Dear St. Paul’s Family,
I was only two years old when I first visited the Philippines, so I have only a few vivid memories of that experience. One, however, sticks out among the rest.
At night, while staying at my mother’s childhood home on the island of Mindoro, my family would sleep in one of the bedrooms, nestled together on the same bed, under the protection of a large net that hovered over us. I remember being warned that, under no circumstances, was I to sleep anywhere but under that net. Even in the middle of the night, when I got up to go to the bathroom, I can remember scurrying quickly down the hall back to the bedroom in order to get back to the net as soon as possible.
It was not until later that I found out that those preventative nets did more than ward off itchy mosquito bites. Those nets were there literally to save my life from the bit of a mosquito that contracted the deadly disease of malaria.
MALARIA: A PERSONAL ENCOUNTER
After worship two Sundays ago, Walt Pritts approached me in the greeting line with a simple message: “I had malaria when I was in the Philippines, and it was awful.”
Later that week Walt dropped by my office to tell me more. He had served in the Philippines with the U.S. Army as a staff sergeant during World War II when he was bitted by the mosquito. At first, he thought he had contracted the flue: aches, fatigue, and general discomfort. Then, in a matter of mere minutes, he started sweating profusely, shaking uncontrollably, and nearly passed out outside the mess hall. He knew right then that he had something much, much worse than the flu.
Some fellow soldiers saw him and quickly helped him over to the nearest Army hospital, where he was given quinine, the best the Army had to give him at the time. It didn’t help much. The tremors were compounded by poor eyesight and hallucinations, such that the next time he sat down for meal time in the mess hall, the peas on his spoon looked like giant marbles.
Over the span of two or three weeks, and with constant medical attention, Walt gradually got over the worst of the symptoms and finished his tour of duty in the Philippines. But when he returned to the United States, the malaria continued to flare up periodically. “Once you get malaria,” he told me, “you never quite get over it.”
MALARIA: A BEATABLE DISEASE
Walt knows first hand the severity of malaria, a disease which claims the life of a child in Africa every sixty seconds. I asked him if he had any sympathy for the families who are being ravaged in Africa or anywhere else in the world. “Oh, yes,” he said, rather emphatically. He wouldn’t wish this disease on any person, anywhere, at any time.
Walt is not alone. In fact, he is one of countless United Methodists who agree that it is not only our opportunity, but our responsibility, to fight and beat malaria. Joining forces with the agency Imagine No Malaria, the Iowa Annual Conference is determined to totally and permanently eradicate malaria from this planet by the year 2015.
We are certainly making progress. Over the last three years, United Methodists have raised $7.5 million to support Nothing But Nets, an effort which has cut the rate of malaria deaths in half. Now, the program is called Imagine No Malaria, expanding the effort to include preventative education, cleaner water, improved communication, and better transportation in even the remotest Africa villages. With this expanded effort, the United Methodist Church hopes to raise $75 million dollars over the next three years, which we truly believe will make malaria extinct from our planet once and for all.
PANCAKES FOR A GOOD CAUSE
That is why this Sunday, St. Paul’s UMC and the town of Cherokee will be one of seventy-nine communities throughout Iowa hosting pancake meal fund raisers. Ours will take place from 11:00am to 2:00pm in the upper level of the Cherokee Community Center. Thank you to all of you who have signed up to volunteer throughout the weekend to set up, host, cook, and clean up. Your efforts will help make this a truly successful day. For those who aren’t helping out, please make it a point to come to the luncheon, enjoy some delicious food, and contribute to a worthy cause. And, of course, we encourage you to bring friends along!
We are also honored that day to welcome Bishop Julius Trimble, the episcopal leader of our Conference, who will be joining us for worship, flipping a pancake or two afterwards, and presiding over our District Conference at 2:00 in our sanctuary. Please join us in worship to meet him and thank him for his leadership of our conference.
Together, as we enjoy every delicious bite food, we can take a bite out of malaria, and work to make it extinct forever. This may be the most important stack of pancakes you’ll ever eat.
Grace and Peace,
Magrey
The Rev. Magrey R. deVega
St. Paul's United Methodist Church
531 W. Main St.
Cherokee, IA 51012
Ph: 712-225-3955
Email: mdevega@sp-umc.org
GREETINGS FROM TAMPA
I am sending this message this morning from Tampa, Florida, where I am honored to be participating in the Large Church Initiative, a gather of over five hundred church leaders from some of the largest congregations in United Methodism. Thank you for your prayers as I offer the second of my two workshops this morning, and then have the privilege of preaching to the assembly at 6:30 Central Time. I am grateful for the chance to share the good news of what God is doing in and through the people of St. Paul’s in Cherokee, and am thankful for what we have been able to accomplish together. I will return Thursday evening in time to preach this Sunday.
To view past editions of the Mid-Week Message, visit http://mdevega.blogspot.com.
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