As we approach our 10 year mark here in Guatemala, we have come to recognize that there are seasons of growth and expansion when God stretches us to our limits. Already this year, we are feeling that this is one of those times. We are being stretched in almost every area - in our work, our finances, our family and yet as always, God has been faithful. We have had so many visitors this month that we have had to turn some away as there was "no room in the inn". One of my greatest challenges each day is to figure out how many people will be eating at our table! Each one who comes brings giftings to share and words of encouragement and we are grateful for every single person who comes across our doorway. We are thankful for the help of the Allison's who have come alongside to shoulder the responsibility with us as the Lord stretches us.
Duane and my vacation to the Peten was a wonderful break in the routine and we were extravagantly blessed by the Gateway Church from Dallas. We met with several other missionary couples and had great fellowship and times of worship. The thing that really impressed us was their teaching about the need for a sabbath rest each week - that it is not optional - but necessary if we are to continue at the pace we find ourselves running this race. So we have made a commitment to ourselves and to our family to take a day a week to rest and spend time with the Lord. We are turning off the phones and asking the workers to take a day off as well. So far (2 weeks now) it has been great and we find ourselves feeling refreshed and ready to continue.
Yesterday in Chiminisijuan Craig and I hiked down to visit a young man who we had seen a couple of weeks ago. He was weak and had been unable to work for several weeks. We could find nothing physically wrong with him so we prayed for him and encouraged him as best we could. When we got to his home yesterday, he was not there. He had walked over the mountain to visit his mother- in -law. So, although exhausted as we hiked back up to the clinic, we were thankful that he now had the strength to make that walk. Then as we finished our clinic day, he appeared at the door asking us to visit a woman in labor. So we hiked to the other side of the mountain to see a very young woman named Candelaria who had been in labor since Sunday - so they said. She was having contractions but everything appeared normal until I asked where her husband was. She began to cry as her mother told us that she had no husband and that she did not want this baby. She was so young - maybe 15 at most - and as I watched her nervously play with her mother's apron, she looked so vulnerable and alone. She was a believer but because of her sin, she was not allowed into the church. We asked her if she would like to give her life to the Lord once again, and ask for his forgiveness. Through her tears, she rededicated her life to Jesus. As we left she smiled shyly. Today we await the news of the birth of her baby.
We had planned a day in San Pedro tomorrow but Sunday as Aaron checked over the plane, he noticed a crack in the elevator (the tail section). So we are down for the moment until Aaron can get it repaired. Thank God for an on-site mechanic! Regretfully we cancelled our trip to the Zona Riena but it will give us an extra day to prepare for the team which is coming from Guatemala City. They are coming from one of the largest churches in the City and will come to do an evangelistic event in the park here in Canilla and then a day of clinic. They will bring 3 doctors and a dentist and we anticipate seeing around 250 people that day. We hope that it will be the beginning of a long-term relationship with them.
Last Friday we had the privilege of hosting the first meeting of the Full Gospel Businessmen here in Canilla. We served dinner to about 40 men, many of whom were not Christians. Their purpose is to reach men who would not ordinarily go to church. And there are many here who have a desire to follow Jesus but because of the legalistic environment within the church community, they will not. They shared testimonies of the goodness and faithfulness of our God - it was really good!
I leave you with this today..."I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:3-6
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
serving those who serve
Each year our Pastor from the US comes to visit us here in Canilla. He doesn't stay long but his trips always bless our family and many Guatemaltecans. This year was no exception. Yesterday we were honored to have in our home not only Pastor Phil, Kent Henry (an amazing worship leader), and Joel (an amazing videographer) but 30 of the local pastors as well. The local people are always so good to serve and help us and it was a privilege to be able to serve them yesterday. We prepared a lunch for all of our visitors (which turned out to be more than 50), and afterwards Kent Henry led an awesome time of worship - some English and some Spanish. He is so gifted and able to get people beyond their inhibitions to really worship our Lord. Then Pastor Phil spoke with the pastors from Isaiah 54 about expanding their visions, and for some, how to begin to walk in the vision that God has already given them. In the evening we all went to 2 different church services in San Andres where Kent and Phil were able to minister there as well.
Early this morning, we received a call from the community leader in San Pedro. He said they had two children who were very ill and asked if we could come. We had wanted to take the pastors out anyway, so it was a perfect time for them to meet some of our friends there. We saw not only the 2 very sick children but several others as well. Please pray for little Henri who has had vomiting and bloody diarrhea for 7 days. He was very dehydrated (dehydration is the leading cause of death in children here). We will give him 24 hours to respond to the re hydration fluids and medications but if he is not better by tomorrow, we will fly out to take him into the hospital. While I worked, Duane and the pastors spent time praying and sharing a little bit of their faith with the people. We arrived home in time to eat a little lunch and send them off to the City for flights out early in the morning. It was a very fast, busy time but we are so grateful for their input and encouragement into our lives - and for their willingness to share with our Guatemalan friends as well. The pastors here work very hard with very little and we love to be able to encourage them.
Duane and I are counting down the days until next Thursday when we will take a mini-vacation to the Peten. We were contacted a few weeks ago by a pastor from Dallas who had heard about us from a mutual friend. He offered us a 3 day, all expense paid trip. Who does that?!!! It came at the perfect time and we know that it is a gift to us from God.
As always, I am amazed at how God works all things in our lives for our good. My children have heard me say a thousand times that when our lives are totally surrendered to Him, there are no accidents. I have to admit that there are times when I look at the steady stream of visitors in our home, the work in the clinics that grows each day, the added responsibility and challenge of two toddlers, and I think, "I cannot do this." And then I realize that He has surrounded me with people who have come to help, who want to help - from Katie and Aaron, to the Allison's, to our Guatemalan friends. And then He hands us a vacation too! May you have time to reflect on His goodness today in your own lives.
Early this morning, we received a call from the community leader in San Pedro. He said they had two children who were very ill and asked if we could come. We had wanted to take the pastors out anyway, so it was a perfect time for them to meet some of our friends there. We saw not only the 2 very sick children but several others as well. Please pray for little Henri who has had vomiting and bloody diarrhea for 7 days. He was very dehydrated (dehydration is the leading cause of death in children here). We will give him 24 hours to respond to the re hydration fluids and medications but if he is not better by tomorrow, we will fly out to take him into the hospital. While I worked, Duane and the pastors spent time praying and sharing a little bit of their faith with the people. We arrived home in time to eat a little lunch and send them off to the City for flights out early in the morning. It was a very fast, busy time but we are so grateful for their input and encouragement into our lives - and for their willingness to share with our Guatemalan friends as well. The pastors here work very hard with very little and we love to be able to encourage them.
Duane and I are counting down the days until next Thursday when we will take a mini-vacation to the Peten. We were contacted a few weeks ago by a pastor from Dallas who had heard about us from a mutual friend. He offered us a 3 day, all expense paid trip. Who does that?!!! It came at the perfect time and we know that it is a gift to us from God.
As always, I am amazed at how God works all things in our lives for our good. My children have heard me say a thousand times that when our lives are totally surrendered to Him, there are no accidents. I have to admit that there are times when I look at the steady stream of visitors in our home, the work in the clinics that grows each day, the added responsibility and challenge of two toddlers, and I think, "I cannot do this." And then I realize that He has surrounded me with people who have come to help, who want to help - from Katie and Aaron, to the Allison's, to our Guatemalan friends. And then He hands us a vacation too! May you have time to reflect on His goodness today in your own lives.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Do you ever have moments when you feel like you have been blessed way beyond anything that you deserve? That's how I felt this Christmas with all (well, almost all - Aaron and Katie were with Katie's family this year) of our children home. Watching little Jacob toddle around, seeing all of our children's faces at our table, working together in clinics and on airplanes and tractors, gave us so much joy. Of course, the down side to that is saying goodbye to each one. But it was great while it lasted!
We continued to hold clinic days throughout the week. We had a few emergencies as the government clinic was closed for the week but nothing too overwhelming. Tuesday after clinic in Chiminisijuan we were asked to visit a young man who had been sick with "a cough and fever for 3 weeks". We walked down - Duane estimates it to be a 2500 foot drop - to a little wood slat house where we found Dionel lying on the dirt floor. He is an 18 year old husband and father who would not look us in the eye. We could find nothing physically wrong with him - at least nothing obvious. He was so thin and looked so sad. He accepted Jesus as his savior 6 months ago. His wife said that a curse had been placed upon him at the beginning of his illness so we talked with him about the protection that we have in the blood of Jesus. We prayed with him, tried to encourage him but even as we left, he crawled back under his blanket to hide. We often find that people here have more faith in the power of demons that they do in the power of Jesus. Pray for him if you have a minute - he is an example of someone who is truly forgotten with no one to help him except Jesus.
The next couple of months will be very busy for us with lots of visitors. We are thankful that the Allison's are here to help us shoulder some of the responsibility for that. Next Thursday we will have our annual day to honor the local pastors. Pastor Phil Stern comes each year to encourage them with a teaching, some personal ministry and then we will serve a lunch. Our desire is to create an atmosphere of unity and encouragement to these men who serve here so faithfully and often without the gratitude of their congregations.
As we look to this New Year, we pray that you are blessed with health and peace and a closer walk with our Savior!
We continued to hold clinic days throughout the week. We had a few emergencies as the government clinic was closed for the week but nothing too overwhelming. Tuesday after clinic in Chiminisijuan we were asked to visit a young man who had been sick with "a cough and fever for 3 weeks". We walked down - Duane estimates it to be a 2500 foot drop - to a little wood slat house where we found Dionel lying on the dirt floor. He is an 18 year old husband and father who would not look us in the eye. We could find nothing physically wrong with him - at least nothing obvious. He was so thin and looked so sad. He accepted Jesus as his savior 6 months ago. His wife said that a curse had been placed upon him at the beginning of his illness so we talked with him about the protection that we have in the blood of Jesus. We prayed with him, tried to encourage him but even as we left, he crawled back under his blanket to hide. We often find that people here have more faith in the power of demons that they do in the power of Jesus. Pray for him if you have a minute - he is an example of someone who is truly forgotten with no one to help him except Jesus.
The next couple of months will be very busy for us with lots of visitors. We are thankful that the Allison's are here to help us shoulder some of the responsibility for that. Next Thursday we will have our annual day to honor the local pastors. Pastor Phil Stern comes each year to encourage them with a teaching, some personal ministry and then we will serve a lunch. Our desire is to create an atmosphere of unity and encouragement to these men who serve here so faithfully and often without the gratitude of their congregations.
As we look to this New Year, we pray that you are blessed with health and peace and a closer walk with our Savior!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Christmas traditons...
This month has certainly flown by! Here in this area of Guatemala, there are not a lot of preparations or advertisements for Christmas. No one has money to buy gifts, the story of the birth of Jesus is not really talked about much - even in the churches, and thankfully, no one knows who Santa Claus is! So we have tried to carve out our own traditions. For me, Christmas is a time to remember and to celebrate the fact that God loved us so much that He was willing to send His son - in the form of a baby, born to poor, humble parents. The fact that most of the people that we work with are poor and humble makes the story easy to relate to. Yesterday, we attempted to share that story with the people in Chiminisijuan. Even though we really didn't advertise, about 175 people came. The Bontrager family shared a little music and then Armando told the story of Jesus' birth in the manger. We did a coloring picture for them to take home - which we hope will help them remember the story. I love doing that sort of thing - what would normally be a children's activity is fun for everyone. I showed one older woman how to hold a marker for first time. She smiled with delight as we put glitter (gold!) around her work. We sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus, passed out cupcakes, apples and grapes (traditional Christmas food here), and everyone went home happy. Check out the Allison's blog for pictures - Caleb took lots!
Our Hannah came in on the 9th and joined us for 4 very busy days of clinic, including a day out to San Pedro where we saw about 250 people. She is a tremendous help in all of the clinics. Shortly after that the Bontrager family of 11 came in. They will stay for the months of January and February. They have come for several years and worked with Rosco (the other missionary here in Canilla who died a year ago). They have a real heart for the people here and have come to serve...very neat family. Yesterday they moved into a little adobe house that they will rent for their time here - along with the bus that they drove down from Michigan in! And today, Ryan, Katie and our grandson Jacob will arrive. Traditional Christmas celebrations here in Canilla take place at midnight with fireworks starting at dusk and lasting well into the night.
No matter how or where you celebrate this Christmas, may it be a day filled with peace and joy and may your New Year bring health, prosperity and a closer walk with our Savior!
Our Hannah came in on the 9th and joined us for 4 very busy days of clinic, including a day out to San Pedro where we saw about 250 people. She is a tremendous help in all of the clinics. Shortly after that the Bontrager family of 11 came in. They will stay for the months of January and February. They have come for several years and worked with Rosco (the other missionary here in Canilla who died a year ago). They have a real heart for the people here and have come to serve...very neat family. Yesterday they moved into a little adobe house that they will rent for their time here - along with the bus that they drove down from Michigan in! And today, Ryan, Katie and our grandson Jacob will arrive. Traditional Christmas celebrations here in Canilla take place at midnight with fireworks starting at dusk and lasting well into the night.
No matter how or where you celebrate this Christmas, may it be a day filled with peace and joy and may your New Year bring health, prosperity and a closer walk with our Savior!
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving here in Guatemala doesn't really feel like Thanksgiving. Today promises to be warm and sunny. There has been no television hype to prepare us, no one to say that we will have the weekend off, no college football to watch. But of all the holidays that we celebrate in the US, this is the one that I want my children to appreciate. A day set apart to remember all the good gifts that our Father has given us - how great is that! So today, I will bake a turkey with all the fixings. We traditionally invite all the North Americans who are in our area. This year there are only the Allisons - and we are thankfull that they have become like our family here.
Our weekend in the clinics was as busy as usual even though the fiestas are beginning here. Sunday was the start of the weeklong celebration in San Andres. It will begin the following week here in Canilla. We had to drive carefully to avoid all the men passed out drunk laying in the streets. We are thankful that we no longer live in town as the mirimbas play all night long, marked by the "bombas" which expode at frequent intervals, making sleep difficult.
Little Helen Diana (the baby with hydrocephalus that I wrote about last time) came in with her mother on Saturday. They spent several days in the City again, seeking someone who would help them with her - but to no avail. They did not repeat her CT scan, nor did they ever even get the chance to speak with a neurosurgeon. They asked her to return to see the dermatologist! I was so frustrated! However, through a series of "circumstances", we were able to speak with the pastor of a large church in the City who has said that they will help us help this family. We have asked them to help us connect Helen's family with a family there who is willing to help them navigate this system and provide them with a place to stay while they are there. Please remember to pray for them.
In the morning, we will travel out to the Zona Reina to do a day of clinic in San Pedro. It has been a while since the weather has cooperated enough for us to be able to fly out there. When Duane took Fredi (who had his cleft palate repair done 2 weeks ago) back to this village, he was met by the entire community who had worked all morning cutting the grass on the runway - with machetes! There were shouts of amazement and joy when they saw Fredi's repair. Silvia told us later that the community had wanted to get rid of this little baby, thinking that he brought a curse to them. For the first time, this Momma took the towel off of his face so that everyone could see him. Tomorrow we will meet another baby born with the same problem - along with many pregnant women and the sick children that they have asked us to see. Would you pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal the love of Jesus to these people?
Today as you celebrate Thanksgiving, we pray that the Lord would bless you and keep you in the palm of His hand!
Our weekend in the clinics was as busy as usual even though the fiestas are beginning here. Sunday was the start of the weeklong celebration in San Andres. It will begin the following week here in Canilla. We had to drive carefully to avoid all the men passed out drunk laying in the streets. We are thankful that we no longer live in town as the mirimbas play all night long, marked by the "bombas" which expode at frequent intervals, making sleep difficult.
Little Helen Diana (the baby with hydrocephalus that I wrote about last time) came in with her mother on Saturday. They spent several days in the City again, seeking someone who would help them with her - but to no avail. They did not repeat her CT scan, nor did they ever even get the chance to speak with a neurosurgeon. They asked her to return to see the dermatologist! I was so frustrated! However, through a series of "circumstances", we were able to speak with the pastor of a large church in the City who has said that they will help us help this family. We have asked them to help us connect Helen's family with a family there who is willing to help them navigate this system and provide them with a place to stay while they are there. Please remember to pray for them.
In the morning, we will travel out to the Zona Reina to do a day of clinic in San Pedro. It has been a while since the weather has cooperated enough for us to be able to fly out there. When Duane took Fredi (who had his cleft palate repair done 2 weeks ago) back to this village, he was met by the entire community who had worked all morning cutting the grass on the runway - with machetes! There were shouts of amazement and joy when they saw Fredi's repair. Silvia told us later that the community had wanted to get rid of this little baby, thinking that he brought a curse to them. For the first time, this Momma took the towel off of his face so that everyone could see him. Tomorrow we will meet another baby born with the same problem - along with many pregnant women and the sick children that they have asked us to see. Would you pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal the love of Jesus to these people?
Today as you celebrate Thanksgiving, we pray that the Lord would bless you and keep you in the palm of His hand!
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Tractors, Planes, and Clinic Buildings
As the cold winds come in and the dust and brown so characteristic of the dry season start to settle into place, we have also found ourselves starting back in on outside work that can be done without the needed shelter during the rainy season.
Last week David and Juanito (our Guatemalan friend who helps out with construction, especially the welding work) were able to help out some of the guys in town when the canal became blocked due to rocks that had fallen in it during the heavy rains. The canal, which was put in place several years ago by a European company, is the main supply of water during the dry season as it travels from the mountins and down throughout the town of Canilla. They were able to work on it for a couple days with about 10 other men using lots of cables and pulleys and one chain hoist to lift out 3 huge rocks. Although they tried to remind us how much work it was, we knew that they had a fun time, and it was great to be able to use the equipment we have to be able to help out a project that would have taken these guys days to do by hand.
David and Juanito have also been working hard on the clinic in Chiminisijuan, working to get a fence built completely around it as we have had trouble with tools and other supplies being taken. It has been encouraging to all of us to see the construction coming along again on this building; we were able to spend a day up there a few weeks ago, and it reminded all of us of the various dreams that God laid on our hearts for this building outside of the weekly use it gets for clinics. Please continue to pray for the hearts of the people up there as they are very very slow to trust anyone, let alone us gringos.
Aaron has been working on the Aztec which is now almost complete and ready for the propellors. Duane hopes to fly up to Brownsville with Joseph in the next few weeks to get the props and bring them back. After that we will just be waiting on the paint, and then it should be up and running shortly. Aaron has also been able to help out a missionary friend of ours recently by doing an annual insepction on his airplane. This is his second annual (including our Cessna) he has gotten to perform since getting his Inspection Authorization, and he has not only enjoyed the work itself, but also being able to help out another missionary.
Duane and Joe have also gotten to get in a lot of airplane time these past couple weeks between medical flights and a few flights these past few days for speakers at a church conference in Guatemala City and a couple other towns in the country. Included in the medical flights was little Fredi from San Pedro who returned to his village on Thursday after a successful cleft palate surgery! We continue to thank God for His provision of safety as we travel by plane and on often less-than-ideal road conditions.
Last week David and Juanito (our Guatemalan friend who helps out with construction, especially the welding work) were able to help out some of the guys in town when the canal became blocked due to rocks that had fallen in it during the heavy rains. The canal, which was put in place several years ago by a European company, is the main supply of water during the dry season as it travels from the mountins and down throughout the town of Canilla. They were able to work on it for a couple days with about 10 other men using lots of cables and pulleys and one chain hoist to lift out 3 huge rocks. Although they tried to remind us how much work it was, we knew that they had a fun time, and it was great to be able to use the equipment we have to be able to help out a project that would have taken these guys days to do by hand.
David and Juanito have also been working hard on the clinic in Chiminisijuan, working to get a fence built completely around it as we have had trouble with tools and other supplies being taken. It has been encouraging to all of us to see the construction coming along again on this building; we were able to spend a day up there a few weeks ago, and it reminded all of us of the various dreams that God laid on our hearts for this building outside of the weekly use it gets for clinics. Please continue to pray for the hearts of the people up there as they are very very slow to trust anyone, let alone us gringos.
Aaron has been working on the Aztec which is now almost complete and ready for the propellors. Duane hopes to fly up to Brownsville with Joseph in the next few weeks to get the props and bring them back. After that we will just be waiting on the paint, and then it should be up and running shortly. Aaron has also been able to help out a missionary friend of ours recently by doing an annual insepction on his airplane. This is his second annual (including our Cessna) he has gotten to perform since getting his Inspection Authorization, and he has not only enjoyed the work itself, but also being able to help out another missionary.
Duane and Joe have also gotten to get in a lot of airplane time these past couple weeks between medical flights and a few flights these past few days for speakers at a church conference in Guatemala City and a couple other towns in the country. Included in the medical flights was little Fredi from San Pedro who returned to his village on Thursday after a successful cleft palate surgery! We continue to thank God for His provision of safety as we travel by plane and on often less-than-ideal road conditions.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Faithfulness
As Duane said this week, our lives are like a roller coaster ride - somedays up and some down but always God is faithful. Last week I wrote that the social worker came to evaluate our home for Abi's adoption. We thought this a very good thing. However this week, our lawyer called to say that the judge (whose signature we need before we can proceed any further) was threatening to take Abi out of our home and place her in an orphanage. The social worker's recommendation to us (as she is a friend of our lawyer's) was to hide if anyone came to our door. The judge had no legal grounds to do this and there was talk that she wanted money. We were scared and prepared to take Abi out the back door should anyone come. And we prayed - alot! Early the next day, the PGN (the government agency which gives final approval for all adoptions) called to set up an appointment with us to sign a resolution saying that Abi is to stay in our home until the final paperwork is done. To have them call us was an enormous miracle - we waited months to see them to finalize Grace's adoption. God is so faithful - I don't know why it always surprises me when He does what He does! As a result of this judge's harrassment, we think the adoption will go much faster now - they had to move our paperwork to the top of the pile!
All 5 of our cleft lip babies will have their surgeries this week - 3 on Monday, 2 on Tuesday. Please remember to pray for them. Duane flew out yesterday morning to bring little Fredi in from the Zona Reina but the weather was too bad so they will make the very long bus trip into Antigue. We are so grateful to our friends at ASELSI who have organized all of the details of not one, but two trips into Antigue for this; and to Agape in Action who have helped to offset the costs. Once again, God is faithful to provide!
Clinics were pretty routine this weekend. San Andres was unusually quiet. Preparations are being made for the anual celebration to Saint Andrew, the patron saint of San Andres and the corn god. It will be a weeklong celebration marked by Mayan ritual and drunkeness - not our favorite time of year! Canilla will celebrate two weeks later. Here, there is less Mayan influence but the drunkeness and sexual sins will be no less distressing.
Would you pray for a 3 month old baby girl named Helen? She was born normally here in Canilla but within days after her birth a large hemangioma (birthmark) began to grow over the right side of her face and head. She was in the hospital in Quiche for a few days and then sent to the City where they spent all of their money and were never actually seen by anyone who could help them. They returned home, the growth of this hemangioma continued until her lip broke down to the point where she could no longer nurse. That is when we began to help her as we would a cleft lip baby - with formula and special bottles. In the last 2 weeks we have noticed that her head is growing too fast and believe that she now has hydrocephalus. She needs surgery asap so we will take her into the City in the morning and try to help them navigate through the frustrating maze of the national healthcare system. I cannot explain how distressing it is to know what someone needs, to know that it is available but to have no idea how to help them get that help.
And so throughout rollercoster ups and downs of life, God's amazing faithfulness has remained evident. We praise Him today and thank Him again for His constant provisions in our lives.
All 5 of our cleft lip babies will have their surgeries this week - 3 on Monday, 2 on Tuesday. Please remember to pray for them. Duane flew out yesterday morning to bring little Fredi in from the Zona Reina but the weather was too bad so they will make the very long bus trip into Antigue. We are so grateful to our friends at ASELSI who have organized all of the details of not one, but two trips into Antigue for this; and to Agape in Action who have helped to offset the costs. Once again, God is faithful to provide!
Clinics were pretty routine this weekend. San Andres was unusually quiet. Preparations are being made for the anual celebration to Saint Andrew, the patron saint of San Andres and the corn god. It will be a weeklong celebration marked by Mayan ritual and drunkeness - not our favorite time of year! Canilla will celebrate two weeks later. Here, there is less Mayan influence but the drunkeness and sexual sins will be no less distressing.
Would you pray for a 3 month old baby girl named Helen? She was born normally here in Canilla but within days after her birth a large hemangioma (birthmark) began to grow over the right side of her face and head. She was in the hospital in Quiche for a few days and then sent to the City where they spent all of their money and were never actually seen by anyone who could help them. They returned home, the growth of this hemangioma continued until her lip broke down to the point where she could no longer nurse. That is when we began to help her as we would a cleft lip baby - with formula and special bottles. In the last 2 weeks we have noticed that her head is growing too fast and believe that she now has hydrocephalus. She needs surgery asap so we will take her into the City in the morning and try to help them navigate through the frustrating maze of the national healthcare system. I cannot explain how distressing it is to know what someone needs, to know that it is available but to have no idea how to help them get that help.
And so throughout rollercoster ups and downs of life, God's amazing faithfulness has remained evident. We praise Him today and thank Him again for His constant provisions in our lives.
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