Jesus has scabies

i spent my entire saturday in bed. it wasn't by choice, but rather the fact that i woke up aching all over and slightly feverish with zero energy. even to walk back and forth from the bathroom left me breathless.

the whole day, i just laid there tossing, sweating, turning, and sweating some more...

there's nothing quite like having a fever when it's already close to 100 outside. also nothing like being sick and having to stay dressed in full churidar to walk out to the bathroom.

i kept asking Papa to send someone to pray for me, because i even didn't have the strength to pray for myself.

around 8pm, there was a knock on my door. i opened my eyes to see Lina di di so i motioned for her to come..

she said Holy Spirit told her to come as she knelt beside my bed, took my hand, and started praying for me. Papa's presence filled the room and i felt a sense of relief. after praying, she serenaded me with joy to the world in her very broken english. beautiful.

i managed to eat half a quesadilla (Indian style) and took 2 ibuprofen, then went back to sleep. after a couple hrs, i woke up in a pool of sweat. guess the fever left my body.

this morning i woke up feeling about 80% better, so i thought i would try to eat some breakfast and clean up the kitchen, since it was my turn. after washing the dishes, i felt lifeless and weak again.

i thought of skipping church and spending the day on my bed again, but the thought of laying around for the 2nd day in a row didnt appeal to me. so i made myself take a bath and get dressed.

as i got out of the jeep in Jagatpura, the slum area where we meet on sundays, and started walking towards Ashok bhaiya (brother) and Manju di di's (sister) house, i heard a little voice calling... "di di, di di!" i thought to myself, "who's calling me?"

as soon as i heard that, something leapt inside my heart. i backed up, looked around, but didn't see anyone. then i glanced inside the house that i had just passed to see a man carving puppets and there, lying on his stomach on a mat watching was Rahul. as soon as i saw his face, i felt lighter.

he jumped up and ran to meet me at the door. since i last saw him in class on thursday, his legs were now covered in scabies and he had a bandage wrapped around his big toe, which i later found out was a puppet making accident.

although he was covered in itchy and painful wounds, the light in his eyes was the same. everytime i look at Rahul, i see Jesus. i wonder if he even knows how much he reflects His Father's glory?

we lingered for a moment.... talking, laughing, hugging, smiling.

the rest of my team had already arrived at Ashok's house and were calling me to come, but i couldn't turn away from Rahul. i was already with Jesus. His legs were covered in scabies, He was barefooted, and had a big bandage on His toe.

i had forgotten all about how i felt. my heart was light...and free.