The Blessing of Germs

There's a war raging in our home right now -- a war against germs.  And they are winning.  Germs are taking over our home.

With all four of us sick, our trashcans overflow with tissues, we cough more than speak, and I swim in hot tea with honey and lemon.  Every piece of furniture has fallen prey to Joanna's nose, as our home has become her giant personal Kleenex.

And we all respond differently when sickness hits; Joanna throws up more.  Luke sleeps more.  I whine more.  A lot more.

Most often, I whine that I don't get any "sick days" as a mom, or that we don't have easily available family help, or that Joanna doesn't get a break from the viruses that are constantly attacking her immune system.

I HATE this.

My daughter loses weight, my husband loses his voice, I lose my patience.  We are cooped up inside the house so we don't spread the germs to anyone else. I find myself counting down the days until it's over -- just buckle down and make it through!  Sickness equals inconvenience.


But I NEED this. 

Because perhaps sickness is more than an inconvenience.  Perhaps its an orchestrated reminder.

Sickness reminds me of my Savior.  It reminds me that I am weak and dependent. It reminds me that even though my nose may run, my eyes my water, my throat may be raw, and my vocal cords impaired, this is only a temporary and physical sickness.  I had a far greater sickness of my soul that Jesus came to heal.

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance."

-Jesus (Luke 5)

Sickness forces our family to slow down - all of a sudden, we're only focused on the essentials: getting enough food, sleep, and medicine to heal our bodies.  They're the only things that matter.  

And perhaps it's exactly what I need living in a society enslaved to American Dream prosperity and the middle class suburban lifestyle.  I need someone, something to slow me down and remind me of the essentials - Jesus Christ came to heal me from my spiritual disease, the cancer ravaging my soul.  And it's the only thing that matters.