When Does God Heal? Jenny’s Subdural Hematoma and Healings in the Lives of our Village Friends

After Bill’s parents left, we went back to the village where much medical work was waiting. Kunti, the dear young lady who worked for us, also moved in with us. She was such a gift from Father’s heart to us. She served with cheerfulness and a willing heart.

From my journal: “The mountains are beautiful. The work is mountainous.” Bill continued working daily with Kissan and a new friend and worker named Hatana. He was working to understand the grammar of the Tharu language. I continued with the literacy work and analyzing the phonology of the language.

With our health challenges, the Lord continued to encourage us to trust Him. Then we began to see healings as we prayed for village people who came for help. One man named Sahu came with a dislocated hip that the Lord put back in place when we prayed. One time a shot of penicillin, and prayer, “cured” an older person with a severe case of bronchitis. Another time two aspirin, and prayer, would “cure” a broken finger.

We never understood the why of when God heals and when he withholds healing. We never knew what to expect, only to pray when He brought us into the lives of specific people who came to us for help. One time God didn’t heal was for a woman who had become blind. Our hearts were sad, but we left her in His hands.

While He was healing many in the village, one day “Jenny fell off a ladder and hurt her head and stomach. She seemed OK, but last night she vomited and today she won’t wake up. There’s nothing worse than holding a sick child in your arms and not being able to do anything."

We packed up and were getting ready to take her to Kathmandu for medical help, hoping for a commercial flight to be available. There were only two flights a week to our airstrip in Bharatpur. From my diary:

During our packing, Bill decided to pray for Jenny. He went to her crib and prayed, rebuking the illness in Jesus’ Name. When he stepped back, he accidentally stepped on Jonathan’s hand who was sitting at the doorway watching all this. When Jonathan let out a cry, Jenny opened her eyes and woke up. This was God’s doing and to his glory. Jesus made her well in an instant.

We are still watching her closely. We believe God wants us here and He wants her well. It’s the first time Jenny’s been sick enough for me to be truly concerned for her life, and to ask if I’m willing for any of us to be sacrificed for our Tharus, that they might know Him.

When we later returned to Kathmandu and she was examined by a doctor, we were told that she must have had a subdural hematoma (blood clot on the brain) and that only God could have touched and healed that there in the village. Another doctor told us the same thing and we gave thanks for God’s love-care for Jenny and us.

While we were in Kathamandu, Jenny and Jonathan both had good friends when in Kathmandu, especially from the Kotapish family. Here’s a picture of Jenny with Glenn Kotapish playing a game of “roll the onions.”

And here’s a couple of Jonathan with good friend Dawn Kotapish, climbing the Mt. Everest of pillows.