by Elizabeth Babbs
I was 29 when
I developed M.E. I had just returned from a skiing trip with what I
thought was simply a bout of flu. I was soon to discover the effects of
that virus on an over-worked, over-stressed body. In my book, Can God Help
M.E.?, I describe these debilitating effects in some detail:
It felt as though somebody had pulled out my plugs. The profound
disabling fatigue seemed to strike very suddenly and for no apparent
reason. My muscles were severely affected and at times I had to crawl to
get to the bathroom. The brain fatigue or `fog' as some sufferers call it,
is possibly one of the most difficult aspects of the illness to deal with.
Coping with a body that won't work is bad enough, but to have a brain that
won't function properly is unbearable. When I tried to write, not only
could I not spell, but my letters reversed - to think I was an English
teacher.
My visits to the doctor became regrettably frequent. She continued to give me sick notes not really knowing what was wrong with me and, as time progressed, I realised the depressing fact that I would not be going back to school. The insensitivity of my doctor at that time did not help matters. I, like many others, have had to endure the derogatory comments from doctors, friends, family and employers. I felt like saying, `Would anyone in their right mind choose this lifestyle!' Are all 250,000 sufferers with ME imagining that they are ill? No, certainly not. Just because a disease can't yet be seen under a microscope, does not mean that it does not exist.
Reaching crisis point
Having suffered with ME for 2 years, I
began to reach a crisis point. My condition was deteriorating, and so I
had to return home to be looked after by my parents. My father was also
ill, but with terminal cancer, and so my poor mother really had her hands
full.
No matter what treatment I tried my health suffered. The situation seemed hopeless. I felt utterly broken and no longer wanted to live any more. I had come to the end of myself. In complete desperation I surrendered myself completely to God and cried out to him to heal me. It was like falling backwards and, from that position of absolute weakness, trusting that God would catch me.
Just like in the parable of the prodigal son, it was as though God rushed to meet me. Over the coming weeks, I began to hear God speak to me for the first time. He was even revealing to me who I should ask to pray for me. That person was Joyce Huggett, my vicar's wife. As she prayed for me it was as though the bad ME blood was draining away, but in its place was the warmth and radiance of God's love and energy flowing right through me. I was experiencing the indescribable presence of God and it was awesome! I will never forget the preciousness of that personal encounter with God and could certainly no longer doubt whether God existed. My healing was instant.
Several days later I sensed God was saying that I would write a book and that it would be called Can God Help M.E? It was published in March this year - the contract coming through exactly 7 years to the day that I was healed. God was again showing me that he is faithful in keeping his promises.
The God of outrageous surprises
In my walk with God, I am
increasingly finding that he is a God of outrageous surprises! Only he
could have organised such amazing publicity for Can God Help M.E.? Two
weeks after my book was published, the following headline appeared in my
local newspaper: `ME Book beats the Bestsellers'. Apparently, a local
reporter had discovered that within just ten days of being marketed
through a small Christian outlet, my book had outsold the top 10 best
sellers at a leading book shop including Catherine Cookson, John Grisham
and Joanna Trollope!
In just 5 months, God has opened the door for me to speak on ME and perform the ME Dance (my testimony in movement) in many different events across the country. Another recent `surprise' was the invitation from Anglia TV to appear as a guest on their Sunday Morning television programme. God is an amazing networker, and I'm never quite sure what will happen next. But I know that anything is possible - providing I let him have complete control!
God can help M.E.
Can God Help M.E? is already touching
people's hearts and changing lives, whether they have ME or not. Many
people are buying the book because they want to understand more about the
illness so that they can help sufferers more effectively. I sometimes
describe Can God Help M.E? as a self-help book with a difference (God),
because it is also written to help non-Christians find their way to God -
the Ultimate Alternative in this age of alternatives.
One sufferer, a young mum, who bought my book described it as "absolutely fantastic". She has since watched me perform the ME Dance and was deeply affected. She also attended the ME retreat I led recently, and has been healed! She says she can hardly believe all that God has birthed into her spirit and feels that God has told her, "ME is dead, it has lost its hold on you, your spirit is alive and from it flows rivers of life".
There is no cure for ME, and so sufferers are desperately searching for answers. They will try anything. Many, however, are unaware that a significant number of sufferers are being healed through prayer, and others are being given fresh hope. I sense that God is wanting to reach out to those on the edge of despair and to bless them with his healing touch!
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