One Year RAversary

One year ago today, I woke up with a fever and almost every joint in my body hurting.  I had no idea that a year later I would still be waking up every morning with joint pain and stiffness.  Sudden Onset Seronegative Rheumatoid Arthritis....when your own immune system plays traitor and begins to attack your own body instead of foreign invaders.  It predominantly attacks the joints, but can also attack major organs like the heart, lungs or kidneys.  The fatigue, fevers, swelling, pain, depression, and anxiety have become constant companions of mine...some days aren't so bad...other days, they take almost everything from me.  And the frustration is that there seems to be very little rhyme or reason to it.   I'll be fine for part of a day and then suddenly I'm feverish.  Or one day the pain will predominantly be in my toes, the next in my knee and then my jaw.  Many mornings I wake up wondering "what part of me will hurt today?"  One day I'll be great all day and the next I'll be in bed most of the day.  It's so random!  The medicines (meant to weaken the immune system so that it stops fighting so hard) for it have definitely helped, but I'm nowhere near being in remission.

I recently read a short biography on Charles Spurgeon by John Piper (A Camaraderie of Confidence in his series "The Swans are Not Silent")  I learned that Spurgeon also had RA and Gout...and died from it at the age of 57.  One-third of the last 22 years of his ministry were spent out of the pulpit due to flares or rest or trying to take precautions to prevent his rheumatism from flaring.  I found it encouraging to see that God allowed him to continue his ministry even if it meant cutting back and resting a little more. (Mind you, his "walking pace" of ministry was probably more of a "sprinting pace" for the rest of us! haha!)  I also resonated with his view that RA has a marvelous mellowing effect on a person.  He writes, "I dare say the greatest earthly blessing that God can give to any of us is health, with the exception of sickness...If some men that I know could only be favored with a month of rheumatism, it would, by God's grace mellow them marvelously." 

But even more encouraging was his view that his affliction was designed by a loving God.  He writes, "It would be a very sharp and trying experience to me to think that I have an affliction which God never sent me, that the bitter cup was never filled by his hand, that my trials were never measured out by him, nor sent to me by his arrangement of their weight and quantity."  John Piper comments, "For Spurgeon, this view of God was not an argument for debate; it was a means of survival."  It's true.  How can one even begin to accept affliction if our affliction was sent to us by anyone but God himself and sent to us for our own good?

Spurgeon also saw the blessing of his suffering from RA and Gout.  He said, "I am afraid that all the grace that I have got of my comfortable and easy times and happy hours, might almost lie on a penny.  But the good that I have received from my sorrows, and pains, and griefs, is altogether incalculable...Affliction is the best bit of furniture in my house.  It is the best book in a minister's library." 

Did you know that 13-42% of RA patients struggle with varying degrees of depression? Spurgeon was no exception.  But he saw three ways that God used his depression.  First, it kept him humble.  Second, it gave unexpected power to his ministry as he "heard his own chains clank while he tried to preach to his fellow prisoners in the dark."  And third, he often saw that the depression came just before a large blessing in his ministry... like a black cloud before it breaks into a rainstorm.  His depression became a sort of prophet to him that God was on the verge of doing great things. 

So many blessings can come through RA and sickness in general.  And I'm thankful that over the last year I have experienced much of that blessing also.  It's not a road I would have chosen, but my loving Father chose it for me.  I've been grateful for it's mellowing effect and how it has pushed me to more prayer and more dependence on Him.  I know that I'll praise him for all of eternity for how he has used it in my life for my good and his glory. 

Great trip to America and Back

Hello!  We're back from our trip to America!  I know I didn't tend to this space of internet very well while we were away, but here is a bit of a recap from the last 6 weeks.

I flew with six of the kids in mid-October.  Eric and the three middle ones came just before the wedding.  We were so thankful that all of our flights and traveling went so well...no hang-ups, no lost luggage, etc.

After we arrived, we attended a Ligonier conference on worship in Atlanta and then the kids flew to Grand Rapids by themselves to visit Eric's brother and Miss Paige, our former MA.  While they were there, someone graciously hired the older kids for a few days to work at their pumpkin farm.  The kids helped to package donuts and move pumpkins for a few days.

And the littles enjoyed time with their cousins and went to a kids museum. 

While they were gone, I stayed with my brother and his family while I saw lots of doctors at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.  I am so thankful that these appointments went well.  The doctors all gave their stamp of approval to the labs and advice and medicines I had started here.  We were particularly concerned about whether or not the American rheumatologist would agree with the diagnosis of Rheumatoid Arthritis without wanting to re-do everything, but she looked over my labs that I brought with me from here and agreed with the diagnosis and the treatment that I had started.  That was a huge relief for me! I continue to see improvement with the meds: a lot of my daily pain is gone, although I do still flare very easily.

After that, I drove up to meet up with the kids and bring them back south.  We got to visit some great friends on the way.

Then we drove to Covenant College and I dropped Timothy and Katelyn off for the Covenant Preview weekend.  They had such a great time and now we have lots to pray and think about concerning their future.

After the preview weekend, we had a lovely day to drive back to my folks' house.  We took our time and enjoyed the mountains of North Georgia for a little bit. 

Finally, it was time for the rest of the family to join us and celebrate the marriage of Eric's sister.

After the wedding, we went to Williamsburg, VA for a week with Eric's family (minus the honeymooning couple).

We had a lot of time for relaxing, playing hockey, swimming, visiting with cousins, eating way too much good food, etc.  Eric and I even snuck out for a date to a Tavern in the old town of Williamsburg.  So much fun!

We forgot to get a picture of Grandpa and Grandma Tuininga and all their grandkids at the wedding, so we piled them around the couch at Williamsburg.

Then we drove back to Georgia for Thanksgiving.

On the last night in America, after all our packing was done, the kids were able to help decorate my parents' house for Christmas.  They really enjoyed that.

Then it was back to the Airport to head home.  It's always a logistical challenge to get all of us and our bags someplace.  This time we had 30 pieces of luggage!  Just a small lineup! haha!

We praise God for a wonderful trip from beginning to end.  The hellos and goodbyes (see you laters) are always hard, but God was very gracious to us. We were so thankful to be able to be with Eric's family during this special time and with my family for Thanksgiving.  Thank you to all for your prayers and support! 

Traveling to America!

Next week, 6 of the kids and I are leaving to go to America.  Three weeks later, Eric and the other kids will join us.  The big occasion for the trip is that Eric's little sister met this guy and decided she wants to spend the rest of her life with him.  We are so happy for them and are so thrilled that we can make the trip.

I say "little sister" because when Eric and I got married, she was little!  Our little flower girl.  But time has flown and she is now a beautiful bride to be and Talitha will have the chance to be a flower girl in her wedding.

Some of the kids and I are going a bit early because I am going to be seeing a bunch of doctors at Emory to try to get back on track with my health.  In addition to hypothyroidism, Adrenal insufficiency, and chronic kidney disease, I've also recently begun treatment for Rheumatoid Arthritis.  The medicine has been working and I'm not in nearly as much pain as I was a couple months ago, but I'd like to have a long-term plan worked out for continued improvement in all areas so that we can stay in Uganda for many years to come.  Please pray with us to that end.  Pray that the Doctors have great wisdom and are a real help to me!

Have you ever thought about sending us a care package but realized how expensive it is to ship internationally?  We will have a LOT of luggage space (33 pieces to be exact!!) when we come back to Uganda in 6 weeks and we are hoping to fill that luggage with items that either we can't get in Uganda or cost a lot more here than in the US.  If you would like to bless us, we have an Amazon.com wish list set up.  You can order off that list and let Amazon ship it to us by Thanksgiving.  Amazon gift cards would be great too.  If you would like us to send you a link to that list, please email us at ericdianna(at)hotmail(dot)com OR contact Eric or me on Facebook. 

42 Years

This past week was my 42nd birthday.  I'm so thankful for my birthday.  The more I have faced chronic illness, the more thankful I have become for LIFE.  My Ugandan friends often remind me to praise God for the "gift of life" and that praise has only become louder as I see the clay vessel of my body become more cracked these past few years.  Every year of life that God chooses to give me on this earth is worth celebrating!

This year, Eric took me out to supper on Monday night, then on Thursday, he bought me fresh roses...wow...what a gift here in Mbale.  (They have fresh cut flowers in Kampala, but only occasionally here in Mbale!)  Then we had dinner with just our family and each of the kids gave me a sweet note.  I was absolutely overwhelmed with God's grace to me.  I see so many failures in my life but God has shown me so much love!

Talitha gave me her kitty for my birthday.  Haha...she was so excited to bless me!  (although the thought has occurred to me that she might be thinking that mama won't give the kitty away if she got it as a birthday gift...haha!)

Here's just a sampling of all the sweet notes that I got!

I love seeing scripture written out in the handwriting of my kids!

 

Katelyn's caricature of our family is hilariously accurate...

 And of course, Benaiah's card is a picture of people dying by lightning strikes and an erupting volcano.  haha!