Betty and I had heard all the stories about getting sick on the mission field or in third-world countries. Arriving in Mexico, fruits and vegetables had to soak for twenty minutes in iodine water or bleach water to kill off parasites or bugs that might make us sick. 

Over the years, our family dealt with many third-world problems we had never experienced before. So there was always the nagging thought that we might get sick from something we ate or drank. We drank bottled or filtered water for the first time in 1987 in Queretaro, Mexico.

I became very sick during our first 4 or 5 months in Mexico. I had cramps and pains that were beyond anything I had ever experienced in my life. I started passing blood by the cup full.

I told Betty I wanted her to throw me in the back of the suburban and drive me to the border, find a doctor I could talk to, and get me some help. We couldn't speak Spanish, and even if we could have spoken Spanish, we would never have known how to explain what was happening with my stomach and in the bathroom. 

Since arriving in Mexico, I would not attend class and skipped church for the first time. I didn't care. I couldn't talk. I was hurting in ways I couldn't explain. The toilet bowl was blood red every time I went. I was getting weaker every day.

We had the most incredible Mexican lady teacher named Alicia. She was married to a doctor. Betty went on to language school without me.

Alicia's English was better than our Spanish, but neither her English nor our Spanish was very good. Alicia asked Betty why I was not in class. I had just been laying in bed moaning and dying, except for when I would run to the bathroom. 

Alicia told Betty that her husband, the doctor, would come to the house to see me. Betty called on the landline to tell me he was coming. I got up and took a shower. I didn't want him to come over. I didn't want to be examined, especially where I knew I probably needed to be checked. 

The doctor showed up at the house. He came in and stood at the door of our bedroom. He was super kind and caring. He spoke Spanish. My Spanish was quite limited. He asked me what was going on. I told him. He said he was going to help me. 

I asked if he was going to need to look me over anywhere. He smiled and said no, I can take care of it from here at the door. 

After hearing my symptoms, he told me that I had amoebas. I was bleeding because my intestines were fighting as hard as possible to eliminate the parasites. The blood loss was from a tear in my intestinal wall. I had lost quite a bit of blood and was relatively weak.

He prescribed me medicine to kill the parasites, pain medicine, and meds for the infections I was suffering from. He told me that in a day or two, I would quit bleeding. Then I would slowly get better, but it would take several days for my body to make up for the blood loss. 

I was back in language school in a day or two, and everything turned out just like the doctor had said it would. I had thought I was dying and just needed someone that could tell me what to do and I could get help. 

Over the years, our family dealt with many such issues. Bathroom problems are often the plague of North Americans in third-world settings.

Cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis are all feces-to-mouth diseases. In other words, the lack of cleanliness in preparing food or after going to the bathroom caused many problems. 

Many years later, in Peru, our daughter Stephanie contracted hepatitis. So we quarantined her in a room and carried her food to that room. She was in contact with no one for over a week.

We had a group visiting us from the USA. On the day Stephanie was cleared, she came out of her room, and our guests met her. They couldn't believe that they had been there a week and didn't even know about our daughter. 

In Peru, I became very excited about the beautiful truths of the book of Leviticus. There are cleanliness rules about the care of food, infections, and going to the bathroom. I would use those truths to help many learn that God knew before scientists what we needed to avoid these terrible diseases.

There are a few lessons here that you might consider before moving to the next chapter. 

When Jesus called us to follow Him as missionaries or regular church members, we were all called to take up a cross, die to ourselves, and follow Him. Surrender and sacrifice should not be a surprise to any believer.

Serving God might just put you at risk of getting sick. Some are pretty fearful about that, but in light of the cross, some bathroom problems do not count as much.

Adapting to a new country may mean you need to learn to do many things you have not done before. Soak your vegetables etc. It may mean that you refrain from that salad out in the restaurant unless it is a relatively expensive restaurant. 

Knowing the language will be vital to enjoying anything you do on the mission field. You will never escape from the need to know the language. Sickness and health issues will require a more profound knowledge of the language. 

Learn to have fun and laugh at yourself. You are living an adventure. Don't take yourself so seriously. Know that God is at work. Know that He is in control. He could stop all these problems if He wanted, but He chooses not to. He must want me to grow in grace and humility.

If you decide to love the people, not attack them, their culture, their language, or anything else, you will be used by God. Don't get bitter. Get over it. Get over yourself. You do not have to live with a victim mentality. You have not suffered more than anyone else.

Honestly, arriving in heaven, you shouldn't expect the servants of God to stand in honor of your bathroom sufferings. We live in a wonderful day and time. Things are not difficult. We are around the world in a matter of hours. We do not pack our belongings in caskets. We serve in the best of times compared to our past heroes.