Sunday, July 19, 2020
My ordeal happened during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic. A spike had risen in cases especially in the City of Stockton where I currently live in. I felt I had symptoms of the Corona Virus; e.g., little shortness of breath, piercing sensations in my lungs, fatigue, and nausea, and high temperature. Concerned for my well-being, I rushed to the nearest urgent care center. The nurse tested me through a non-contact thermometer with a temperature reading of 102. Fear had gripped inside of me. The thought of contracting this virus and the possible scenarios that I and my family had to go through overwhelmed me.
After my temperature was read, I rushed to Dameron Hospital to be tested for the virus. On the way to the hospital, I called my Uncle Robert for prayers. As he prayed over me, my mind went blank from the anxiety I felt. Even as a man of great faith, I had little doubt that prayers were going to work at this time. I can say that my trust in the Lord was tested. My uncle Robert told me not to fear and that everything would be fine. In this, I found a sense of relief, knowing the messages my uncle received were from the Lord.
I stepped into the emergency room with the nurse checking my temperatures. It dropped from 102 to 98, just a few moments after Uncle Robert had prayed over me, commanding my T cells, B cells, and NK cells to destroy the Covid 19 and to set me free from illnesses in Jesus' name. My oxygen, blood pressure, and heart rate levels also read normally after my Uncle had prayed over me. My mother, who assisted me and took me to the hospital at the time, told me, “see, prayers help!” Something had hit me after hearing those words. It’s as if the Lord sent a message saying, “my child, have faith in Me even in times of uncertainty.” I am a person who highly believes in the power of prayer, but there was a little part in me thinking that God would only answer some of my prayers. The doctors advised me and my mom to quarantine ourselves.
Fortunately, through the prayers of my family and the grace of God, the test results for Covid-19 came back negative a few day’s later. To this day, I believe this was a powerful lesson from God telling me to have faith in Him in every situation that I’m in and the power of Jesus is not limited, but infinite! To have overwhelming fear in this situation showed me that my trust in God needed to grow. As the same time, it taught me a lesson to strictly practice social distancing, to wear mask when I go out of my house and to take all the necessary precautions that are necessary for me to do to avoid contracting Covid-19. Since I’m only 27 years old, I’m full of energy, and in good shape physically, I should not think I’m not in danger of this Covid 19. I should take seriously what my family told me that "regrets" always come after a bad or unfortunate things happen because of carelessness or thoughtlessness.
I am blessed that we have a God who is full love and compassion, a God who heals--His Name is Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!
Justin Alsayegh, Stockton, CA.