Mysterious Stranger Tells Me What was Wrong with My Sick Son.
Friday  was just another day, except for the exhaustion I felt. My son, Richard Joseph, had been sick in the middle of the night again. It seemed he was not yet over a flu bug. My husband stayed home with him so that I could spend the afternoon with my mom and daughter, Rebecca.
    We decided to eat lunch at a restaurant on the east side of Milwaukee, but at the last moment, we changed our minds and chose another restaurant. It happened to be across from a Milwaukee County library, so we thought we would make a quick stop there. On the way we encountered a gentleman who greeted us kindly. He happened to be a Christian minister who was standing on the street corner chatting with people.
     Upon leaving the library, this gentleman began talking to us. Oddly -- he informed us that someone in the family had a sinus infection. I could only think of my aunt who has frequent sinus infections, so I simply dismissed his comment. Then he mentioned that Rebecca was musical and played the piano. Yes, he was correct, we politely smiled and kept walking, wondering why he was saying these things to us.
     As my mother crossed the middle of the road, he called out to her that she had a back condition and placed both of his hands on the lower back buttocks area. My mother turned around and her mouth dropped open. We stopped and looked at him, not knowing what to say. For my mother had had surgery in that exact area a week ago and was recovering from it. How did he know these things?   He cried out, "I just want you to praise the Lord!
     We didn't know what to think of this minister, except we had experienced his warmth and kindness. He was right on two of the three things, but not on the sinus infection.
     When I arrived home I found my son was still sick. This was the third day, and I wondered why he wasn't getting better. He had missed going fishing and now had missed his first soccer game.
     I dreaded another night of being awakened and feeling helpless when Richard Joseph cried. I was already exhausted from a long day so I laid down in bed early and tried to sleep. But I simply could not forget that gentleman's words, "Someone in your family has a sinus infection."
     As I tossed in bed these words would not leave me.
     I considered a sinus infection like a mild cold -- not a very serious condition, yet I kept thinking about that man. I decided to get up and check out some medical books. What startled me was the fact that sinus infections can lead to fevers. Richard Joseph had been having terrible headaches, stomach nausea, and at times a fever hovering around 103 degrees.
     I began to wonder, could his prescription be causing this? The doctor had not mentioned any dangerous reactions and the pharmacy had not given us any printouts. I studied the insert which listed possible reactions to this medication in very technical language. Richard Joseph's symptoms matched almost all of them! I quickly telephoned the doctor on who was on call and asked him if this medication could cause sinus infections. To which he replied, "Yes, the symptoms are similar," and he advised us to take him off the prescription immediately. I felt chills go down my spine as I realized this minister had been right -- again.
     The next night when Richard Joseph wasn't given any medicine, he finally slept soundly with no fever or headache. Each day he regained his strength and is now 100%. Praise the Lord!!!
     Yes, from this experience I learned the importance of asking the doctor and pharmacist about possible side affects and possible dangerous reactions from any medication. I felt so stupid that I had missed this now so obvious connection.
     However, I can't forget the minister's last words to us,
"I just want you to praise the Lord!" God had used him to warn us and to protect Richard Joseph. Is all this mere coincidence or just due to our medical ignorance? I believe God stepped into our ordinary day to stop us in our tracks and say, "I know you and I care about you!" How often have I ignored God's presence and taken God's blessing and people in my life for granted? I can only thank God for this gift of grace -- sending a stranger our way to remind us to, "Praise the Lord!"  Mary Crane

     Note: Although this testimony is not directly related to our healing ministry, it has been included on my homepage as a reminder that God works in many ways His wonder to perform.
Hal