I was going along at my usual pace one day when suddenly an invasion occurred! A virus somehow became released into my body.

Now, I will say that I am active physically and spiritually, and I take certain measures to keep my immune system in good shape. But this attack found its way past all my defenses. The battle begins!

The first signs were being tired with a night sweat that drenched the bed. My thoughts were, “It's over; my body rejected it.” The next morning, I was still tired and sluggish, not wanting to eat. Red flags were up.

The next thing, I was lying around most of the day, dozing on and off while laboring to simply breathe. My wife was concerned that this may need some medication.

My good wife found an online resource to get help. We had been seeing lots of people sick for weeks, so it was time to take action.

Prayer, prayer, prayer. I was surrounded by calls and texted words of encouragement from a host of friends, brothers and sisters in Christ — also the drive-by food drops. One person made a whole turkey dinner, put it in a cooler and left it on my doorstep. Wow! Let's just say that with the little food we ate, our freezer is stocked up.

Praise the Lord for being connected with the body of Christ!

Virus gone! Eternal perspective strengthened from the body of Jesus. If by chance you are not connected to Jesus, ask someone for help to get a relationship with the Lord. He has someone already picked out to help; just ask.

Time slides by when you get sick. Two days turned into six, then 10 days before the first signs of recovery. Most annoying was the loss of taste, lack of appetite, mainly drinking lots of fluids. Even when I seemed full, drink more! 

Move, move, move. Don't lie around waiting for recovery. The virus will overtake you.

Take the personal time to pray to Jesus. He meets us during the dark times and brings us back into a right standing. I have a great memory of turning on worship music just after one of the night sweats. 

Find a way to connect with Jesus; he will lead you through the darkness.

Brown is a fieldman for Fellowship of Christian Farmers International.