BEESTING EMERGENCY!

“Get the bee sting kit out!” I heard Dick shout. “Shane’s been stung by a bee five times! It got under his shirt! You need to get to a phone and call the doctor! Ask if the kit will be enough, and what else we can do! I’ll put ice on the stings and keep him quiet!”

We were camping in Washington State, and were not near any doctor or hospital. We had flown into our favorite camping spot, and we had no car, only an airplane. To find a doctor we would need to fly to Grand Coulee 30 miles away. The nearest phone was a half mile away. This was 1978 and there were no cell phones.

I gave Dick the bee sting kit, grabbed the doctor’s phone number, and started running the half mile to the phone. “Oh God, don’t let Shane have any severe swelling! And let me be able to get the doctor on the phone! God, will five bee stings cause five times as much swelling? Oh, God, protect Shane! We only have the plane here and we can fly to Grand Coulee, but we’d have to get transportation from the airport to where a doctor is. Please don’t let him have a severe reaction! Help me to find out from the doctor how we can keep him breathing!

Two years before, when Shane was eight, he got his first bee sting. His entire arm swelled up. The allergist said that it was possible that a second bee sting could trigger a severe allergic reaction—even cause his airway to swell shut until he no longer could breathe. I carried a bee sting kit in my purse at all times.

“Oh God, protect me as I run,” I breathed as I jumped over a log in my path. This area was loaded with rattlesnakes. We liked everything else about this area, but we never ran. We always walked and listened for rattling sounds, the rattlesnake’s warning.

We had met our closest neighbors, who lived a half mile away. Wayne and Shirley were friendly and had a phone. “Oh God, let them be home so I can use their phone, and get through to the doctor!”

I didn’t know what was happening right now with Shane. Was he already having severe swelling? If he was, would we have time to reach a doctor? I needed to reach Shane’s allergist on the phone and have him tell me how to keep him breathing if his airway swelled shut! Would we have time to fly to Grand Coulee? Would we have to declare an emergency landing to have transportation to the nearest doctor? “Oh God! Help Shane live through this!”

I arrived at Wayne and Shirley’s house and called out before I even got to the door, “I have an emergency! May I use your phone to call the doctor?” I pounded on the door, but no one was home! Thank God, the door was unlocked, and I entered, calling, “I have an emergency and need to use your phone!” I found their phone and dialed the doctor’s number. “Oh God, let the doctor be in, and available!”

When the receptionist answered, I told her, “I have an emergency and need to talk to Dr. Smith! His patient, Shane Corbitt, has been stung by a bee five times and we are camping in a remote part of Washington State, at least 30 minutes from a doctor!” In less than a minute Dr. Smith came to the phone. They were extremely efficient! He must have had Shane’s records in his hand already because he said, “The kind of bee that Shane is allergic to, can only sting once! I think he will be okay but keep him quiet!” I thanked the doctor profusely for answering so quickly, and for the good news! What a relief!

The emergency was over and with it all the terrible possibilities disappeared, but I still had to get back to Dick and Shane and tell them the good news. I didn’t run, but I walked as fast as I could walk, praising God the whole way, watching for rattlers! “Thank You, God, that the doctor was in and came to the phone right away! Thank You that Wayne and Shirley left their door unlocked! Thank You that there were no rattlesnakes in my path! Thank you that we won’t have to get in the plane and fly somewhere looking for medical help!”

I arrived back to Shane and Dick and told them the good news. They were very relieved! Then I walked back and left Wayne and Shirley a note thanking them for the use of their phone. I left a ten-dollar bill to generously cover the long-distance charge.

What a comfort to have God to turn to in an emergency! Read my free eBook, “Ten Steps to Answered Prayer.” It only takes a few minutes to read. Learn how you can live on praying ground, where God will answer your prayers!