Last night and part of this morning was spent covering myself with tea tree oil and washing all the sheets in an attempt to get rid of a head lice and scabies scare. It felt gross. I’ve never dealt with either of these before, and if you haven’t either, being covered in a constant itch is certainly no fun.
However, as gross as it felt, I thought about the alternatives and how I could have avoided this… I wouldn’t have been exposed to lice if I hadn’t been holding tightly on to a crying and distraught nine year old who had just lost her parents and an older sister this month. I got lice from having her head buried into my chest as we both bitterly wept in the back of the ambulance… and I would do it all over again for her.
I wouldn’t have been exposed to scabies if I hadn’t spent the previous week holding an orphaned baby and working on physical therapy with him on the hospital floor. The alternative would have been to leave him in his crib and not give him a chance at being physically and developmentally on par. As his little fingers grasped on to mine as he stood and bounced up and down on his chunky legs. He smiled as he stood and looked at a view that was different than lying on his back in his crib. In that moment, I was thinking to myself “I bet I’ll get scabies from this one”… and yet still, I would hold him and do that all over again too.
Today, I want to thank First Baptist Church of Kenova for their support. There are just so many GOOD people in that church, and we miss you all so much! Because this church is a church that tithes faithfully and is radically generous, we get to do things like loving the orphaned and abandoned children and go on medical rescues for people who are critically ill. So we might catch a bout of scabies and lice in the midst of it, but if someone feels love and safety and has another day to live and another opportunity to hear The Gospel… well… I don’t really care what health risks I’m exposed to. That’s far more important.
If you live in the Huntington area and are looking for a good church, or if you’re curious about who Jesus really is and what being a Christian means (spoiler alert: we’re not all jerks, and please don’t let a few bad representations of Christianity allow you to form an opinion of how the rest of us are), please just go check out First Baptist Church of Kenova. I promise here you’ll find theologically sound teaching, and a community that loves you, cares for you, and wants you to be included. The same can be said for their second location, Marshall Community Fellowship.
For our FBCK / MCF church family– you are all so loved. We look forward to partnering with you all in the future to begin bringing teams down to Hope of Life!! Stay tuned for more details in the coming months. We would love for you to all be on the ground and serving in a land that holds our hearts. If you want to come NOW that is an option! Just message us for details 🙂
Here are a few things that your support dollars are going towards:
As I’m closing this entry out, I am praying that bad things don’t REALLY come in three’s. I was exposed to tuberculosis on Sunday… all up-in-my-face, covered in cough and secretions and blood and vomit. I know that’s TMI but I’m just keeping it real, y’all. If you could just pray I don’t develop any symptoms, that would be great.
You all are loved!
–Whit
Not tmi. Reality. Life as you live it. Thank you for sharing. It is very easy to sit in my comfortable home and be obedient in giving. I am thankful for what you do. You guys are a blessing. Love and prayers!