Several weeks ago I contracted Lyme Disease. This is the disease you get from a tick bite that floods your body with a bacteria. Now I didn’t see or feel it when the tick bit me. The bull’s-eye rash that was supposed to appear didn’t. All I knew was I was feeling bad. I had chills, shakes, and bouts of sweats. I felt exhausted, fatigued, and in pain. My body ached, my joints hurt, and I even felt nerve pain in one of my legs. It was the worst I’d hurt in a long time.
Thinking this was just some unknown virus I stupidly didn’t go to the doctor right away. I’d always had a strong immune system and thought it could fight this off with time. After 2 weeks, though, I just kept getting worse. I noticed skin rashes spreading over parts of my body too. I still had no idea what was causing this. I prayed for God to heal me and finally one morning felt the gentle urging in my heart to stop being stubborn and go see the doctor. Thankfully the doctor knew what it was right away even though my rashes looked nothing like the ones you see on TV when they talk about the disease. She put me on antibiotics that day and finally I am on the mend and feeling like my old self again.
I regret not going to the doctor sooner but I am grateful that God gave me enough gentle urging in my heart to finally do so. I prayed for Him to heal me and He answered my prayer even if it wasn’t in the way I expected. Like every other difficulty I have gone through in my life God in His love has seen me through it. And hopefully it will help me to help others too.
God’s Love for us is unconditional. He sees us through all the pains and suffering in this life. The question is do we use these sufferings to grow bitter or better? Do we let them make us kinder, more compassionate, and more loving? Do we use them to help others? Do we use them to grow into the person God meant for us to be? I hope your answer is always: Yes!
Joe Mazzella
Upper Glade, WV
