Surprise ER visit

Keystone Project Discipleship Training

The training began on the 5th of April and ended on the 29th. There were 27 people from10 different countries. They all came to attend the training having heard about it from a friend or colleague. They all came knowing that the training was on discipleship, but as is the case in each training, they had no idea how much God was going to personally challenge them.

I was blessed to serve four pastors/leaders from Nigeria. One of the men, Daniel, is an Archbishop and oversees over nineteen churches. He is a very humble man but you could tell that he is a person of importance in his country by the way he carried himself and by the way others interacted with him.

In the first couple of days Daniel heard God asking him if he was willing to give up everything and go serve Him somewhere else. To understand how heavy this request weighed on him, you need to know that Daniel started with nothing and then started a church and built it up and then started another and another. He is now, as I said earlier, over nineteen churches, he has a wife, three young children, has a nice home, has his own car.... He has a good life and was feeling like maybe he could settle down now and just enjoy life. Yet God asked him if he would be willing to give up everything and start over again, with his family, someplace new. Daniel wrestled with that and in the end said yes to God. He is willing to go someplace new if that is what God wanted.

You would think that would be enough...but God had yet another area in Daniel's life to work on. After three weeks Daniel broke out with a rash all over his body, was not eating or drinking and was running a temp. We took him to the emergency room on Sunday evening. They immediately brought him back to a room and isolated him. We had to put on masks, gowns, hairnets and shoe covers. We looked like doctors preparing for surgery, but honestly we were pretty worried.

It became apparent that he was not going to be getting out of the hospital that night. After several hours, at least four different doctors, more blood draws than we ever saw, he was admitted to the hospital and put into a private room. We were told that the CDC was contacted and that until they knew what he had he would have to remain isolated in the hospital.

Daniel handled everything pretty well. He submitted to every test, answered every question and allowed them to admit him. That first night was a long one for him. When I arrived at his room Monday morning I had to put on my full medical gear again before I could see him. He was very happy to see me. He confessed to me that he was worried and that this was the first time he has ever been in a hospital. He had no idea what he had and he was scared.

As Daniel laid in bed waiting I was talking to the doctors, CDC and the State department. Everyone was trying to figure out what was happening. It was hard to sit there everyday assuring Daniel when I was not sure of anything myself. We prayed a lot and were asking God for a miraculous healing.

Daniel and I had many heart-to-heart talks and we saw God's hand at work in his life even in the hospital. I will not go into the lessons God taught him there but I can say God really worked on Daniel's heart and humbled him even more.

On the third day we received the confirmation that he had chicken pox and just having that diagnosis was huge. We knew what it was now and that it was not a life threatening disease. We were able to bring Daniel back to the hotel and keep him isolated in his room.

It is so hard to put into words all that happened. God was at work and it was incredible to watch and be a part of. Daniel healed faster than anyone thought he would and by Friday night his chickenpox were all gone and he was completely healed. I told him that he would be able to go home on time so he left on Saturday. It was definitely a miracle that he healed so quickly!

Before Daniel left though he came to talk to me and he told me that no one has ever cared for him like I did. He could not believe that I sat by his side in the hospital. He confided he was afraid he had a deadly disease and the fact that I faithfully sat by him knowing I could possibly get sick and die too was overwhelming to him. We are truly closer because of that shared experience. I am humbled that God allowed me to be a part of what He was doing in Daniel's life.

Daniel's story is just one of many from this training. We wish each of you could come and share in this training. It is amazing to be His hands and feet. We are so thankful to see all that God is doing. Please be praying that each of those who attended this training will go back to their countries and make disciples.