"I think you need to evacuate him", the UK doctor told us over the phone as we sat in our home in the Sahara. Our son had become temporarily paralyzed from the waist down with a mystery illness. A thousand thoughts and emotions to process this went through our heads but our son was seriously ill, and we needed to get him to the UK...now.

We arranged flights and put together a suitcase of our desert clothing for our family about to arrive in England in December. We wanted to all travel together in case our son didn't make it so that we could all say goodbye to him.

We posted a WhatsApp message to our sending church (Oxford Community Church). Within hours, they sprang into action, not least by interceding for us.

Our flight took us through Casablanca where we joined in our church's livestream as it was Sunday morning. They stopped to pray for him during the service. In the Casablanca airport, after 2 weeks of not walking due to what we later found out was ‘Guillian Barre Syndrome’, our son stood up! God had begun to answer.

Encouraging messages of faith began pouring in. Meal rotas were organized. A bag of winter clothes for each of us were collected. A widower opened up his home to us to stay in on the spur of the moment. Books and toys were donated. Food was delivered. We immediately were being carried by an army of God's loving hands and feet.

The first morning in the hospital as I sat exhausted with our son, someone from the church turned up with a coffee. The next day, someone turned up with food and treats. Phone calls came in. Prayers continually went up to the Father.

Our 2-year-old son, Simeon ended up making a full recovery (though it took several months).

We are so grateful to God how He carried us in that time through our sending church. They didn't just do what was necessary - they literally dropped everything to come to our aid! And now they have sent us back to the field to keep going with our ministry to Muslims. They have been the best sending church we could imagine.

JOHN & RUTH IN WEST AFRICA