I am writing to update you on the changes that we as a family first and as a ministry as well, will be facing in the next year. As you may remember, Duane had a vision many years ago about us having a hospital here in Canilla. It was something that was way too big and out of the question so we just “put it on the shelf.” However in the last year, God has begun to move people into place who desire to come alongside of us to fulfill this dream. We have always said that in order to have a hospital here, we would need nursing staff (other than just me and Katie) and physicians. Katie’s dream of a nursing school is coming to pass and will open in January of 2014. By January of 2015, we will have a nursing staff able to care for inpatients. In February of this year, we were “randomly” contacted by a group of physicians (all family practice) who have committed to staffing this hospital. They have a practice in Iowa in which they all rotate throughout the year for 3 month cycles so that 2 can be “on the field” while the others care for their US practice and fund those on the mission field. They are planning to come full time by….January of 2015. Don and Lori – our long time friends who have come to help us each year for many years – have made a 3 year commitment as well….starting in January of 2015. Don is a PA and Lori is a CPA who helps us keep everything in order! And finally, we were again, “randomly” contacted by a physician who is Guatemalan, and currently finishing his residency in family practice in Spain. He and his wife have a heart to serve the poor here in this area. And they will be ready to start in…..January of 2015! None of these people knew about the others nor did we solicit help from them – this was all totally God moving on their hearts, synchronizing timing as only He can!

Now, our dilemma is where to put everyone not only to practice, but to live? Our original thought was to just build a small hospital in our front yard. But that seems short sighted as there would be no room for expansion. And we have been advised by those who have walked this road before us that having the hospital and community housing on the same property does not work well. So, after weeks of prayer, discussion, and more prayer, we finally have a plan that we all agree on and have peace about.

We have put a down payment on a property not immediately next to ours but within about 500 feet from ours. It is big enough for expansion and we feel that it will be a perfect distance from the “home base.” We are trusting (and this is a HUGE LEAP of faith) that within the 3 months that the government is saying it will take to get through paperwork, it will be paid for. We will then begin construction of the first phase of the hospital. We hope to begin with a facility that will have the capability to house up to 20 patients. It will include 2 operating rooms so that we can do C-sections if necessary as we anticipate that much of what we will do is assist with births. We will also be able to help those children who are so sick with pneumonias and dehydration (the number 1 and 2 killers of children in this country).  

I must confess that we are completely overwhelmed but at the same time so completely in awe of what God is doing! For so long we have prayed for a place where the people we love so much would be cared for with love and compassion; a place where they can not only receive medical help but spiritual help as well. Our floor plan for the hospital includes a prayer room - front and center. And one of the only things that the doctors have requested is a full time pastor on staff – someone who will always be there to minister to hearts. 

Again, this is a huge step of faith for us. We do not have money for a project as big as this. But we know that He is the God of the impossible. A friend of our recently said, “Our God is a gentleman. When He invites us somewhere, He always pays.” So we trust that He will provide all that we need!

Please pray for us – that we have wisdom to do all that He has asked with integrity and wisdom. Pray that we maintain our focus on Him, loving Him, worshipping Him, knowing that He is in control of our lives.

There are days when clinic goes so smoothly—days when the most serious thing you see is a snotty nose, and you leave with a smile on your face. Last Saturday was, to be sure, not one of those days. And I knew it from the start when the first kid that came in sounded like there were rice crispies in his lungs.

The sick people kept on coming—one after another. At this point, it’s no new thing for me to feel worried or super heartbroken for those that come in; it literally happens almost every single clinic day. What was new to me was being completely shocked by something that I saw. I guess there’s a first time for everything.

This lady came into the clinic with her four children. She handed me the smallest of them, which I thought was surely a premature newborn at best, and relayed to me that the baby had “fire in her mouth”. I looked at it and, sure enough, it was filled with white patches of yeast all over. This little one had thrush, which is honestly not so uncommon and definitely treatable. But my jaw almost hit the floor when I found out she was two months old. At first, my brain heard dos semanas instead of dos meses, because two weeks old made way more sense to it. But she repeated herself, and that’s when I experienced my first shock.

All I could think was this: I don’t care what third-world country I’m in, a two-month-old baby should never weigh five pounds. Not ever.

The longer she was there, the more I started to realize why this baby was not eating or gaining any weight: the other children in this family were completely out of control. Nothing out of the ordinary, just everything that comes with having three toddlers under the age of four. It was hard to watch this momma try to juggle all of them at once. Knowing that the baby was probably difficult to feed because of the thrush and seeing the chaos that she probably experienced daily made it clear that she literally didn’t have time to try to make the baby eat. What she overlooked is that eating is not a luxury; it is absolutely essential to sustain life.

We fed the baby as much as we could and asked her mom to keep returning for more formula. She came back once, but since then we haven’t seen her. Now the what if’s are starting to creep in…

But I can honestly rest in the fact that God loves her far more and can care for her far better than anyone on earth is able to, myself included. While I spent a few brief minutes with this baby, He actually created her— fearfully and wonderfully made her in his own image. I’m just in awe that He would still provide me with this peace that surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7). How inexplicable and incredible is that? It’s kind of hard to even fathom having true peace about something that is beyond my understanding. Not understanding things doesn’t seem like it would give me any peace at all, but here I find myself resting in His kept promise, praying this verse for myself and for her:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13

Side note: I can’t help but see the parallel between the physical and spiritual realms here. This baby was near death because her mom presumably wasn’t able to spend enough time trying to feed her. Like literal food, time spent with God is spiritual food. It is absolutely not a luxury, but more like the manna that was provided for the Israelites: it’s our daily bread, food for our souls. So, do whatever it takes to encounter him. Make the effort necessary. It’s what we were created for, and it’s the most important thing we can do in this life.

Guest Post: Victoria Way

I really think there is only a certain level of compassion a person can have from the outside looking in. Of course, your heart can be sad from a story that you hear or from things that you know are happening to innocent people in foreign places, but only to a certain extent. For instance, my heart is only able to be so heavy for the people of Syria—and I think it’s because there is just a new level of compassion to be had for people that you know personally. That’s what is happening to me here in Guatemala. What I thought was heartbreak before is nothing compared to the heartbreak I feel when I actually look the hurting people of this place in the eyes. Because there is something that happens to you when you get to know people. It changes everything.

While I’ve seen all kinds of illnesses since I’ve been here, this one patient continues to stick out in my mind. She was 18 years old, and her complaint was that she felt pain in her heart. Though this could have easily been a medical emergency, I quickly found out that the chest pain was due to sadness and anxiety from things that were going on in her life. Have you ever had a moment where it felt like a lightening bolt strikes all the way through you? That’s how I felt talking to this patient, and I know why. Because I’m not that far away from eighteen. Because I remember what it was like to be her age, and because I remember my biggest concerns being getting to class on time and what I was doing that weekend. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? When you’re 18, shouldn’t you be carefree? Not here, and not in many places. And, of course, I was never naïve enough to think otherwise, but it’s a different thing when you see it firsthand and suddenly have the overwhelming realization there is such a disparity between your life and hers. It wasn’t even so much this particular story of this particular patient as it was the whole wealth of people that she represented to me. How’s that for heartbreak #1 million.

Here are two silver linings to this story:

11.     She came to us, and for that she heard of the peace that God can provide and the hope that is found in Jesus. He is the only hope for all of us, no matter where you live or what you are doing. And I remembered that even though my life was so much easier at 18, I was essentially floating in the same boat as she is. A life apart from Christ is an empty life from every angle. I can only hope that the words we spoke to her sink in. For his yoke is easy, and his burden is light (Matthew 11:30).

22.     I delight in the fact that God is breaking my heart for the things that break his. My desire is to care deeply about the things that my heavenly Father cares about—so I can only pray that He keeps opening my eyes to see things as they really are.

As I think about this little girl more (though she’s not really so little), I remember how essential the Gospel is to every single person everywhere on the planet. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news” (Isaiah 52:7a). Please pray that we would continue to be those feet!

Guest Post: Victoria Way

As a newcomer to Canilla, I write this blog with fresh eyes after just seeing so much of this beautiful country and many of its people for the first time. Thus far during my days here, I’ve been given the opportunity to serve in the clinics that are held weekly. For anyone that knows me, this is more than my medicine loving heart knows what to do with. While I literally can’t get enough of interacting with patients and learning trademark signs and symptoms of certain illnesses, it’s more than just the medicine that I am so enthralled with. My spirit is well aware that physical life is so unimportant when lined up next to eternal life. Jesus doesn’t just get pushed to the side here. He’s the center of every single part of every single day. Mind=blown.

Each Sunday we hold clinic in San Andres (if you want to know where that is, everyone here will tell you its just over those mountains over there—all I know is it’s about 30 minutes up the road). On the ride there my first week, my new dear friends Leslie (supernurse) and Adrienne (organizational mastermind) forewarned me that this clinic was the more hectic of the one’s I’d been to. And it was. There were lots of people coming in and out all day, and it felt like we saw one hundred million patients. Some were super sick while others just needed someone to listen to them talk for a little while. Regardless of their reason for coming, each one was given love just the same. A few were prayed for, many were given medicines, but everyone was served with the love of Christ. It was such a reminder that even in the chaos, no matter the circumstances, Jesus can be shown to the least of these. That’s the only reason to do medicine at all.

There was one particular patient we saw who had broken her leg very badly several years ago. God chose to miraculously heal her, as her leg used to be about 3 inches shorter than the one that had not been broken due to the shattering of her bone. Though this miracle has taken place, she is still in disbelief. It saddened my heart to see her walking with crutches when I knew she could do otherwise. But when I dwelled on it some more, I realized how common this is to so many people. What are you and I letting hold us back even though God has set us free?

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17). What a humbling reminder to walk in the freedom that God has so graciously given to us. It’s a daily decision that has to be made, but that freedom is there waiting to be embraced every single day. I’m praying that this verse will sit in the forefronts of our minds as God allows us to be his hands and feet here in Guatemala.  

It's been a while....but we have two new grandchildren who safely arrived in the last two weeks! Thanks to God, both moms and both babies are healthy and beautiful!

Now that the babies are here, we find ourselves running from morning to night! With Katie on maternity leave and then afterward transitioning to director of the nursing school, I find myself again, managing clinics alone. I have lots of help from our Guatemalan assistants who are invaluable and from those who have come to help - Adrienne (biology teacher and an amazing manager/organizer) and Victoria (soon to be medical student who speaks Spanish) - so I am not really alone. Thursday we went up to our monthly clinic in Chumisa where we saw over 100 patients. As we were getting ready to leave and the first raindrops were beginning to fall (which makes the drive home slightly more treacherous!) another baby arrived who of course, was the sickest little one we had seen all day. He was breathing about 80 times a minute and his lips were blue. His lungs were filled with infection. We tried to give him the only thing we had to offer medically - an oral antibiotic - which he quickly vomited. We talked with his mom about how she needed to take him to the hospital as quickly as possible but she had to talk with her husband first. So we took her to her house and finally met her husband. After quite a bit of discussion, they decided to wait until they could borrow some money and then they would go - maybe - the next morning. My medical mind knew that he would probably not live until morning. But as we prayed that God would breath the breath of life into this little one, there was a flicker of hope that He would bring healing to these little lungs. I will not know the outcome until the next time we go up to Chumisa and possibly not even then, but I have to trust in that which I cannot see - a God who is so much bigger and more powerful and more loving than anything that I can even imagine - into His hands I trust this little one. I have to say that I didn't sleep much that night as I struggle trying to think of how else we could have helped this family but ultimately it becomes a matter of trust...
Isn't that how all of life is?

Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.  1 John 5:14, 15.

20 year old Maria (not her real name) came in yesterday for the second time in the last couple of months. She had lost more weight - was now down to 68 pounds. I knew that she had diabetes from her last visit. I also knew that she had not been taking her medicine. As I began to talk with her, trying to understand why she had not come back, why she was not taking care of herself, I began to realize that she was all alone. She lives in "the land of pigs" (affectionately named that because almost everyone there has big fat pigs living in their yards or on their porches) with her father. Her mother died many years ago and her father remarried. Maria had become the servant to her stepmother. She began to cry as she told me how her father said that it didn't really matter to him if she lived or died....that she was of no importance to him. He would not give her the Q12 (about $1.75) necessary to come to clinic.

Armando and I began to talk with her about her heavenly Father who would never reject her or leave her....that He would never withhold any good gift from her. She eagerly repeated the prayer of salvation with Armando and jumped up to hug me when I gave her a Bible.  We will give her a few hours of work each week so that she can pay for her bus fare to the clinic. That was the easy part...now we have to figure out how to do what Jesus asks of us....to make disciples. We encouraged her to go to the little church that is in her village but are not sure if there is a pastor there now. As Jesus said, "The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest." Matthew 9:37.

So if you think of it, pray for Maria....pray that she grows in the truth of her new faith; pray that she finds a church who will be to her what she needs now - a family;  and pray that the Lord heals her body. Thanks!

A few weeks ago, we were asked by our friends in Chumisa (the village that we have our monthly clinic in) to come to a party to celebrate the inauguration of the new clinic building. We knew this was going to be a big deal since the mayor from the main city that is over all the villages that make up the township of Joyabaj (including Chumisa) was going to be there as well. However, even knowing this, I was still surprised to hear the marimba music and the “bombas” (a sort of celebratory bomb that they use here to celebrate anything of importance) going off in the distance as we approached the village yesterday morning. We walked over the muddy trail that made up the end of the road we came in on and arrived at the small clearing that makes up this town’s “main square” to find people lined up along both sides of the road and all around the clinic building. The main attraction was definitely the stage which held the men that made up the band of marimba players, who appeared to have been entertaining the crowd with their playing for a few hours already. As we greeted and were greeted by both familiar and unfamiliar faces, we made our way to a few empty seats also facing the main stage, taking in the sights. Excitement was in the air, and a few men - who had already had way too much to drink - entertained everyone with their dancing as they swayed to the sound of the music. Others had cameras and video cameras ready (an odd sight to see in the middle of a mountainside out here), which they promptly turned on as the mayor arrived and the inauguration service began. The mayor gave a few words about the importance and blessing that the leaders there were for their community, Duane and Leslie both followed with a few words of appreciation for allowing us to partner with them and our desire to continue to do so, and the main leader in the village, Pedro, finished up with more words of appreciation for the partnership that has been established between us and them. This was then followed by a ceremonial cutting of the ribbon across the doors that led to the clinic rooms and then a meal to follow.

 

 

 

And overall, it was a fine party, but there was no denying the spiritual strongholds that still keep that area captive to darkness. From the cases of booze lined up along the road to the candles lit in honor of saints and gods that have provided for them, it was hard to miss the gaping hole that should have been Jesus.

 

These people have become very dear to our hearts over the years that we have worked there; the men are hard workers who advocate for and take care of their families and people, and the people are always grateful for anything that we offer them. But there is a spirit of bondage that is still very real there among the people, and as I have processed through it more in the time after we left, the well-known words of Isaiah 61 have come back to me… “The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners…” (emphasis mine)

Oh, that we may never take for granted the amazing freedom we have been given… and may we never ever lose our burden to see the lost around us come to know that same freedom in their own lives.

Gosh, a whole month has past since I posted last...this has been a busy month with lots of visitors and a couple of teams. Our schedule is finally returning to "normal". Our children, Joseph and Rachel, who have spent the last 6 months in the US, are home. They did a six month internship at IHOP, (the International House of Prayer - not pancakes!) praying from 11pm to 6am each night and attending classes during the day. They, along with David -who spent 3 months there, have returned with renewed faith and passion for Jesus. There is nothing that brings more joy to my heart than to see our children following hard after God. We are very, very grateful to Him because we know that it is only by His grace and mercy that our children are walking out their faith. I often remember those days when we made the decision to move our family here. We were met with such opposition from family and friends who feared that we were endangering our family by leaving our culture and the benefits of growing  up in the US. And then I remember all of the mistakes I made in raising them...and I know without a doubt that God has had His hand upon them.

Progress toward the acute care center continues. We have lab equipment coming soon. The dorm construction is coming together - the roof is almost ready to go on. The paperwork for the nursing school is in progress - although we ask for your prayers in this. We need favor with the Guatemalan government to get final approval to be able to start in January. The physical help that we need is beginning to come. Adrienne, our long time friend will come in August. She is an enormous help and has an ability to see what needs to be done often before we do. And we will begin to get to know the physicians who have committed to come, this fall. It is overwhelming if I think about it too much or think too much in the future. So I just take today....and rest in the knowledge that He is in control.
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:33

Flor, the young woman who works with us and who now does most of the prenatal ultrasounds, called me in yesterday to see a woman whose ultrasound did not "look right." We have known this woman over the years as a good mama who loves and cares for her children. She has seven children and was now pregnant with her 8th. Now in her sixth month, we could see that the baby's heart was not beating. There is always a moment of panic inside of me as I begin to pray, "how, Lord, do I tell this woman that her baby is dead?" It is said that there is no greater pain than to loose a child...I am sure that that is true. Sometimes women will know, they will sense, that something is wrong - but not this woman. I watched as she tried to process my words.... and we needed to repeat them several times. Finally, she said, "quiere ganas...." which roughly translates as "it takes courage." She did not scream or cry hysterically as some women within this culture do. But as we prayed, her silent tears flowed. Pray for her, pray that she has the courage to pass through the next few days and that the Lord will comfort her heart.
    "Fear not, for I have redeemed you:
    I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
    When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
        and when you pass though the rivers, they will not sweep over you.
    When you walk though the fire, you will not be burned;
       the flames will not set you ablaze.
    For I am the LORD, you God, the Holy One of Israel, you Savior...   Isaiah 43:2,3

the widows

Yesterday, Leslie had to go to a meeting in Chichicastenango, so Aaron, Flor, the kids and I went up to Chiminisiguan for the widows' meeting. Primarily these meetings are a time to encourage each other, pray together, and collect and pay for the baskets they have made, hand out their food, and then bring the baskets back home to organize them to go out to you all!

So, we started out the meeting yesterday with a time where each of the women shared one thing that they were thankful for. This is something new for these soft-spoken women, and honestly, I didn't even know if they would say anything. But, as each one of them shared, I was humbled once again by the responses I heard.

"I am thankful for my life and health."
"I am thankful that God always protects us."
"I am thankful for this group of women and the source of income and food it has provided for us."
"I am thankful for the rain that grows our corn."

As several of them highlighted their thankfulness for the rain, I was reminded at what a raw and foundational level these women live their lives at. One woman not only thanked God for the rain, but gave a little 10 minute reminder to all of us how we could not live without the rain... it is life.

As we left afterwards, I felt my own spirits greatly lifted. We are in a time of big transitions here, and sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in and overwhelmed by all the little details that it involves. But, God has always been faithful to take care of us - as He has each of these women. Yesterday, I was  reminded that often my stress and worry comes more from the fact that I have stopped thanking Him for the ways He has unconditionally provided for us each day with everything that we need - food, clothing, shelter, rain, etc. - and instead am too busy trying to figure out details and pieces of a puzzle that are way too big for me to ever figure out anyway. It is so often in my life here that I find I take away from these people so much more than I can ever hope to offer.

Here are some pics of the women and the baskets. If you would like more info on this program, the widows, or how you can purchase your own basket, please check out the website www.adonaiinternationalministries.org or contact Leslie at Fickerfam@gmail.com.

Happy Mother's Day!

Here, Mother's Day is celebrated May 10th, no matter what day of the week it falls on. This year, a women's group from a church in Chicago area donated beautifully scented lotions with a picture of the group and scripture attached to give out to the women who have children in our nutrition program. It was a joy to give these out to these women, who give and work so hard to provide for their families, usually completely unnoticed by anyone around them. We even got them to smile for some pictures - something that is very taboo in this culture!

Below are some pics and brief stories about just a few of the women we were able to hand these out to.


Here are the lotions, ready to go...

 Micaela, one of our translators, read the verse to each woman and explained that this was a gift just for them to enjoy!

 

These two mamas both have a set of twins each...

                                      ...and this mama has a set of triplets!

Thanks to the church who made it possible for us to bless these women this mother's day with such a special gift!

We were greeted this week in Chiminisijuan by a woman asking us to go to her house to see her brother-in-law who was too sick to walk to the clinic. It was a light day and we had extra help so we agreed to go. Duane drove us on the 4-wheeler as far as we could go and then we walked along the mountain side. It would have been a beautiful walk if I could have taken my eyes off of the narrow path in front of me. I always wonder how women with small children and a load of groceries make this kind of walk.... Anyway, we finally got to the house perched on the side of this same mountain. They had carved a small flat spot and built a 2 room adobe house. We walked into the dark room where Pedro was lying on a bed made of wooden slats. It was a small room - maybe 8x8 with 2 beds and all of their earthly belongings. There were chickens sitting on eggs in two of the four corners. Pedro was tucked in behind the door and was obviously very ill with a very serious illness - we guessed it to be cancer - with probable brain involvement. There was so little that we could do even if we could have some how gotten him to help. Truly his only hope is in Jesus. So we prayed and left him in the able hands of the Lord.

I am always struck by the harsh conditions that so many people here live in. I try to imagine what my life would be like if I had been born into circumstances like Pedro's. I can only imagine the amount of whining....  But then I begin to ponder on why...why was I blessed to be brought up with so much? Why have we been able to raise our children without worrying about where their next meal would come from? Why have we been given so much more than we deserve? And then I remember what Jesus said...that "from everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." So I surrender once again, all that I am, all that I have been given to His service, so grateful for this privilege to give.

Would you pray for Pedro? And would you pray also for 6 year old Yari who has been diagnosed with osteosarcoma (bone cancer) and is waiting today to see the oncologist in the City. There is only one hospital here in Guatemala for those who have cancer. It is so overcrowded, understaffed and under equipped that it is difficult to see how they might help this little one who has such an invasive illness. But we know that nothing is impossible with our God!

A month has gone by since I last wrote....where does to the time go? We made a brief trip to the US at the end March being home for Easter for the first time in 14 years. Before we left, the girls asked if they might be able to see snow. Well, not only did they see it but they had the biggest snow of the winter while we were there. It was so much fun to watch Grace and Abi experience life in the US. Abi, who never wears pants or a sweater even on the coldest days here, played in the snow for many hours, coming in just long enough to let her hands thaw. It was wonderful to see each of our children, spend time with our grandchildren and go to church during the Easter season.

We returned to Guatemala in time for the hottest, dustiest days of the year as we wait for signs of rain. The construction on the apartment is going well - they are just about ready to put the roof on. Clinics have been super busy since we have been home with lots of sick kids. Amazingly, we do not have any guests scheduled for this month and have been using the time to organize the clinic in preparation for government inspections of the "pharmacy". This is a requirement for both the nursing school which should be up an running by January and for us to be able to continue to purchase medication through the government.  All of this is preparation for what we believe God is asking of us....that we open a 24 hour care center. We are making small steps toward this vision that the Lord gave Duane many years ago but they are big steps of faith. We have no idea how it will all come together with some big pieces of the puzzle still missing (like finances, and medical staff) but we trust that in His timing all will come together. Please pray for us that we "might live a life worthy of the Lord and that we might please him in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God...that we might have great endurance and patience..."
Col. 1:11 (my paraphrase)

Chumisa is a small village at the top of the mountain where we have been working monthly, for about 3 years now. It is beautiful, cool, and always green. We worked for several months in an adobe hut with a dirt floor and beams so low that I (at 5'3") almost hit my head. It was quite a problem for those taller than I to work in! Later they moved us into a rented house that is dark and cold but at least we can work without hitting out heads. We carry all of our equipment and boxes of medications up each month and spend much of our day, scrambling through the boxes looking for just the right medication for each patient. So, when the community leaders approached us with a request to help them build a small clinic there, I was in whole-hearted agreement. We bought much of the block and cement needed for the project and they supplied the ground and all the man power. And they have worked very quickly - by this time next month we will be working in a new clinic - with light and power! I am pretty excited to be able to leave medications and some equipment there. And we are hoping to be able to work more frequently - at least every 2 weeks. We always see over 100 patients - which can be quite challenging when it is just Katie and I working!

There is alot of need in Chumisa. Each of our clinics is very different - and in this one we see so many diabetics. It is a challenge to teach people who eat 10 -15 tortillas at each meal to change their diets! Compliance is minimal because their understanding of the disease is limited. So much of our time goes into education. Almost all of the people are Mayan Catholic. Hearts are hardened toward the evangelical church and there are very few in the area. But we continue to pray and serve and love - trusting that God will do the work that only He can do in hearts.

God supplies seed to the planter. He supplies bread for food. God will also supply and increase the amount of your seed. He will increase the results of your good works. (2 Corinthians 9:10)
 

Our "season " has changed here, going from cool and dry to very hot and dry. We have not had any rain since October so the dust blows continually making it impossible to keep anything clean. I am not complaining though as I know many of you are anticipating yet another winter storm today. David's psalm has however, become my daily prayer...
O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you, my body long for you,
in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  Psalm 63:1

I see the weariness in the faces of the women. Last week as one of the women from Chiminisijuan brought her daughter in yet again, for the same infection, I saw it. She had not only her 9 year old daughter with her but the 3 year old who was burning with fever. He had walked the three hour walk with his mother who could not carry him except for short periods as she had the one year old baby strapped to her back. They were accompanied by her aunt who was sick with pneumonia and a large abdominal tumor.

I saw it again, as we asked the widows this week for prayer requests and the litany of problems too big for human strength flowed from these women. As we told the mama of 8 that she was now carrying twins...there it was again. It is a weariness that extends way past the physical fatigue to the deepest part of the soul. You know it, you have felt it...that weariness that only Jesus can lift.....Maranatha!

"The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing."  Psalm 145:14-16

Every once in a while, we have a day when it seems like all of the children are very sick. Yesterday was one of those days. It seemed as if each child was struggling to breath with respiratory infections. Of course, our nutrition children are the ones most affected. Because their nutritional status is so compromised, they are susceptible to any infection that comes along. Respiratory infections remain the number 1 killer of children here, followed by the dehydration that comes with diarrhea. We quickly used up all of our "stronger" antibiotics as we saw child after child with this - probably viral - infection. Once this supply was gone, we were scrambling to try and figure out what to do. We had one bottle of zithromax left but it was an adult dose. To scale that down to give to a child weighing about 20 pounds was....more math than my brain could handle. We made an "emergency" call to Katie's mom - who is a pharmacist. She quickly did  the calculations for us and we were rolling again!  

One little girl - Fabiola - was especially sick. I appealed to her mother to take her to the hospital as she really needed oxygen. But she is alone caring for her children as her husband abandoned her when Fabiola was born. So we prayed first, entrusting her to the care of the Great Physician, and then we gave her all the oral medications that we could. As always, when we have days like this, I spend most of the night in prayer for these little ones. Only He has the power to heal and to save....

I am grateful to have Don - and all of the Allison's - here for a few weeks to help. With the announcement that Rachael Needham will not be returning (see her blog at mountainofmyrrh.blogspot.com), I have felt a little overwhelmed with the load of responsibility. But He is always faithful to supply all that we need...and I have learned to just take today and know that His grace is sufficient for the day.
" My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecution, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9,10

Pedro is a young man who began to work for us several years ago. He is probably 18 now, born to alcoholic parents. We got to know his family when someone from town came and told us about how they were living and asked if we could help them. I went out with Tomas to find a family of 7 huddled under a piece of plastic that served as a roof. They had no food and had been asked to leave their last "home" because of the irresponsibility that comes with alcoholism. We gave them food and Pedro - who was probably 14 - began to work for  us. He hungrily accepted Jesus as his Savior early on and has continued to persevere on that path. He cannot read - never having the opportunity to go to school. His father never registered him with the government (kind of the equivalent to our social security). So he is unable to receive any help that the government offers - which isn't much but he is like a "non-person" - should he have any trouble with anyone, he is not recognized as having any rights, and now that he has a son, he cannot register his son as his own.  To be registered now would cost him several thousand quetzales in legal fees - which he does not have.

A few months ago, leaders from his village came and told us that we needed to let him go, that he had stolen some chickens, and they were expelling him from the village - which seemed a little harsh. We asked a couple of our indigenous workers to go out into the community to check it out - to find out what had really happened. They came back saying that what the leaders had said was true...that everyone said the same thing. But we prayed and waited. This young man had worked for us for several years by this time and had never stolen anything from us...and had had ample opportunity to do so. We have a group of 5 young men now who work together - all of them Christians - who watch over him and encourage him. As Duane does weekly devotions with them, Pedro has come several times, thanking Duane for giving him a chance, for accepting him when no one else would, and grateful to work with other young men who treat him as a brother, as a family that he never had.

During the Christmas season, Pedro came and asked Duane for some time off so that he could help his father-in-law make some adobes. Shortly after that, Antonio (another worker) came asking if we had heard from Pedro. He was very concerned, saying that Pedro had come and spent a fearful night with him, saying that 3 men were pursuing him with the intention to kill him. We did not hear anything for a couple of weeks but yesterday he showed up. As I drove in from clinic, I heard him with Duane, crying his heart out, telling him the story of how these men from his village have chased after him, driven him out of his home with his wife and infant son. We really have no idea what the truth is...lying is such a deeply embedded part of this culture. So we pray that the Lord will reveal the truth and give us wisdom.  Please pray for this young man who has, from the beginning of his young life, never had anyone to stand with him, to help him. Please pray that we as leaders have wisdom and discernment to do the right thing, to do the Godly thing.