Making of a Missionary (on furlough):
000It is early in the morning on Tuesday, July 20, 2004 , just one week from when I went into the emergency room and then intensive care in the hospital. There is a lot I could say and yet just grateful God chose for my life to continue. It was my birthday, and He gave me the gift of life once again. For those folks that are new to my list, I apologize you did not get the email from my daughter. I have only been here three weeks, one of them in the hospital, and only twice to the internet. I had not had time to forward your addresses to my list. I will share a little more of my experience later in letter.
000My little dog Benediction died just days before I got sick. I had a veterinarian who tried to help with meds and an IV but she died. I have no idea of what. She got very ill suddenly, would not eat or drink and died.
000Congo Independence Day was June 30th. It was peaceful except that guns went off instead of fireworks. Everyone turned on their radios because of all the problems in June here. Most do not see guns as a celebration. At the Home here I started the day by making homemade pancakes. They received candy for lunch. A friend and daughter had bought water paint sets for the boys and they received that gift and a pr. of sneaker sox to sleep in. Finally, we ended the day by watching the Jesus film in French. The boys are doing well in their learning of French.
000Barbara and I have been so busy in the short time we have been back that we forgot about July 4th until my daughter called me. However, lots of places in the U.S. take Monday as a holiday. So we ventured to town in those famous taxis. In one taxi there was basically no cushion and he drove on the sidewalk. The other went fine except I had to sit on a console crooked because of the stick shift and had a tough time walking for awhile. Coming back, there were no taxis and I was a little concerned—it was rush hour. I hardly had prayed: Lord, You always take care of me here, even without a car…..when, a pastor pulled up in a jeep and gave us a ride all the way home. He has become a good contact. He has a teacher friend who knows a group of Swedes who have all heard of my Home and want to start one similar. We have a meeting coming but not sure Jesus is part of their motive or plans. Anyway, we’ll see! Barbara and I bought some hamburger meat and ended our day with a hamburger and some frozen French fries.
000This quartier continues to give us challenges with the electricity. The cables are old and need replaced. They fall down on our wall, or they sometimes cut off easily. One day, there was a bad power surge and it destroyed fuses, phone chargers, and my new CD radio boombox.
000Water has been none now for a week. We are trying to find out the problem. The challenge is getting the water company to come out. We have asked three times now. We did a survey yesterday of 10 other compounds. They have difficulty with water, but not like us. For example, everyone had water on Saturday but us. We have been 9 days without running water as of this letter. We have found a place to haul it in by the bucket, but it is verytedious. Definitely, it is better than none. However, pray we can get a REAL solution soon.
Maison de Refuge de David
000We found a small area just outside the home where the boys can play soccer occasionally. The neighbor boys asked to play them in some friendly competition. Our boys are almost half their size (primarily because they have lived on the streets so long). The two games have both been a tie. Our little guys are really good and Pastor Siona who works for the ministry is a good coach. I am going to look for some competition with some of the youth in the churches. I was given two sorts of matching t-shirts and navy shorts. So we are ready except for tennis shoes. They play barefoot and do sensational. Suppose I’ll ruin their game if they get shoes! I haven’t had money for them, but a group in Idaho may raise the funds to buy some here.
000Devotions are a very important part of our day. The boys know two songs in English. We pray the Our Father daily and we sing O the Blood of Jesus in Lingala and English. We are really having some battles. As the boys “normalize”, some fighting and acting out behaviors are emerging. This is normal except that when you work with the boys and correct them, their old “street mentality” is kicking in and so they just want to run away. We are praying so hard for these boys, covering them in prayer etc. One pastor told me that is why I need a place way out in the country because that behavior is normal for a long time. Many children in Congo just run away if they don’t like their parent’s discipline. It is a rebellion epidemic. It is one that leaves I and the workers weary. It seems you pray and pray, work and work and the boys just still run. Three have run away in the past week. We recovered two and pastor is out searching the third right now as I write. My heart is breaking—I feel so helpless. The boys running have been with me almost a year—the feeding center in Delveaux and the Home for 6 months.
000We have also had a precious Samuel experience. We have a new boy, Moses. His mother and dad had to flee with five children from the East with all of the war. The Red Cross gave them some funds to start. The husband left the widow with children ages 10 (Moses), 8, 6,4 and 3 mos. old. The widow heard of us and brought Moses to dedicate to the Lord. She is so poor. She wants him to live with us and to get spiritual training and an education. She hopes he will serve the Lord and be able to help the family in the future. She used up the funds for rent which is now finished and to buy some clothes to sell, but that was a very poor choice. She lost money, and now has nothing. I sent her away with several sakombes of beans and rice and some cookies. Moses is doing well, but has been in school 2 years and knows less than our boys after 6 mos. of education.
Projects:
000We have brought over 26 of the chickens and 2 roosters and set up a place on the property. Barbara has been instrumental in getting everything ready which was the plan. This week I hope to bring the rest of the chickens. I only discovered this week that there have been many times with no electricity. The chickens have been up to a week in a dark chicken house. Now, they sleep in a house at night and have a yard during the day. We were only getting 2-3 eggs a day out of 44 chickens! The agronomes kept blaming me it was vaccines they needed. NO one was honest about the electricity except to say I needed a motor occasionally. They did not want to lose the project at their farm. I am just grateful the chickens did not die under those conditions. We are getting approximately a dozen eggs a day now. My prayer is that with the light in the hen house that they will all lay regularly very soon. I have several people wanting to buy flats, so if you will pray that we can see many eggs soon.
000The workers planted spinach before I arrived and it is growing well. I brought some other beans and vegetables and Barbara and the boys have planted another 6 rows. We started of course when water came every other day.
000A big need of course is to have access to a car regularly or to have the means to buy one. You really need a jeep or landrover type vehicle with all the 100 pound sacks of food we buy plus so many terrible roads. This too is a need for prayer. Let’s see, jeep, eggs, water, boys—what a mix! Hopefully, a Kingdom of God mix!!!
Hospital Stay:
000I will just give a quick resume. I got very sick starting Sat. July 10th. I had high fever, hurt (not aches but sheer pain) all over. By Sunday diahrea sp? And vomiting were in gear. I got so sick that I did not realize how bad I was. It was the Holy Spirit who woke me up and told me it was not flu but malaria. I immediately took meds. Nothing worked and the cycle of high fever, soaking your clothes with sweat etc. continued. By Tuesday I was too weak to walk and British missionary knew the hosp. in town that took foreigners. In emergency they immediately started IV’s as I was dehydrated. After blood tests they said the malaria was severe and affecting the kidneys and that I had another severe intestinal infection too. Basically, I was losing fluids faster than I was able to intake them—even by mouth and with IV with so much vomiting and diahrea. That is how I landed in intensive care for 18 hours. It has truly been years and years and years since I was that sick. I started getting better and then had a relapse. I had an allergic reaction to quinine. They had me on the maternity floor all the time to keep an eye on me—rather humorous to me. I was on Doxycycline and another local antibiotic which hit the intestinal thing hard. They had to give me IV med for pain and fever. Finally, on Thursday they started shots. That, with all of your prayers became the effective answer. I went home much improved on Friday evening. It was a tough week in my life and I THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HOLDING ME UP SO COMPLETELY IN PRAYER. I knew in my own heart late Tuesday night that I was in serious trouble and a fight for my life. A long-term American missionary here reminded me that I had the kind of malaria that kills people and that just in the past couple of years a short term missionary died in London of the same thing.
000I really believe being here was best with their local meds. I had a young doctor in late 30’s who acted quickly and analytically with this being my first bout with the disease and being so ill. His dad is a primary professor in the School of Medicine at the U. of Kinshasa . I had an excellent female physician in the hospital; but it was the fast action of another Congolese Dr. when I relapsed, that pulled me out. I was truly being watched in our Lord’s hands.
000God brings humor in everything. Because I was single, they thought that I was a Catholic sister. When I would tell them about 4 children and 7 grandchildren I could not understand their shock! Oh the humor of it all—I got a good laugh. I am a grandmother for the 7th time. Hezekiah Richard was born July 3rd and is doing great.
000The only way I could have gotten it is that malaria can lay dormant in a body and I forgot my malaria meds 3 or 4 times. Things had been so busy with the boys and then Benediction died. I pray it is a lonnnnnng time before I ever do that again. My total hospital bill was $475. Yesterday they charged me another $90 for blood work and followup exam. That sure is not bad, but I will have to trust the Lord to make up the expenses from ministry funds. I did find out that there is a private clinic here affiliated with the hospital which also has European docs. I can pay $35/month and then would have all care covered if an emergency again as this time. If anyone would like to help me by sponsoring a month, would you let me know? It is the American missionary, Sylvia who brought me food to the hospital who told me about it and felt very badly she had never mentioned it to me before.
000Thank you once again for all of your care, concern and prayers and being a big reason I am still on the field today.
000FLRC/CRVF is a nonprofit 501c3 organization. CRVF is the Congo branch of FLRC.
