Being ill was something that didn’t come as a surprise to my family or those around me because for as long as I can remember, I was always a sick child.
While some of the illnesses were because of my poor feeding habit, inherited, or an overdose of certain drugs, I can’t really tell how the others came about.
Growing up, every month came with a new kind of illness for me. It was scary. My siblings always made fun of the situation, saying they looked forward to my new illness the next month. As far as I can remember, I’ve had some issue or the other with almost every part of my body – except for some internal organs, of course.
When I came to God’s Lighthouse, my healing began. For some, it was quick, for others, I had to trust God during my healing period.
A major lesson I learned was to trust God to heal even the seemingly insignificant things. God healed me of things I accepted to be my fate, illnesses I thought I’d live with for the rest of my life:
Migraines
I’ve had migraines for as long as I can remember. I can try to date it back to when I was in primary school. For a while, my parents thought it was because of my eyes that I had to go through such excruciating pain. Whenever those episodes came, I avoided everything that had light and sound. There was the urge to throw up and everything irritated me.
I remember it used to be so painful that I didn’t dare cry properly. I used to just lie like a corpse on my bed with tears rolling down my eyes. During those periods, I took as many painkillers as possible. The pains just never went away. I abused drugs because I thought more doses meant more effectiveness.
Before I came to God’s Lighthouse in October 2019, I wasn’t attending any church. My excuse amongst other things was that I couldn’t stand the loud sounds in churches anymore. Even though those loud sounds only gave me slight headaches, I just didn’t want anything hurting my head.
When I finally came to God’s Lighthouse, I think my healing began with how peaceful the meetings were. Of course there were times of intense worship and prayers but it felt peaceful.
I honestly don’t know when my healing came but I remember in 2022, I had a slight headache and I was about to complain about how uneasy I was feeling. Then it dawned on me that my head used to be a battleground with loud drum sounds and I had experienced peace for a long time without knowing.
It didn’t feel real. The slight headache I was going to complain about became nothing to me. Then I realized that I had been ungrateful. The healing was too quiet for me to have noticed.
I thank God that till today, I’ve not had to experience any scary migraine episodes!
Peptic Ulcer Disease
For some weird reason, I had ulcer as a child and had to live with it till I became an adult. There were moments of freedom from the pain but the moments of freedom were lesser than the days of pain.
My mum also complained here and there that I didn’t like eating but I just couldn’t eat because my stomach would hurt whenever I ate.
Sometime in 2020, during the lockdown, I was also diagnosed with gastritis. The gastritis was as a result of my abusing some NSAIDs. It was more painful than the ulcers I had. I couldn’t even drink water.
I was prescribed so many drugs but it persisted. After some days, I spoke to a leader in church who prayed for me and led me to repent for not taking care of my body. I repented and the next day, I got better. I didn’t even finish the drugs that were prescribed for me.
My healing from ulcer came from one of the prayers Pastor prayed in 2021. He prayed that those of us with ulcers will have our stomach lining restored.
After that day, it felt magical because my healing was instant. I came for that meeting with some abdominal pain; I remember not being able to stand properly when the prayers were made. But I felt the pain go immediately after the prayer.
I wish I could remember the exact date of that meeting because after the prayer, we sang and jumped and gave thanks and I was jumping and singing along too.
That was the end of ulcer pains in my life.
In 2022, I had an episode of the pain again but the Holy Spirit reminded me to stand on the fact that I had been healed. I did and I got better.
Unexplainable Abdominal Pains
This one, I can’t explain. I thought this was linked to the ulcers I had but it was different. It was overwhelming. I always had my hands on my abdomen, clinching tightly to it. There were times I could live with it, other times I couldn’t.
I remember thinking it was because of my sins.
Well, maybe it was because after I came to God’s Lighthouse and my mind kept being renewed, I started repenting of many things and that was the beginning of my healing. Gradually, the pain decreased in intensity until I couldn’t feel it any longer.
Hypocalcemia
As a teenager, I lacked calcium – at least the adequate amount needed in the body. My muscles and bones were always weak, and my heart rate was low too. Since calcium is a major mineral in the body, I had so many health challenges related to it.
I was placed on drugs and supplements for extended periods. They weren’t a big deal for me though since the supplements were like fruit juices. After the Passover retreat in 2021, I realized that I had no need for the supplements.
Here’s how…
I was sent money for the supplements but I used the money for something more urgent. One day, I realized that I was fine even without the supplements or drugs or hospital visits. The only aches I have now come when I am extremely stressed.
Low Blood Pressure
I think the low blood pressure was linked to the low calcium level I had. My blood pressure was always low. I’d always feel dizzy and fatigued. I was also very cold in my hands and feet.
Gradually, all of that changed. Again, I think it was after I had my calcium level restored. I felt a bit of the symptoms in 2022 and was advised by one of our brothers, who’s a doctor, to go check my blood pressure again. I went to have it checked and it was still normal.
I left the pharmacy smiling hard that day because I was afraid that I was going to be sick again.
Respiratory and Cardiac Issues
These top the list of illnesses I’ve had in my life. In fact, respiratory and cardiac issues were the reasons I always walked around sick – always with one sweater or the other, and socks too.
I remember I was given multiple diagnoses; from Upper Respiratory Tract Infection (URTI) to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). For the cardiac issue, I was told it was Myocardial infarction (MI).
I was always breathless, cold and nauseous. I also had this piercing pain in my left shoulder. I didn’t dare walk fast, talk more of running. I was just pathetic. There were days I’d miss school just because I couldn’t breathe properly or walk some distance. It made me fragile and I envied people who could just be normal.
I remember in 2020, when a certain senior I know passed on, the doctor who was aware of my state called me and started shouting that I should seek proper medical assistance as soon as possible. He said the senior that passed on had the same issues as mine.
Still in 2020, I broke down. I thought I’d die during that period. I literally couldn’t walk or do anything. The night it began was really scary for me. I couldn’t drink water at the normal temperature, it needed to be warm. I was breathless and couldn’t talk.
The next day, I tried calling bro M, a leader in church. He did all the talking because I couldn’t talk. I struggled to say Amen when he prayed.
Later that day, Pastor called. I didn’t know he was the one so I ignored the call at first. The call came in again and I picked up. The shock I felt when I heard his voice was enough to resuscitate someone. Pastor prayed for me, and encouraged me and I was healed by the next day!
That didn’t end my illness though.
The major healing came during the Passover retreat in 2021. Some of us were delivered from the spirits of rejection and depression. I was one of the people delivered. The spirit of rejection was rooted in my loss of a loved one when I was younger.
During the meeting that evening, Pastor asked us to sing the song “Yes, Jesus loves me.” I remember I was squatting and crying my heart out. I couldn’t sing, the words just didn’t come out of my mouth. There was this sharp pain in my heart.
Pastor came and laid his hands on me, and asked me to sing. After a while, I sang and he made me stand up. He prayed for me and hugged me and then, my healing was perfected.
When I returned to the hostel after the retreat, I had a relapse but I was prayed for yet again, and since then, I’ve been healed. I no longer have to walk around with socks and sweaters. I can even run up the stairs and down and do things I couldn’t do before.
Skin Irritations
My mum told me that when I was younger, I used to have a lot of boils on my fingers and toes. She said these boils had water in them and would hurt whenever they were opened. Those things came back when I became a teenager, along with some extra skin irritations. Soaps, creams, water and even body mists gave me one skin issue or the other.
I had eczema, rash, boils and things that looked like ringworm but weren’t. I used different creams to heal each of these at different times and even took antibiotics for some of them, but they persisted – especially during certain seasons.
One Friday meeting, Pastor prayed for our skins. He asked for restoration and healing from every kind of reaction. To be honest, I thought it was a weird prayer. Pastor was mentioning some skin irritations I had. Before that day, I didn’t believe prayers were needed for those kinds of issues – I thought I just needed to find the perfect cream for my skin, and stay away from certain detergents and soaps.
Pastor mentioned that some of us who didn’t believe will see it and we will believe. When he said that, I immediately repented and said, “Lord I believe, help my unbelief.”
I saw those skin rashes no more by the end of the meeting! God healed my skin of its many problems. I began to bath without antiseptics and stopped noticing any reactions when I touched certain soaps, creams or detergents. In fact, I wasn’t financially buoyant to afford my body cream around that time and had to settle for something cheaper. I did, and absolutely nothing happened to my skin. Till date, my skin is like the average human’s – or maybe better.
Sensitive Teeth
This started in 2021. There was this shock on my teeth whenever I opened my mouth. Even when air touched my teeth, I’ll feel the shock. I also couldn’t take cold or hot things because of the pain that came with them.
I know I had dental issues growing up (something I got from my Dad) but it was taken care of, I think.
Every toothbrush suddenly became hard and my gums were always bleeding.
I can’t remember when I got healed but sometime in 2022, I remember craving a really cold drink. I got a bottle of cold water from the house I was staying in and gulped everything down my throat. It was when I finished drinking that I became scared for my teeth. But there was no pain or shock.
I didn’t believe it so I took another bottle. This time, I let the cold water remain in my mouth. I didn’t feel a thing.
Tears literally rolled down my eyes. It was one of those behind the scene healing moments of God. I was and still am super grateful.
Allergies to Cold
I think this particular issue was common in my family. But everyone outgrew theirs except me. I was always afraid of rainy seasons or harmattan. Even when the weather was hot, I was always with my sweater, how much more during a cold weather.
I stayed away from cold drinks as much as I could. I couldn’t have a bath without making the water smoking hot. During those times, whenever it rained and a drop or more touched me, I’d be out for the week – sneezing, coughing and being breathless.
I got healed when I got healed of the cardiac and respiratory issues I had. Now, I can have a bath with cold water, stay under a fan (with moderate regulation) and even walk in the rain.
Tinnitus
In March 2021, I came down with tinnitus. It first started with a loud bang in my ears, like drums. I thought it was something to overlook until it became serious.
Bro M. prayed for me one of those times and it stopped. Then it came back about a week later.
The tinnitus was in my right ear. The noise grew from the drum sound to buzzing sounds. The pains became unbearable, especially the right half of my face. Because the ear is responsible for equilibrium too, I experienced vertigo most of the time.
I always had an earphone on, especially when it was time to go to bed. At a point, the noise grew louder than the music I played.
For the record, I am not one who likes sounds, especially loud sounds. The only reason I wear earphones most times is to reduce the sounds from my environment, not because I’m listening to anything. Having tinnitus was a torture for me. It’s not something I wish anyone should have.
There were days I couldn’t go to school because half of my face was in pain.
Sometime in June 2022, I had a meeting with Pastor Ita. After the meeting, he asked if I had anything that was bothering me. I told him I didn’t. I totally forgot I had tinnitus, I learned to live with the pain – a skill I acquired over the years.
Pastor asked if I was sure and I said yes. I was about to leave when I remembered. I immediately turned and said, “Sir, I have tinnitus!” It was like I discovered something new. He looked at me in awe, after saying I didn’t have an issue.
I narrated what had been my predicament for more than a year and Pastor Ita prayed for me.
I didn’t know I had been healed until a month later, when I was speaking with one of the leaders and told her how I felt peace in my mind. Then I paused and nearly screamed. That was when I realized the tinnitus was gone and I didn’t even notice. I narrated what happened and we both gave thanks.
Waist pain
In March 2022, I noticed that I was having waist pain. I thought it was linked to the dysmenorrhoea I used to have but it was different. The pain kept getting worse everyday. I couldn’t sit properly and had to lie down with a pillow to my waist.
It wasn’t even funny because I had to walk with my hand on my waist like an old lady.
In August 2022, I went to meet Pastor Ita to pray for me. He asked me how many things God had healed me from and I listed just three. He said that wasn’t all. He asked me to write down my healing testimony, and spoke to me about being grateful. He asked me to also remind him the next day after a church meeting to pray for me. The next day, during the church meeting, he remembered and prayed for everyone that was ill.
That was all that was needed to make me whole again because after that prayer, God healed me. The pain in my waist was gone!
Dysmenorrhea
This one has got to be one of my biggest testimonies.
Ever since I attained puberty and began menstruating, certain dates on my calendar have always brought fear to me. There was never a time I wasn’t screaming, rolling, purging, and doing everything else that comes with my menstrual cycle.
The pain was unbearable. I’d have to walk like an old lady and look pale and pathetic because I was losing a lot of blood. This would continue for the 7 days I was to menstruate. I took all kinds of medications to help with the pain, but they didn’t work. I gave up after I realized the drugs were making me have irregular menstruations. Every month, I always thought I’d die from pain, but somehow, I just end up surviving. There were times I’d go on for days without sleeping! Aside from other reasons, menstrual cramps were the main reason I was going to transgender. I was tired.
During the strike last year, I stayed at the manse (Pastor’s house with other brethren), and it was an embarrassing period for me because that was the first time I was surrounded by a lot of people while in pain. I hated that everyone kept coming to ask how I was doing. I didn’t want anyone to touch me, but they kept coming to lay hands on me and pray for me. One of those months, Sister N. who had come for the leaders’ meeting massaged my waist till I fell asleep. At times I was given some sleeping pills to help me sleep, but they didn’t work. I even overdosed at one point, hoping to sleep but couldn’t.
Well, enough of the sad tales; I am healed.
How did it happen?
For six months, whenever I was menstruating, we’d break bread in church and Pastor Ita would ask for healing for us. Gradually, the pain became bearable every month; all I had to deal with were headaches, mild fevers, and cramps.
Sister I. who has the gift of healing from painful menstruation also prayed for me twice.
My shepherd (the leader with the responsibility to care for me) prayed, and my brethren who lived in the same hostel with me prayed too.
This month, I had mild cramps which lasted for just one day! It didn’t even last the whole day. I was able to sit up and do the things I was meant to do that day instead of the usual paralysis I’d experience. The same thing happened last month, but I was watching to confirm my healing.
You have no idea how good it feels to have to go through your monthly phase without the whole world knowing about it.
I’m so grateful to God for His mercies and great healing He has blessed me with.
Bowel Irritation
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had issues with my GIT, but this particular one was a new arrival. I noticed that towards the end of September 2021, my body began to reject food. Each time I ate, I’d get so irritated that I’d end up in the restroom. My stomach was constantly empty, and I was always in pain. It was very frustrating because at that time, I was repenting and learning to eat food like a normal person as I had a habit of not eating properly, but my bowels were just not cooperating.
Initially, I thought I was reacting to the not-so-hygienic meals I was buying in the hostel I stayed in, but I realized that even snacks made my stomach run. I spoke with a doctor in church who suggested it was likely Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I didn’t want to take drugs so I requested for any lifestyle habits that could help me.
He asked me to take fruits and continue eating.
I was secretly hoping he’d tell me to hold on a while and not eat food. I even suggested it to him, but his response was almost like he’d knock my head if he were standing next to me.
I obeyed, however at that time, the only thing my stomach didn’t reject was bread, and since I love bread so much, I just had fun eating it. But I was tired eventually.
Two weeks ago, while at the manse, after I had dinner, I didn’t feel the urge to use the restroom. It was even more surprising because we had Afang soup for dinner, and Afang used to give me a runny stomach. This was the norm long before my stomach began to resist food. But on that day, there was no reaction, I ate and it stayed in my stomach!
And since then, I’ve been healed. I am able to eat other meals and not run to the restroom to empty my bowels.
Abnormal Growth
Sometime in October 2021, I went to use the restroom, and because of how hard the poop was, I had an injury in my anal sphincter. After some days, I realized that there was an outgrowth of a part of my skin around that area.
It was the most discomforting thing. I was always in pain when I needed to use the restroom. It became so bad that I became afraid of using the restroom, but I had to use the restroom more frequently than normal because this was around the time I had the bowel irritations I testified about earlier.
I was told that the growth would have to be surgically removed by a doctor. Now, that wasn’t going to be an issue except that the location of this growth was so embarrassing. Moreover, in 2022, I told myself I was done visiting the hospital for any health-related issues. After a while of worrying, I decided to just have peace and forget about it. I don’t know how, but the pain was no longer there; I think the wound had healed but the growth was still there.
On a particular Friday meeting, Pastor Ita was speaking about growth and used Bro S. testimony about the miraculous disappearance of his ganglion, amongst many others, as an illustration. I thought he prayed about it because while he was talking, I said Amen in my heart, if not out loud. Days after that meeting, I realized the growth was gone.
As embarrassing as this may sound, I checked to be sure that it was really gone. I mean, it’s better that I checked it myself than have yet another doctor check to examine it. The growth was really gone!
Finally, I’m thanking God that it’s been a year and some months now that I’ve not had to take medications.
Though I’ve been ill here and there, I’ve learned to trust God for my healing and be humble enough to ask people to pray for me too.
I’m also grateful that my body is healing from some of the damage caused by drugs, especially when I used to overdose on them.
I feel like my immune system is getting stronger, and I’m living like every other normal person.
Thank you, dear Lord.
