He is Full of Mercy

He is Full of Mercy

By Faith M. Connovich

This past February, I woke up in Belize. I had never been on a mission trip outside of America, so I thanked God for allowing me this opportunity to serve. My husband and I were with a group of medical staff serving for ten days. It was hot. The clinic had no air-conditioning, and the lines of people were long. I felt ready for the day. I had prayed, read God’s word, and was excited to serve those in need of Jesus and His love.

I was not ready for what happened Tuesday after lunch. I started to feel sick and nauseated. I have had stomach problems in the past, so at first, this felt like my “normal.” Unfortunately, it was different. I started throwing up out back of the hospital. They called my husband, and he took me back to my room. Finding myself sick — in another country — was one of my worst fears.

I prayed and prayed that it would just be a one-time, “you ate something that did not agree with you” kind of a thing. A cycle of eating and vomiting continued for several days. I said to God in prayer, “You brought me here to serve. I need to help this team. They cannot treat all these patients without my help. I need you to put me upright and able to work.” Amazingly, I did not miss another day at the clinic other than that Tuesday afternoon. But I found that I could not eat anything except fruit smoothies and some crackers most of the week. It was so hot and I was sweating so much that I knew that I was at high risk of getting dehydrated. So I drank lots of water and Gatorade.

The mission team prayed over me. The rest of the week was much of the same. Feeling too nauseated to eat, and vomiting if I did. So I prayed more. Then I started to hear a Bible verse in my mind; it kept coming to my mind over and over. I would wake up in the middle of the night, and I would hear this verse playing sweetly in my thoughts:

"The Lord held me steady. He led me to a place of safety, for he delights in me."

Psalms 18:18-19 (TLB).

Interestingly, I do not typically read from this version of the Bible. I said, “God, I cannot get more sick down here in Belize. Please take me home safely.” By His grace, I managed to work eight-hour days in the clinic. We had the next weekend off; it sure felt good to rest. On Sunday, we woke up at 5:00 a.m., took a 30-minute boat trip, a 2-hour bus ride, and stumbled through multiple airports and customs to get home at 10:00 p.m. that night. I was so exhausted. One of the precious young men that went with us pulled my luggage through the airport. I had to sit down and rest often. I felt like a truck had hit me.

I told my husband, “I think I need to go to the hospital. My heart is fluttering and feels funny.” God is so full of mercy. After running several tests and giving me IV fluids, the emergency room physician came in. He said, “I honestly don’t know how you walked in here. Your potassium level is a 2.0 [normal is 3.5–5.0]. I have never seen anyone that low. You could have gone into a full cardiac arrest. You shouldn’t be standing up. You shouldn’t be here looking at me.”

I said, “Standing up? I have been serving the Lord in Belize for 10 days.” I told him, “My God is big and powerful.” He just shook his head and smiled. I was admitted to the hospital for four days, with profound dehydration and low potassium. I honestly did not know that I was in that much trouble. I just kept praying.

I found out afterward that the ladies’ prayer group at my church, who had no idea what was going on, had my name put on their hearts. They were praying for me the whole week, not even knowing that I was sick or in trouble. God keeps His word, my friends. He said that He would hold me steady and lead me to a place of safety — and He did! He brought me back to the States for hospital care. He saved my life — because He delights in me — O precious thought, O precious Savior!

I do not deserve His love or mercy, but continue to praise Him daily for all of the incredible gifts with which He showers His children. I am praying all will turn to Him today. Let Him hold you steady and show you His mercy.

Faith Connovich, a registered nurse serving patients in the Southern Ohio area, is the founder of Creative Faith Ministries. This testimony is reprinted with permission of Time to Get Ready Ministries.

World Church Prayer Requests

April 9 - 15, 2021

• Pray for the General Conference Spring Meetings that will take place this next week. Pray that God will bless all the technical aspects of orchestrating the online meetings with translation.

• Pray for the upcoming online Global Camp meeting to take place May 19-23. To learn more, click here!

• Pray for those who lead and help the many Global Mission Urban Centers around the world. Pray that even more “Centers of Influence” can be developed in unreached cities.

• Pray for the Riverside Primary school in Athlone, Cape Town, South Africa. Pray that God will bless the students coming to this school and that it will continue to grow and be a greater witness in the community.

To download the devotional and prayer requests, click here!

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