Learnings & Warnings

 

Suresh and I got an invitation from Sri Lanka in a turbulent time when the nation was facing a huge economic crisis and was involved in protests everywhere. We were discouraged by family, friends in India not to make this trip. God gave some prompting in us through a social media post after which we booked our tickets happily.

In Sri Lanka we tasted the pain and the suffering the people were undergoing in the areas of shortage of food, power-cuts, uncomfortable travel to interior places and so on. With all these, the primary purpose of our visit to the island-nation could be achieved. We were glad. One of our relatives, an Anglican priest was supposed to come and take us to his house. He had also planned for us to speak in his church in a hilly place on Sunday, the 24^th of April. But due to shortage of fuel and related problems, we could not go to his place.

God had an alternate plan for us. One pastor whom we met during our meetings in Sri Lanka invited us to preach in her church in Colombo in two services on the Sunday. Suresh preached in the first service and moved on to another church where he was invited to preach too. God revived many hearts including the pastor’s wife there. Praise God. After I preached in the second service there were people lining up to say how they were transformed hearing God’s words. There were prayers for healing too. It was a blessed Sunday. After this we went for fellowship over food in a hotel with the pastor’s family. We enjoyed the meal and fun. While going to wash his hands, Suresh had a cerebral attack suddenly. It came with no symptoms.

Somehow with the help of the pastor’s family and strangers in the hotel we managed to carry Suresh to a taxi. To our shock, clinics were closed. Finally, we carried my husband to a clinic where there were two nurses. They found that his sugar level was 600 plus. I realized that it could have been the result of him not taking food in the morning and his forgoing of sugar medications that day. The previous days were hectic. Suresh had an hour’s sleep on that Saturday night. With no current in the second church he preached, he had sweated profusely and had got dehydrated. However, I was praying that God should guide us to a good hospital and for a proper treatment. I opened my mouth and kept praying in the entire ordeal, no silent prayer! Praise God, we could bring Suresh to a very big hospital in Colombo. Immediate medical care was given to bring down his sugar level.

A CT scan revealed that he had a small blood clot in the brain. Doctors said not to panic and that the clot could be healed by medicines. I was also told that had we delayed in bringing him in he could have gone into a coma. He was monitored in the ICU. God heard the prayers of saints around the world. There was not one solitary moment for me in the hospital. I was always surrounded by friends and relatives in that foreign land. Our son, Giftson flew in too. Praise God. We retuned to India with happiness and joy! 

Another series of medical investigations in Coimbatore revealed that Suresh’s vitals are perfectly okay. Praise God that we could even make it to a Bible translation workshop that happened in Nagpur, India immediately after we flew in. We are looking forward to having some more medical advice at CMC, Vellore in the coming week.

God is good, all the time!

Here are some of our learnings and warnings:

1. One main culprit in this episode was an erroneous sugar-monitor that was in our house. The strips used in this had crossed the expiry date. We do not know from when it showed wrong readings. Prior to going to Sri Lanka, Suresh was happy to know that his sugar was under control. It was not true. We realized that only after coming home because it showed the same erroneous reading!
2. It is good to carry these monitors, not the faulty ones, to measure sugar and pressure periodically during long stays outside of home.
3. Proper rest is a must.
4. Suresh thinking that his sugar was under control, indulged in drinking cold sugary sodas, juices all through his trip because of the hot climate there. Cold water could have been the option!
5. Diabetics must really care for a proper diet and periodical medicines.
6. Last but not the least, equip and empower the next generation to take the mantle.

Now we have decided to run our race steadily and wisely. Keep us in your prayers. Our love and prayers to you as well!

Do not be overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?  It is good to grasp the one and not let the other slip from your hand. For he who fears God will follow both warnings. (Ecclesiastes 7:16-18)