But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing (2 Corinthians 2:14-15).

As I was preparing to leave for Palm Springs in February of 1989, I felt a sense of anxiety about stepping on a plane as an MCS sufferer, knowing there was a potential danger of being exposed to any number of toxic substances. The anxiety was particularly acute, knowing that if I became ill from an exposure, there would be no way of escape. In light of this, I called a friend the night before my flight to ask for prayer. Theri prayed for me, and after praying, her encouragement to me was, "Remember, Janine, no matter what happens on the flight, Jesus will carry you."

On February 6, my husband drove my daughter and I to the airport. As usual, my antennas were out, on the lookout for any potential chemicals that may cause me to have a distasteful reaction. I made it through the airport parking lot, through the airport, and onto the plane with no adverse reactions. I breathed a sigh of relief. The first part of the flight was rather uneventful. There were no problems with other people’s cologne or jet fuel fumes. As we neared our destination, however, my so far perfect flight turned into an MCS sufferer’s living nightmare.

We were unable to land in Palm Springs due to an infamous El Niño storm. The pilot attempted to land in Palm Springs three times, but due to heavy fog, we were unable to land. The problem came in that each time we shot back up in the air, the plane filled with jet fuel fumes. After being exposed to three huge doses of jet fuel fumes, I was feeling pretty disoriented. I was having a hard time concentrating, so I made my way to the front of the aircraft where the flight attendants helped me scrounge up my Alka Seltzer Gold, and mix it up so I could at least function. The pilot offered me a seat in case I was going to faint.

The decision was made to re-route our airplane to the Ontario, CA airport. We finally arrived in Ontario about two hours after our scheduled arrival time in Palm Springs. Upon arrival, we had to sit in the airplane for about another hour, while the airlines tried to figure out how they were going to get  all the passengers to Palm Springs. The decision was finally made to shuttle us all on a diesel bus. Yikes! I figured I would probably be in real rough shape if I were to expose myself to diesel after all I had been through. I wondered how on earth my eight-year old daughter and I were going to get to Palm Springs safely since I was experiencing an intense reaction from the jet fuel exposure. At that moment, the words of my friend Theri rang in my mind, "Jesus will carry you through." Those words gave me the hope and strength I needed to carry on at one of the most difficult moments of my life.

The words of my friend Theri proved to be true. The next several hours God showed His magnificent power and faithfulness to me as He worked out all the details to get us to Palm Springs in spite of the fact that I felt brain dead. The first provision came in the way of the airlines offering us our own private shuttle van, once I explained I could not tolerate a diesel bus due to my health condition. Another provision came as my daughter and I went to get our luggage on an outdoor conveyor belt amidst more jet fuel fumes. When we stepped outside to look for our luggage, within 30 seconds our luggage appeared on the conveyor belt! The Lord knew I’d had enough toxic jet fuel fumes for one day. A third blessing came when a total stranger helped us retrieve a luggage cart from clear across the airport. My daughter was also a blessing as she pushed a huge luggage cart all around the airport until we reached our shuttle. In my mental state, being unable to concentrate very well, I needed all the help I could get, and the Lord was merciful to provide help at each step of the way. Our shuttle van drove us to Palm Springs, and we finally arrived at our destination at about 9:30 p.m, which was about five hours after our scheduled arrival time.

For reasons beyond my human comprehension, God allowed one of my worst nightmares to come true—being trapped on an airplane with dangerous fumes and nowhere to run! On this earth, God does not always spare us from pain and suffering, but He does promise to carry us through whatever difficulties we may find ourselves in if we call on Him to help us. Psalm 22:24 says, "For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help." God also promises in Hebrews 13:5 , "Never will I leave you ; never will I forsake you."

Whatever challenging situation you may find yourself in, I would encourage you to call on the name of Jesus and He will help through!

One day as I arrived at my kid’s school to pick them up at the end of the day, I noticed my son wreaked of gasoline as he got in the car. Evidently, he had valiantly agreed to be the one who would retrieve the soccer ball from under the parked car at recess. The poor fellow’s pants were covered in gasoline. I couldn’t figure out how his teacher could not have noticed the stench and done something to remedy the situation such as call me and tell me to bring him some new pants. But most people seem oblivious to toxic odors if they don’t suffer from MCS. Out of hundreds of children in the school this could’ve happened to, of course it happened to a child whose mom suffers from MCS!

I quickly went into my problem solving mode to try to figure out what to do about these toxic jeans. The best thing I could come up with was to have my son take off his jeans and wear a Hefty trash bag home. Well, bless my son’s heart – he was a good sport about it, and right there in the car he was forced to strip off his pants and replace them with a Hefty trash bag! Of course I had the other children close their eyes while my son changed into his lovely new attire. The neighbor children riding with us in the car were probably wondering what kind of a strange lady would force her child to wear a Hefty trash bag home just because gasoline spilled on his pants. When carpooling with an MCS mom, you never know what kind of strange things may transpire!

Because of MCS I was riddled with fear

Until my Lord came near

And said, "Child, don’t live in dread.

Be cautious yet level headed instead."

The enemy is often there

Trying to get in my hair.

He comes to lie, steal, and destroy

But I won’t let him rob my joy.

Now when he comes to me

I pray, "Lord show me reality."

My life is now more calm

As I accept my Lord’s healing balm.

My fears I always will fight

But the Lord helps me through the night.

And someday soon I’ll see

The mansion He’s prepared for me.

Then my fears will all be gone

As my work on earth is done.

I’ll worship my God at His throne

And never more will I feel alone.

As my husband was planning a Father’s Day party at our house, he wrote out an invitation with a couple humorous spelling errors. After the location, date, and time of the party, he included the following special announcement, "Please out of consideration and protection for Janine,  reframe from wearing any fragrances, colons, hairsprays, or strong scented deodorants. Thank you for understanding!"

Fortunately, I proofread his invitations before they were mailed out. His family really might have thought we were loony had we requested to "reframe from wearing any colons!"

Have you ever felt like the psalmist David who said, "Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak"  (Psalm 31:9-10)?

This last year I have felt a lot of sorrow over the inability to go many places, due to the restrictions MCS has placed on my life. A few of the most difficult events I had to forego this year due to my illness included one of my close friend’s weddings, two funerals of relatives, and numerous special events of my children including Christmas concerts, spring concerts, and my son’s Kindergarten graduation.

During those times, I try to remember that my time on this planet is brief, and my real home is in heaven. John 14:1-6 says, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don ‘t know where you are going so how can we know the way?" Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

According to this passage, the only way to God and heaven is through Jesus Christ. In a world where it is popular to believe that there are many ways to God, this passage clearly states that there is only one way to God. The following song was written by a songwriter and musician at my church named Torrey Brian. The song talks about the time when those who believe and have committed their lives to Jesus will have reached their final destiny—to be at home in heaven with Jesus! I can’t wait for that day, so during my moments of sorrow and loss I will often listen to the following song from Torrey’s CD "So Far" entitled "IT WON’T BE LONG":

This is just another day

Sometimes I see the rains begin

And it seems as though the storm will never end

But I know in the depths of my soul

The sun will rise again

And it won’t be long no it won’t be long

And I know that it won’t be long

Sometimes the pain is all I see

I face the task to be as strong as I can be

But I know someday I’ll look to that sky

To see You coming back for me

And I’ll know that my heart has been right where You are

And I’ll look in Your eyes and You’ll heal all the scars

And I’ll run and I’ll fall into Your arms

And I know that it won’t be long

All of the sadness

All of the tears

All of the pain

Through all of the years

All of the times I cried in the night

With all disappear in the warmth of Your light

All the mistakes and all the regrets

All of the memories I tried to forget

All of the wishes that never came true

Will all fade away my first moment with You

I’ll run to Your side lay my head on Your chest

And all of my striving will find perfect rest

I’ll drop to my knees lay my head at Your feet

And all of this life will be complete

It won’t be long

(Reprinted by permission)

Thank goodness there is hope beyond what this sometimes painful world has to offer. I look forward with much anticipation to the day when I will be in Jesus’ arms. Revelation 21:4 says, "He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

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