure what the cause was, I was in the hospital for 16 days as my pancreas healed. The doctors told me over and over again that there is no medicine or cure for the pancreas. Your body simply has to heal itself. The doctors were limited to filling me with water and putting me on pain medication and antibiotics to fight off any possible infection.

    During this time I rediscovered the importance of my relationship with God, the community of believers, the power of prayer, and the ways God uses His people to make a difference.  I saw miracle after miracle happen while in the hospital and continue to see God in my recovery process. There are two particular examples of how I saw God at work while I was in the hospital. Dr. Lightfoot, my family doctor and a member of a Covenant church, would greet me each morning and give me the daily update on my prognosis. I would thank him over and over for all he was doing, and he would consistently remind me that it was God’s healing that was making me well. Once they determined that the Malaria medication was the cause of my sickness, he encouraged me to try other medications in the future, but not to let this incident keep me from doing the work God has called me to do.  Another blessing was Dr. Lee Richmond, a Covenanter in Colorado, whose specialty is the pancreas.  Dr. Richmond gave me invaluable information and care.

    As part of my treatment the doctors put me on antibodies to kill the bad germs; however, many good germs were also killed in the process. To compensate they put me on two additional medications to help restore the good germs.  One of these medications brought on a state of delusion.  After a very difficult night and trip back to the hospital, where they couldn’t figure out what exactly was wrong, my husband Steve called Dr. Richmond and he explained that one of the medications I was on was the cause of my delusions. I had an appointment that morning with Dr. Lightfoot who was able to take me off all medication.

    Dr. Timothy Johnson, Doreen Olson, Glenn Palmberg, Donn Engebretson, the doctors and nurses are just a few of the people who have blessed me during this hard time. My husband Steve never gave up fighting for me. He would ask so many questions and was never satisfied with the answers. He would always search until he got to the right people with incredible insights and help. My daughter, son, and son-in-law were the light in each of my days. The conversations I was able to have in the hospital about faith were amazing.

    I have learned so much about myself, the things I fear, the things I still need to learn, who is really in control of everything, and as one who received so much encouragement and prayer, that prayer does matter. God teaches us through all situations, both the wonderful and very difficult, that the community of faith and the kingdom of God is a gift that I treasure. I have a lot to learn in my life and I pray that I will continue to take time to listen, to pray, and to be the hands and feet of Jesus to others.

    Thank you for prayers, cards, notes, emails, flowers, words of encouragement,
stories of healing, and your care. I am so thankful to be a part of this family that we call the Covenant!